Fig. 4. VC and VC-like neurons in pag-3 mutants. (A-F) Anterior is leftwards, and ventral is downwards. (A) Wild-type hermaphrodite stained with antiserum against the neuropeptide FMRFamide, which is expressed by the VC motoneurons. The three VC motoneurons anterior to the vulva are indicated, with a detailed view of the inset containing VC3 shown in C. In C, FMRFamide staining is visible in the cytoplasm surrounding the VC3 nucleus; nuclei are stained with DAPI. (B) pag-3(n3098) hermaphrodite stained with antiserum against the neuropeptide FMRFamide. Seven FMRFamide-positive nuclei anterior to the vulva are shown, with a detailed view of the inset shown in (D). (E-G) A chromosomally integrated P_lin-11gfp reporter, nIs106, was used to determine the number of VC and VC-like neurons in wild-type and pag-3 mutant animals. In wild-type animals, the P_lin-11gfp reporter is expressed in vulval cells and some head neurons, as well as in the six VC motoneurons (Freyd, 1991). (E) Adult nIs106 hermaphrodite. VC motoneuron nuclei are indicated. Vulval fluorescence obscures one and often two of the VC nuclei that flank the vulva (VC4 and VC5) (White et al., 1976), as in this image of a wild-type animal in which the VC4 nucleus is not visible. (F) Adult nIs106 pag-3(n3098) hermaphrodite. (G) Number of fluorescent nuclei seen in the ventral cords of adult hermaphrodites. pag-3(ls64) is R115opal (Jia et al., 1997). No attempt was made to count nuclei obscured by vulval fluorescence.