Plays a role in RNA-mediated gene silencing by mediating endocytic uptake of double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) ingested from the environment into intestinal cells from the intestinal lumen. Selective for dsRNAs of at least 50 bp. Required for avoidance behavior induced by small RNAs derived from pathogenic bacteria such as P.aeruginosa (PubMed:32908307). Localizes to the apical membrane of intestinal cells and also to punctate cytoplasmic structures. Expressed in the intestinal lumen. Also present, at lower levels, in the excretory duct cells. The extracellular domain is necessary for the uptake of dsRNA. The avoidance behavior is transgenerationally inherited, and thus progeny display this same aversion despite never having been exposed to this pathogenic bacteria.