Two sides to every coin: reciprocal introgression line populations in Caenorhabditis elegans

Abstract

Quantitative genetics seeks to understand the role of allelic variation in trait differences. Introgression lines (ILs) contain a single genetic locus introgressed into another genetic background, and are one of the most powerful quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping designs. However, albeit useful for QTL discovery, this homogenous background confounds genetic interactions. Here, we created an IL population with N2 segments in a CB4856 background (ILCB4856), reciprocal to an N2 background with CB4856 introgressions population (ILN2). The ILCB4856 panel comprises a population of 145 strains with sequencing confirmed N2 introgressions in a CB4856 background. A core set of 87 strains covering the entire genome was selected. We present three experiments demonstrating the power of the reciprocal IL panels. First, we performed QTL mapping identifying new regions associated with lifespan. Second, the existence of opposite-effect loci regulating heat-stress survival is demonstrated. Third, by combining ILN2 and ILCB4856 strains, an interacting expression QTL was uncovered. In conclusion, the reciprocal IL panels are a unique and ready-to-use resource to identify, resolve, and refine complex trait architectures in C. elegans.