Fig. 1. rac double mutants display defects in PDE axon pathfinding. Fluorescence micrographs of PDE neurons visualized using the integrated osm-6::gfp transgene lqIs3 are shown. Anterior is towards the left. In A-D,G, dorsal is upwards. (E-F) Ventral aspects showing PDE axons in the ventral nerve cord (VNC). (A,B) PDE neurons in wild-type animals. (A) The left PDE cell body is indicated with an arrow. The VNC is indicated with arrowheads. The amphid and phasmid ganglia of the head and tail, respectively, are shown. The V indicates the position of the vulva. The out-of-focus spot to the left of the PDE is the out-of-focus PDE cell body from the right side of the animal. (B) A single, unbranched PDE axon extended ventrally in the post-deirid commisure to the VNC, where the axon bifurcated and extended anteriorly and posteriorly in the VNC (arrowheads). A single, unbranched dendrite with an exposed, ciliated tip extended dorsally from the PDE cell body. The broken line indicates the out-of-focus PDE axons in the VNC. (C,D) The PDE axons of ced-10(M+); mig-2 animals. (C) The PDE axon failed to reach the VNC (arrowheads) and wandered along the lateral body wall. (D) The PDE axon bifurcated prematurely before reaching the VNC (arrowheads) and the axons extended anteriorly and posteriorly along the lateral body wall. (E) Wild-type PDE axons formed a tight bundle in the VNC as they extended anteriorly and posteriorly. (F) The PDE axons of a ced-10(M+); mig-2 animal were defasciculated and terminated prematurely in the ventral cord. (G) The PDE axon displayed an ectopic branch (arrow). Scale bar: 20 µm in A; 10 µm in B-G.

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