Neuronal temperature perception induces specific defenses that enable to cope with the enhanced reactivity of hydrogen peroxide at high temperature.

Hydrogen peroxide is the most common reactive chemical that organisms face on the microbial battlefield. The rate with which hydrogen peroxide damages biomolecules required for life increases with temperature, yet little is known about how organisms cope with this temperature-dependent threat. Here, we show that nematodes use temperature information perceived by sensory neurons to cope with the temperature-dependent threat of hydrogen peroxide produced by the pathogenic bacterium .

processes sensory information to choose between freeloading and self-defense strategies.

Hydrogen peroxide is the preeminent chemical weapon that organisms use for combat. Individual cells rely on conserved defenses to prevent and repair peroxide-induced damage, but whether similar defenses might be coordinated across cells in animals remains poorly understood. Here, we identify a neuronal circuit in the nematode that processes information perceived by two sensory neurons to control the induction of hydrogen peroxide defenses in the organism.