Using four unrelated strains of the microscopic nematode C. elegans originating from different parts of the world, a group of worm biologists have developed a model system to study individual differences in metabolism. The use of C. elegans, a widely studied model organism, allowed the team to study the unique and complex interplay between genetics, diet, microbiota and other environmental factors that can affect fundamental metabolic processes in different individuals. This advancement represents a potentially important step toward “personalized” or “precision” medicine, a relatively new discipline that tailors dietary advice and disease treatment to an individual’s own genome sequence.
The research, by Marian Walhout, PhD, the Maroun Semaan Chair in Biomedical Research and chair and professor of systems biology at UMass Chan Medical School and collaborators Erik Andersen, PhD, from…
