Locomotion of C. elegans in Structured Environments

Abstract

Undulatory locomotion of microorganisms like soil-dwelling worms and spermatozoa, in structured environments, is ubiquitous in nature. They navigate complex environments consisting of fluids and obstacles, negotiating hydrodynamic effects and geometrical constraints. Here, we show fluid dynamics videos of experiments and simulations of {\textit {C. elegans}} moving in an array of micro-pillars. In addition, we show a video of transition from swimming to crawling in drop of {\textit {C. elegans}}, where the fluid is wicking into agar.

Includes video movies for APS DFD Gallery of Fluid Motion