Culture regime as an experimental variable in Caenorhabditis elegans: Cross-format evidence, reproducibility constraints, and proposed minimum reporting framework.
4 affiliations
- 1Department of Biophysics, School of Medicine, Bahcesehir University, Istanbul, 34734, Türkiye.
- 2Department of Medical Biology, Institute of Graduate Studies, Istanbul University-Cerrahpasa, Istanbul, 34098, Türkiye.
- 3Department of Bioengineering, Yildiz Technical University, Istanbul, 34349, Türkiye.
- 4Department of Medical Biology, School of Medicine, Yalova University, Yalova, 77200, Türkiye.
Abstract
Caenorhabditis elegans is widely used in genetics, neurobiology, aging, toxicology, host-microbe research, and whole-animal screening, yet culture conditions are often treated as technical details rather than biologically active variables. Solid agar-based and liquid suspension systems expose animals to different spatial, nutritional, mechanical, and physicochemical environments that can influence locomotion, feeding, metabolism, stress responses, development, gene expression, and experimental reproducibility. This critical narrative review compares the principles, advantages, limitations, and applications of these two major culture regimes and evaluates how culture-dependent variables affect biological interpretation. Solid systems provide spatial organization, localized chemical and microbial cues, and high individual-level resolution, making them particularly suitable for behavioral, developmental, neurobiological, and longitudinal studies. Liquid systems facilitate more readily standardized population density, nutrient and compound exposure, synchronized biomass production, molecular analyses, automation, and high-throughput screening. However, they introduce specific sources of variability associated with swimming, oxygenation, agitation, vessel geometry, and population density. Comparative and recent studies indicate that culture and exposure conditions can alter the magnitude and, in some cases, the detectability of biological and toxicological phenotypes. Emerging approaches incorporating microfluidics, defined media, automated imaging, and controlled microbial environments increasingly combine features of both formats while improving experimental precision. We therefore propose that solid and liquid systems should be considered complementary regimes that should not be assumed to be biologically equivalent. Deliberate culture selection and comprehensive reporting of culture conditions are important for reproducibility, cross-platform comparability, and mechanistic interpretation in C. elegans research.
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BibTeX
@article{dinc2026culture,
title = {{Culture regime as an experimental variable in Caenorhabditis elegans: Cross-format evidence, reproducibility constraints, and proposed minimum reporting framework.}},
author = {Bircan Dinc and Rola Zahedah and Yigit Arda Gedik and Nefel Tuzun and Yagiz Cangal and Semra Erol},
journal = {Biology methods \& protocols},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1093/biomethods/bpag055},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42904287},
note = {CC BY-NC},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Culture regime as an experimental variable in Caenorhabditis elegans: Cross-format evidence, reproducibility constraints, and proposed minimum reporting framework.
AU - Bircan Dinc
AU - Rola Zahedah
AU - Yigit Arda Gedik
AU - Nefel Tuzun
AU - Yagiz Cangal
AU - Semra Erol
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/08
JO - Biology methods & protocols
DO - 10.1093/biomethods/bpag055
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42904287
AB - Caenorhabditis elegans is widely used in genetics, neurobiology, aging, toxicology, host-microbe research, and whole-animal screening, yet culture conditions are often treated as technical details rather than biologically active variables. Solid agar-based and liquid suspension systems expose animals to different spatial, nutritional, mechanical, and physicochemical environments that can influence locomotion, feeding, metabolism, stress responses, development, gene expression, and experimental reproducibility. This critical narrative review compares the principles, advantages, limitations, and applications of these two major culture regimes and evaluates how culture-dependent variables affect biological interpretation. Solid systems provide spatial organization, localized chemical and microbial cues, and high individual-level resolution, making them particularly suitable for behavioral, developmental, neurobiological, and longitudinal studies. Liquid systems facilitate more readily standardized population density, nutrient and compound exposure, synchronized biomass production, molecular analyses, automation, and high-throughput screening. However, they introduce specific sources of variability associated with swimming, oxygenation, agitation, vessel geometry, and population density. Comparative and recent studies indicate that culture and exposure conditions can alter the magnitude and, in some cases, the detectability of biological and toxicological phenotypes. Emerging approaches incorporating microfluidics, defined media, automated imaging, and controlled microbial environments increasingly combine features of both formats while improving experimental precision. We therefore propose that solid and liquid systems should be considered complementary regimes that should not be assumed to be biologically equivalent. Deliberate culture selection and comprehensive reporting of culture conditions are important for reproducibility, cross-platform comparability, and mechanistic interpretation in C. elegans research.
SN - 2396-8923
ER -