Judith Kimble Caenorhabditis elegans . Judith Kimble studies valregulatory mechanisms that govern growth, patterning, and morphogenesis during development of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans .
Animal development is a remarkable feat of biological regulation.
To investigate this basic regulatory problem, we are using the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans as a model system. With its powerful genetics, simple anatomy, and complete genome sequence, this small roundworm is an ideal organism for the analysis of developmental controls. The germline tissue is specialized to make sperm or oocytes, and ultimately to create the next generation. Despite the importance of this tissue, remarkably little is known about how it is regulated to grow and differentiate. The C. elegans germline tissue develops from two precursor cells set aside during embryogenesis to a thousand or more germline cells in the adult.