title: Caenorhabditis elegans life span studies: the challenge of maintaining synchronous cohorts.
abstract: Due to its many advantages, the nematode worm Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) is commonly employed as a convenient model for aging studies as well as for testing life span effects of chemical compounds. However, some challenges exist in the context of such life span studies, particularly in relation to generation and maintenance of synchronized cohorts, and these challenges are not always fully appreciated. Here we discuss the impact of incomplete control of nematode proliferation on life span studies and suggest some solutions to minimize these artefacts.
authors.affiliation: Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, Department of Biochemistry, Neurobiology and Ageing Programme, National University of Singapore, Singapore.
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gruber
authors.forename: Suresh Kumar
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Poovathingal
authors.forename: Sebastian
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Schaffer
authors.forename: Li Fang
authors.initials: LF
authors.lastname: Ng
authors.forename: Rudiyanto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Gunawan
authors.forename: Barry
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Halliwell
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000818:Animals; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D017238:Genes, Helminth / Q000502:physiology; D008136:Longevity / Q000502:physiology*; D023421:Models, Animal; D013997:Time Factors