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Jiang L, Wang X, Zhang D, Yee Yuen KW, Tse YC. RSU-1 regulates the integrity of dense bodies in muscle cells of aging Caenorhabditis elegans. iScience 2024; 27:109854. [PMID: 38784006 PMCID: PMC11112334 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.109854] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2023] [Revised: 03/19/2024] [Accepted: 04/26/2024] [Indexed: 05/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Muscle contraction is vital for animal survival, and the sarcomere is the fundamental unit for this process. However, the functions of many conserved sarcomere proteins remain unknown, as their mutants do not exhibit obvious defects. To address this, Caenorhabditis elegans was utilized as a model organism to investigate RSU-1 function in the body wall muscle. RSU-1 is found to colocalize with UNC-97 at the dense body and M-line, and it is particularly crucial for regulating locomotion in aging worms, rather than in young worms. This suggests that RSU-1 has a specific function in maintaining muscle function during aging. Furthermore, the interaction between RSU-1 and UNC-97/PINCH is essential for RSU-1 to modulate locomotion, preserve filament structure, and sustain the M-line and dense body throughout aging. Overall, these findings highlight the significant contribution of RSU-1, through its interaction with UNC-97, in maintaining proper muscle cell function in aging worms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ling Jiang
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Kadoorie Biological Sciences Building, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong, China
- School of Life Sciences, Department of Biology, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen 518055, China
| | - Xinyan Wang
- Core Research Facilities, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen 518055, China
| | - Dandan Zhang
- School of Life Sciences, Department of Biology, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen 518055, China
| | - Karen Wing Yee Yuen
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Kadoorie Biological Sciences Building, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong, China
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Southampton, Life Sciences Building (Building 85), Highfield Campus, Southampton SO17 1BJ, UK
| | - Yu Chung Tse
- School of Life Sciences, Department of Biology, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen 518055, China
- Core Research Facilities, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen 518055, China
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2
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Kumar S, Akhila PV, Suchiang K. Hesperidin ameliorates Amyloid-β toxicity and enhances oxidative stress resistance and lifespan of Caenorhabditis elegans through acr-16 mediated activation of the autophagy pathway. Free Radic Biol Med 2023; 209:366-380. [PMID: 37913913 DOI: 10.1016/j.freeradbiomed.2023.10.408] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2023] [Revised: 10/26/2023] [Accepted: 10/27/2023] [Indexed: 11/03/2023]
Abstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most prevalent neurodegenerative disease in aged populations. Aberrant amyloid-beta accumulation is a common pathological feature in AD patients. Dysfunction of autophagy and impairment of α7nAChR functioning are associated with enhanced amyloid-beta (Aβ) accumulation in AD patients. Hesperidin, a flavone glycoside found primarily in citrus species, is known to have anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and neuroprotective effects. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms of hesperidin as an antiaging and anti-Aβ phytochemical were unclear. In this study, we found that hesperidin upregulates the acr-16 expression level in C. elegans as evidenced by increased GFP-tagged ACR-16 and GFP-tagged pmyo-3:ACR-16 expression in muscle and ventral nerve cord. Further, hesperidin upregulates the autophagy genes in wild-type N2, evident by increased GFP-tagged LGG-1 foci. However, hesperidin failed to upregulate the autophagy genes level in acr-16 mutant worms that suggests autophagy activation is mediated through acr-16. In addition, hesperidin showed antiaging and anti-oxidative effects, as evidenced by positive changes in different markers necessary for health span and lifespan. Additionally, hesperidin could upregulate acr-16 and autophagy genes (lgg-1 & bec-1) and ameliorates Aβ-induced toxicity as observed with reduce ROS accumulation, paralysis rate, and enhanced lifespan even in worms AD model CL4176 and CL2006 strain. Our finding suggests that hesperidin significantly enhances oxidative stress resistance, prolongs the lifespan, and protects against Aβ-induced toxicity in C. elegans. Thus, acr-16 mediated autophagy and antioxidation is associated with anti-aging and anti-Aβ effect of hesperidin.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sandeep Kumar
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Pondicherry University, Puducherry, 605014, India.
| | - P V Akhila
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Pondicherry University, Puducherry, 605014, India
| | - Kitlangki Suchiang
- Department of Biochemistry, North Eastern Hill University, Shillong, Meghalaya, 793022, India.
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Zwirchmayr J, Cruz CD, Grienke U, Tammela P, Rollinger JM. Biochemometry identifies ostruthin as pluripotent antimicrobial and anthelmintic agent from masterwort. iScience 2023; 26:107523. [PMID: 37636068 PMCID: PMC10457539 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.107523] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2023] [Revised: 05/07/2023] [Accepted: 07/28/2023] [Indexed: 08/29/2023] Open
Abstract
The root extract of Peucedanum ostruthium (PO-E) was identified as a promising antibacterial source from a screening of 158 extracts against Staphylococcus aureus. It has also recently been shown to significantly decrease the survival of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. We used the biochemometric approach ELINA to investigate the phytochemical characteristics of the multicomponent mixture PO-E to identify the anti-infective constituent(s) targeting S. aureus and C. elegans.1H NMR spectra of PO-E-derived microfractions were correlated with their respective bioactivity data. Heterocovariance analyses unambiguously identified ostruthin as an anti-staphylococcal constituent, which potently also inhibited Enterococcus spp.. ELINA demonstrated that anthelmintic activity was due to a combinatorial effect of ostruthin and isoimperatorin. A C. elegans-based survival and motility assay confirmed that isoimperatorin, imperatorin, and verapamil modulated the susceptibility of ostruthin. The combinatorial effect of these natural products was shown in larvae studies to be related to the function of the nematodes' efflux pump.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia Zwirchmayr
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Division of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Vienna, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Cristina D. Cruz
- Drug Research Program, Division of Pharmaceutical Biosciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Helsinki, 00014 Helsinki, Finland
| | - Ulrike Grienke
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Division of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Vienna, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Päivi Tammela
- Drug Research Program, Division of Pharmaceutical Biosciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Helsinki, 00014 Helsinki, Finland
| | - Judith M. Rollinger
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Division of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Vienna, 1090 Vienna, Austria
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Florin F, Bonneau B, Briseño-Roa L, Bessereau JL, Jospin M. Calcineurin-Dependent Homeostatic Response of C. elegans Muscle Cells upon Prolonged Activation of Acetylcholine Receptors. Cells 2023; 12:2201. [PMID: 37681933 PMCID: PMC10486475 DOI: 10.3390/cells12172201] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2023] [Revised: 08/29/2023] [Accepted: 08/30/2023] [Indexed: 09/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Pharmacological adaptation is a common phenomenon observed during prolonged drug exposure and often leads to drug resistance. Understanding the cellular events involved in adaptation could provide new strategies to circumvent this resistance issue. We used the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans to analyze the adaptation to levamisole, an ionotropic acetylcholine receptor agonist, used for decades to treat nematode parasitic infections. Genetic screens in C. elegans identified "adapting mutants" that initially paralyze upon exposure to levamisole as the wild type (WT), but recover locomotion after a few hours whereas WT remain paralyzed. Here, we show that levamisole induces a sustained increase in cytosolic calcium concentration in the muscle cells of adapting mutants, lasting several hours and preceding a decrease in levamisole-sensitive acetylcholine receptors (L-AChR) at the muscle plasma membrane. This decrease correlated with a drop in calcium concentration, a relaxation of the animal's body and a resumption of locomotion. The decrease in calcium and L-AChR content depends on calcineurin activation in muscle cells. We also showed that levamisole adaptation triggers homeostatic mechanisms in muscle cells including mitochondria remodeling, lysosomal tubulation and an increase in autophagic activity. Levamisole adaptation thus provides a new experimental paradigm for studying how cells cope with calcium stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Franklin Florin
- Institut NeuroMyoGène, CNRS UMR-5284, INSERM U-1314, MeLiS, Université Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, F-69008 Lyon, France (B.B.); (J.-L.B.)
| | - Benjamin Bonneau
- Institut NeuroMyoGène, CNRS UMR-5284, INSERM U-1314, MeLiS, Université Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, F-69008 Lyon, France (B.B.); (J.-L.B.)
- Institut Curie, CNRS UMR3347, INSERM U1021, Université Paris-Saclay, F-91405 Orsay, France
| | - Luis Briseño-Roa
- Institut NeuroMyoGène, CNRS UMR-5284, INSERM U-1314, MeLiS, Université Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, F-69008 Lyon, France (B.B.); (J.-L.B.)
- Medetia Pharmaceuticals, Institut Imagine, F-75015 Paris, France
| | - Jean-Louis Bessereau
- Institut NeuroMyoGène, CNRS UMR-5284, INSERM U-1314, MeLiS, Université Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, F-69008 Lyon, France (B.B.); (J.-L.B.)
| | - Maëlle Jospin
- Institut NeuroMyoGène, CNRS UMR-5284, INSERM U-1314, MeLiS, Université Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, F-69008 Lyon, France (B.B.); (J.-L.B.)
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5
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Gallo KJ, Wheeler NJ, Elmi AM, Airs PM, Zamanian M. Pharmacological Profiling of a Brugia malayi Muscarinic Acetylcholine Receptor as a Putative Antiparasitic Target. Antimicrob Agents Chemother 2023; 67:e0118822. [PMID: 36602350 PMCID: PMC9872666 DOI: 10.1128/aac.01188-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2022] [Accepted: 12/05/2022] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The diversification of anthelmintic targets and mechanisms of action will help ensure the sustainable control of nematode infections in response to the growing threat of drug resistance. G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are established drug targets in human medicine but remain unexploited as anthelmintic substrates despite their important roles in nematode neuromuscular and physiological processes. Bottlenecks in exploring the druggability of parasitic nematode GPCRs include a limited helminth genetic toolkit and difficulties establishing functional heterologous expression. In an effort to address some of these challenges, we profile the function and pharmacology of muscarinic acetylcholine receptors in the human parasite Brugia malayi, an etiological agent of human lymphatic filariasis. While acetylcholine-gated ion channels are intensely studied as targets of existing anthelmintics, comparatively little is known about metabotropic receptor contributions to parasite cholinergic signaling. Using multivariate phenotypic assays in microfilariae and adults, we show that nicotinic and muscarinic compounds disparately affect parasite fitness traits. We identify a putative G protein-linked acetylcholine receptor of B. malayi (Bma-GAR-3) that is highly expressed across intramammalian life stages and adapt spatial RNA in situ hybridization to map receptor transcripts to critical parasite tissues. Tissue-specific expression of Bma-gar-3 in Caenorhabditis elegans (body wall muscle, sensory neurons, and pharynx) enabled receptor deorphanization and pharmacological profiling in a nematode physiological context. Finally, we developed an image-based feeding assay as a reporter of pharyngeal activity to facilitate GPCR screening in parasitized strains. We expect that these receptor characterization approaches and improved knowledge of GARs as putative drug targets will further advance the study of GPCR biology across medically important nematodes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kendra J. Gallo
- Department of Pathobiological Sciences, University of Wisconsin—Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
| | - Nicolas J. Wheeler
- Department of Pathobiological Sciences, University of Wisconsin—Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
| | - Abdifatah M. Elmi
- Department of Pathobiological Sciences, University of Wisconsin—Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
| | - Paul M. Airs
- Department of Pathobiological Sciences, University of Wisconsin—Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
| | - Mostafa Zamanian
- Department of Pathobiological Sciences, University of Wisconsin—Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
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Izquierdo PG, Charvet CL, Neveu C, Green AC, Tattersall JEH, Holden-Dye L, O'Connor V. Modelling organophosphate intoxication in C. elegans highlights nicotinic acetylcholine receptor determinants that mitigate poisoning. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0284786. [PMID: 37083685 PMCID: PMC10121051 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0284786] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2022] [Accepted: 04/06/2023] [Indexed: 04/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Organophosphate intoxication via acetylcholinesterase inhibition executes neurotoxicity via hyper stimulation of acetylcholine receptors. Here, we use the organophosphate paraoxon-ethyl to treat C. elegans and use its impact on pharyngeal pumping as a bio-assay to model poisoning through these neurotoxins. This assay provides a tractable measure of acetylcholine receptor mediated contraction of body wall muscle. Investigation of the time dependence of organophosphate treatment and the genetic determinants of the drug-induced inhibition of pumping highlight mitigating modulation of the effects of paraoxon-ethyl. We identified mutants that reduce acetylcholine receptor function protect against the consequence of intoxication by organophosphates. Data suggests that reorganization of cholinergic signalling is associated with organophosphate poisoning. This reinforces the under investigated potential of using therapeutic approaches which target a modulation of nicotinic acetylcholine receptor function to treat the poisoning effects of this important class of neurotoxins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patricia G Izquierdo
- Biological Sciences, Institute for Life Sciences, University of Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom
| | - Claude L Charvet
- French National Institute for Agricultural Research (INRA), Infectiologie Animale et Santé Publique, Nouzilly, France
| | - Cedric Neveu
- French National Institute for Agricultural Research (INRA), Infectiologie Animale et Santé Publique, Nouzilly, France
| | - A Christopher Green
- Dstl, Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, Porton Down, Salisbury, Wiltshire, United Kingdom
| | - John E H Tattersall
- Dstl, Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, Porton Down, Salisbury, Wiltshire, United Kingdom
| | - Lindy Holden-Dye
- Dstl, Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, Porton Down, Salisbury, Wiltshire, United Kingdom
| | - Vincent O'Connor
- Biological Sciences, Institute for Life Sciences, University of Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom
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7
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Bonnard E, Liu J, Zjacic N, Alvarez L, Scholz M. Automatically tracking feeding behavior in populations of foraging C. elegans. eLife 2022; 11:e77252. [PMID: 36083280 PMCID: PMC9462848 DOI: 10.7554/elife.77252] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2022] [Accepted: 08/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Caenorhabditis elegans feeds on bacteria and other small microorganisms which it ingests using its pharynx, a neuromuscular pump. Currently, measuring feeding behavior requires tracking a single animal, indirectly estimating food intake from population-level metrics, or using restrained animals. To enable large throughput feeding measurements of unrestrained, crawling worms on agarose plates at a single worm resolution, we developed an imaging protocol and a complementary image analysis tool called PharaGlow. We image up to 50 unrestrained crawling worms simultaneously and extract locomotion and feeding behaviors. We demonstrate the tool's robustness and high-throughput capabilities by measuring feeding in different use-case scenarios, such as through development, with genetic and chemical perturbations that result in faster and slower pumping, and in the presence or absence of food. Finally, we demonstrate that our tool is capable of long-term imaging by showing behavioral dynamics of mating animals and worms with different genetic backgrounds. The low-resolution fluorescence microscopes required are readily available in C. elegans laboratories, and in combination with our python-based analysis workflow makes this methodology easily accessible. PharaGlow therefore enables the observation and analysis of the temporal dynamics of feeding and locomotory behaviors with high-throughput and precision in a user-friendly system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elsa Bonnard
- Max Planck Research Group Neural Information Flow, Max Planck Institute for Neurobiology of Behavior – caesarBonnGermany
| | - Jun Liu
- Max Planck Research Group Neural Information Flow, Max Planck Institute for Neurobiology of Behavior – caesarBonnGermany
| | - Nicolina Zjacic
- Max Planck Research Group Neural Information Flow, Max Planck Institute for Neurobiology of Behavior – caesarBonnGermany
- Institute of Medical Genetics, University of ZurichZurichSwitzerland
| | - Luis Alvarez
- Max Planck Research Group Neural Information Flow, Max Planck Institute for Neurobiology of Behavior – caesarBonnGermany
| | - Monika Scholz
- Max Planck Research Group Neural Information Flow, Max Planck Institute for Neurobiology of Behavior – caesarBonnGermany
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