Drivers of metallothionein-mediated detoxification of cadmium in C.elegans

Cadmium is toxic and intricate pathways linked to metallothioneins (MT) drive the detoxification process. Whist the mechanisms are well understood in mammalian systems, detailed knowledge is still elusive in invertebrates (which notably differ to mammalian systems). The model nematode Caenorhabditis elegans is ideally suited for assessing metallothionein mediates detoxification in invertebrates as is relatively short-lived, can be easily exposed and its genome is fully sequenced and widely annotated. The aim of the experiment was to identify new MT mediated target genes involved in Cd toxicosis. The global transcriptome was compared in wild type and a MT double knockout strain raised in the presence or absence of 30 µM Cd.