title: Locomotion-learning behavior relationship in Caenorhabditis elegans following gamma-ray irradiation.
abstract: Learning impairment following ionizing radiation (IR) exposure is an important potential risk in manned space missions. We previously reported the modulatory effects of IR on salt chemotaxis learning in Caenorhabditis elegans. However, little is known about the effects of IR on the functional relationship in the nervous system. In the present study, we investigated the effects of gamma-ray exposure on the relationship between locomotion and salt chemotaxis learning behavior. We found that effects of pre-learning irradiation on locomotion were significantly correlated with the salt chemotaxis learning performance, whereas locomotion was not directly related to chemotaxis to NaCl. On the other hand, locomotion was positively correlated with salt chemotaxis of animals which were irradiated during learning, and the correlation disappeared with increasing doses. These results suggest an indirect relationship between locomotion and salt chemotaxis learning in C. elegans, and that IR inhibits the innate relationship between locomotion and chemotaxis, which is related to salt chemotaxis learning conditioning of C. elegans.
authors.affiliation: Microbeam Radiation Biology Group, Japan Atomic Energy Agency, Takasaki, Gunma, Japan. sakashita.tetsuya@jaea.go.jp
authors.forename: Tetsuya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sakashita
authors.forename: Nobuyuki
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Hamada
authors.forename: Daisuke D
authors.initials: DD
authors.lastname: Ikeda
authors.forename: Michiyo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Suzuki
authors.forename: Sumino
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yanase
authors.forename: Naoaki
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ishii
authors.forename: Yasuhiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kobayashi
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000528:radiation effects; D002633:Chemotaxis / Q000528:radiation effects; D005720:Gamma Rays; D007858:Learning / Q000528:radiation effects*; D008124:Locomotion / Q000528:radiation effects*; D012492:Salts
chemical_list: D012492:Salts