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Maroofian R, Sarraf P, O’Brien TJ, Kamel M, Cakar A, Elkhateeb N, Lau T, Patil SJ, Record CJ, Horga A, Essid M, Selim L, Benrhouma H, Ben Younes T, Zifarelli G, Pagnamenta AT, Bauer P, Khundadze M, Mirecki A, Kamel SM, Elmonem MA, Ghayoor Karimiani E, Jamshidi Y, Offiah AC, Rossor AM, Youssef-Turki IB, Hübner CA, Munot P, Reilly MM, Brown AEX, Nagy S, Houlden H. RTN2 deficiency results in an autosomal recessive distal motor neuropathy with lower limb spasticity. Brain 2024; 147:2334-2343. [PMID: 38527963 PMCID: PMC11224604 DOI: 10.1093/brain/awae091] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2023] [Revised: 01/30/2024] [Accepted: 02/25/2024] [Indexed: 03/27/2024] Open
Abstract
Heterozygous RTN2 variants have been previously identified in a limited cohort of families affected by autosomal dominant spastic paraplegia (SPG12-OMIM:604805) with a variable age of onset. Nevertheless, the definitive validity of SPG12 remains to be confidently confirmed due to the scarcity of supporting evidence. In this study, we identified and validated seven novel or ultra-rare homozygous loss-of-function RTN2 variants in 14 individuals from seven consanguineous families with distal hereditary motor neuropathy (dHMN) using exome, genome and Sanger sequencing coupled with deep-phenotyping. All affected individuals (seven males and seven females, aged 9-50 years) exhibited weakness in the distal upper and lower limbs, lower limb spasticity and hyperreflexia, with onset in the first decade of life. Nerve conduction studies revealed axonal motor neuropathy with neurogenic changes in the electromyography. Despite a slowly progressive disease course, all patients remained ambulatory over a mean disease duration of 19.71 ± 13.70 years. Characterization of Caenorhabditis elegans RTN2 homologous loss-of-function variants demonstrated morphological and behavioural differences compared with the parental strain. Treatment of the mutant with an endoplasmic/sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+ reuptake inhibitor (2,5-di-tert-butylhydroquinone) rescued key phenotypic differences, suggesting a potential therapeutic benefit for RTN2-disorder. Despite RTN2 being an endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-resident membrane shaping protein, our analysis of patient fibroblast cells did not find significant alterations in ER structure or the response to ER stress. Our findings delineate a distinct form of autosomal recessive dHMN with pyramidal features associated with RTN2 deficiency. This phenotype shares similarities with SIGMAR1-related dHMN and Silver-like syndromes, providing valuable insights into the clinical spectrum and potential therapeutic strategies for RTN2-related dHMN.
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Affiliation(s)
- Reza Maroofian
- Centre for Neuromuscular Diseases, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, London WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Payam Sarraf
- Department of Neuromuscular Diseases, Iranian Centre of Neurological Research, Neuroscience Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran 1416753955, Iran
- Department of Neurology, Imam Khomeini Hospital Complex, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran 1416753955, Iran
| | - Thomas J O’Brien
- Institute of Clinical Sciences, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, UK
- MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences, London W12 0HS, UK
| | - Mona Kamel
- Department of Pediatrics, Neurology and Metabolic Division, Kasr Alainy Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University, Cairo 4240310, Egypt
| | - Arman Cakar
- Centre for Neuromuscular Diseases, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, London WC1N 3BG, UK
- Neuromuscular Unit, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, Istanbul 34093, Turkey
| | - Nour Elkhateeb
- Department of Clinical Genetics, Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Cambridge CB2 0QQ, UK
| | - Tracy Lau
- Centre for Neuromuscular Diseases, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, London WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Siddaramappa Jagdish Patil
- Division of Medical Genetics, Mazumdar Shaw Medical Center, Narayana Hrudayalaya Hospital, Bangalore 560099, India
| | - Christopher J Record
- Centre for Neuromuscular Diseases, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, London WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Alejandro Horga
- Centre for Neuromuscular Diseases, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, London WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Miriam Essid
- LR18SP04, Department of Child and Adolescent Neurology, National Institute Mongi Ben Hmida of Neurology, University of Tunis El Manar, Tunis, 1007, Tunisia
| | - Laila Selim
- Department of Pediatrics, Neurology and Metabolic Division, Kasr Alainy Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University, Cairo 4240310, Egypt
| | - Hanene Benrhouma
- LR18SP04, Department of Child and Adolescent Neurology, National Institute Mongi Ben Hmida of Neurology, University of Tunis El Manar, Tunis, 1007, Tunisia
| | - Thouraya Ben Younes
- LR18SP04, Department of Child and Adolescent Neurology, National Institute Mongi Ben Hmida of Neurology, University of Tunis El Manar, Tunis, 1007, Tunisia
| | | | - Alistair T Pagnamenta
- NIHR Oxford Biomedical Research Centre, Centre for Human Genetics, University of Oxford, Oxford OX3 9DU, UK
| | | | - Mukhran Khundadze
- Institute of Human Genetics, Jena University Hospital, Friedrich Schiller University, Jena 07747, Germany
| | - Andrea Mirecki
- Institute of Human Genetics, Jena University Hospital, Friedrich Schiller University, Jena 07747, Germany
| | | | - Mohamed A Elmonem
- Department of Clinical and Chemical Pathology, Kasr Alainy Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University, Cairo 12613, Egypt
| | - Ehsan Ghayoor Karimiani
- Molecular and Clinical Sciences Institute, St. George’s, University of London, London SW17 0RE, UK
- Innovative Medical Research Center, Mashhad Branch, Islamic Azad University, Mashhad 9187147578, Iran
| | - Yalda Jamshidi
- Molecular and Clinical Sciences Institute, St. George’s, University of London, London SW17 0RE, UK
| | - Amaka C Offiah
- Division of Clinical Medicine, School of Medicine & Population Health, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S10 2RX, UK
| | - Alexander M Rossor
- Centre for Neuromuscular Diseases, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, London WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Ilhem Ben Youssef-Turki
- LR18SP04, Department of Child and Adolescent Neurology, National Institute Mongi Ben Hmida of Neurology, University of Tunis El Manar, Tunis, 1007, Tunisia
| | - Christian A Hübner
- Institute of Human Genetics, Jena University Hospital, Friedrich Schiller University, Jena 07747, Germany
- Center for Rare Diseases, Jena University Hospital, Friedrich Schiller Universität, Jena 07747, Germany
| | - Pinki Munot
- Dubowitz Neuromuscular Centre, Great Ormond Street Hospital NHS Trust, London WC1N 3JH, UK
| | - Mary M Reilly
- Centre for Neuromuscular Diseases, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, London WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - André E X Brown
- Institute of Clinical Sciences, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, UK
- MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences, London W12 0HS, UK
| | - Sara Nagy
- Centre for Neuromuscular Diseases, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, London WC1N 3BG, UK
- Department of Neurology, University Hospital Basel, University of Basel, Basel 4031, Switzerland
| | - Henry Houlden
- Centre for Neuromuscular Diseases, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, London WC1N 3BG, UK
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Yarmey VR, San-Miguel A. Biomarkers for aging in Caenorhabditis elegans high throughput screening. Biochem Soc Trans 2024; 52:1405-1418. [PMID: 38884801 DOI: 10.1042/bst20231303] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2024] [Revised: 05/16/2024] [Accepted: 05/28/2024] [Indexed: 06/18/2024]
Abstract
Aging is characterized by a functional decline in organism fitness over time due to a complex combination of genetic and environmental factors [ 1-4]. With an increasing elderly population at risk of age-associated diseases, there is a pressing need for research dedicated to promoting health and longevity through anti-aging interventions. The roundworm Caenorhabditis elegans is an established model organism for aging studies due to its short life cycle, ease of culture, and conserved aging pathways. These benefits also make the worm well-suited for high-throughput screening (HTS) methods to study biomarkers of the molecular changes, cellular dysfunction, and physiological decline associated with aging. Within this review, we offer a summary of recent advances in HTS techniques to study biomarkers of aging in C. elegans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victoria R Yarmey
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27603, U.S.A
| | - Adriana San-Miguel
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27603, U.S.A
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Romussi S, Giunti S, Andersen N, De Rosa MJ. C. elegans: a prominent platform for modeling and drug screening in neurological disorders. Expert Opin Drug Discov 2024; 19:565-585. [PMID: 38509691 DOI: 10.1080/17460441.2024.2329103] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2023] [Accepted: 03/06/2024] [Indexed: 03/22/2024]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Human neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative diseases (NDevDs and NDegDs, respectively) encompass a broad spectrum of disorders affecting the nervous system with an increasing incidence. In this context, the nematode C. elegans, has emerged as a benchmark model for biological research, especially in the field of neuroscience. AREAS COVERED The authors highlight the numerous advantages of this tiny worm as a model for exploring nervous system pathologies and as a platform for drug discovery. There is a particular focus given to describing the existing models of C. elegans for the study of NDevDs and NDegDs. Specifically, the authors underscore their strong applicability in preclinical drug development. Furthermore, they place particular emphasis on detailing the common techniques employed to explore the nervous system in both healthy and diseased states. EXPERT OPINION Drug discovery constitutes a long and expensive process. The incorporation of invertebrate models, such as C. elegans, stands as an exemplary strategy for mitigating costs and expediting timelines. The utilization of C. elegans as a platform to replicate nervous system pathologies and conduct high-throughput automated assays in the initial phases of drug discovery is pivotal for rendering therapeutic options more attainable and cost-effective.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefano Romussi
- Laboratorio de Neurobiología de Invertebrados, Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Bahía Blanca (INIBIBB), UNS-CONICET, Bahía Blanca, Argentina
| | - Sebastián Giunti
- Laboratorio de Neurobiología de Invertebrados, Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Bahía Blanca (INIBIBB), UNS-CONICET, Bahía Blanca, Argentina
- Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia, Universidad Nacional del Sur (UNS), Bahía Blanca, Argentina
| | - Natalia Andersen
- Laboratorio de Neurobiología de Invertebrados, Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Bahía Blanca (INIBIBB), UNS-CONICET, Bahía Blanca, Argentina
- Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia, Universidad Nacional del Sur (UNS), Bahía Blanca, Argentina
| | - María José De Rosa
- Laboratorio de Neurobiología de Invertebrados, Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Bahía Blanca (INIBIBB), UNS-CONICET, Bahía Blanca, Argentina
- Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia, Universidad Nacional del Sur (UNS), Bahía Blanca, Argentina
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Catalano F, O’Brien TJ, Mekhova AA, Sepe LV, Elia M, De Cegli R, Gallotta I, Santonicola P, Zampi G, Ilyechova EY, Romanov AA, Samuseva PD, Salzano J, Petruzzelli R, Polishchuk EV, Indrieri A, Kim BE, Brown AEX, Puchkova LV, Di Schiavi E, Polishchuk RS. A new Caenorhabditis elegans model to study copper toxicity in Wilson disease. Traffic 2024; 25:e12920. [PMID: 37886910 PMCID: PMC10841361 DOI: 10.1111/tra.12920] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2023] [Revised: 09/28/2023] [Accepted: 10/03/2023] [Indexed: 10/28/2023]
Abstract
Wilson disease (WD) is caused by mutations in the ATP7B gene that encodes a copper (Cu) transporting ATPase whose trafficking from the Golgi to endo-lysosomal compartments drives sequestration of excess Cu and its further excretion from hepatocytes into the bile. Loss of ATP7B function leads to toxic Cu overload in the liver and subsequently in the brain, causing fatal hepatic and neurological abnormalities. The limitations of existing WD therapies call for the development of new therapeutic approaches, which require an amenable animal model system for screening and validation of drugs and molecular targets. To achieve this objective, we generated a mutant Caenorhabditis elegans strain with a substitution of a conserved histidine (H828Q) in the ATP7B ortholog cua-1 corresponding to the most common ATP7B variant (H1069Q) that causes WD. cua-1 mutant animals exhibited very poor resistance to Cu compared to the wild-type strain. This manifested in a strong delay in larval development, a shorter lifespan, impaired motility, oxidative stress pathway activation, and mitochondrial damage. In addition, morphological analysis revealed several neuronal abnormalities in cua-1 mutant animals exposed to Cu. Further investigation suggested that mutant CUA-1 is retained and degraded in the endoplasmic reticulum, similarly to human ATP7B-H1069Q. As a consequence, the mutant protein does not allow animals to counteract Cu toxicity. Notably, pharmacological correctors of ATP7B-H1069Q reduced Cu toxicity in cua-1 mutants indicating that similar pathogenic molecular pathways might be activated by the H/Q substitution and, therefore, targeted for rescue of ATP7B/CUA-1 function. Taken together, our findings suggest that the newly generated cua-1 mutant strain represents an excellent model for Cu toxicity studies in WD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Federico Catalano
- Telethon Institute of Genetics and Medicine (TIGEM), Pozzuoli, Italy
- Institute of Biosciences and BioResources (IBBR), National Research Council (CNR), Napoli, Italy
| | - Thomas J O’Brien
- MRC London Institute of Medical Sciences, London, United Kingdom
- Institute of Clinical Sciences, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Aleksandra A Mekhova
- Research center of advanced functional materials and laser communication systems, ADTS Institute, ITMO University, St. Petersburg, Russia
| | | | | | - Rossella De Cegli
- Telethon Institute of Genetics and Medicine (TIGEM), Pozzuoli, Italy
| | - Ivan Gallotta
- Telethon Institute of Genetics and Medicine (TIGEM), Pozzuoli, Italy
- Institute of Genetics and Biophysics Adriano Buzzati-Traverso (IGB-ABT), National Research Council (CNR), Napoli, Italy
| | - Pamela Santonicola
- Institute of Biosciences and BioResources (IBBR), National Research Council (CNR), Napoli, Italy
| | - Giuseppina Zampi
- Institute of Biosciences and BioResources (IBBR), National Research Council (CNR), Napoli, Italy
| | - Ekaterina Y Ilyechova
- Research center of advanced functional materials and laser communication systems, ADTS Institute, ITMO University, St. Petersburg, Russia
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Research Institute of Experimental Medicine, St. Petersburg, Russia
| | - Aleksei A Romanov
- Department of applied mathematics, Institute of applied mathematics and mechanics, Peter the Great Polytechnic University, St. Petersburg, Russia
| | - Polina D Samuseva
- Research center of advanced functional materials and laser communication systems, ADTS Institute, ITMO University, St. Petersburg, Russia
| | - Josephine Salzano
- Telethon Institute of Genetics and Medicine (TIGEM), Pozzuoli, Italy
| | - Raffaella Petruzzelli
- Telethon Institute of Genetics and Medicine (TIGEM), Pozzuoli, Italy
- Scuola Superiore Meridionale (SSM, School of Advanced Studies), Genomics and Experimental Medicine program, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy
| | - Elena V. Polishchuk
- Telethon Institute of Genetics and Medicine (TIGEM), Pozzuoli, Italy
- Institute of Biosciences and BioResources (IBBR), National Research Council (CNR), Napoli, Italy
| | - Alessia Indrieri
- Telethon Institute of Genetics and Medicine (TIGEM), Pozzuoli, Italy
- Institute for Genetic and Biomedical Research (IRGB), National Research Council (CNR), Milan, Italy
| | - Byung-Eun Kim
- Department of Animal and Avian Sciences, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, USA
| | - André EX Brown
- MRC London Institute of Medical Sciences, London, United Kingdom
- Institute of Clinical Sciences, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Ludmila V Puchkova
- Research center of advanced functional materials and laser communication systems, ADTS Institute, ITMO University, St. Petersburg, Russia
| | - Elia Di Schiavi
- Institute of Biosciences and BioResources (IBBR), National Research Council (CNR), Napoli, Italy
- Institute of Genetics and Biophysics Adriano Buzzati-Traverso (IGB-ABT), National Research Council (CNR), Napoli, Italy
| | - Roman S. Polishchuk
- Telethon Institute of Genetics and Medicine (TIGEM), Pozzuoli, Italy
- Institute for Genetic and Biomedical Research (IRGB), National Research Council (CNR), Milan, Italy
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von Mikecz A. Elegant Nematodes Improve Our Understanding of Human Neuronal Diseases, the Role of Pollutants and Strategies of Resilience. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2023; 57:16755-16763. [PMID: 37874738 PMCID: PMC10634345 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.3c04580] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2023] [Revised: 10/05/2023] [Accepted: 10/06/2023] [Indexed: 10/26/2023]
Abstract
The prevalence of neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease are rising globally. The role of environmental pollution in neurodegeneration is largely unknown. Thus, this perspective advocates exposome research in C. elegans models of human diseases. The models express amyloid proteins such as Aβ, recapitulate the degeneration of specifically vulnerable neurons and allow for correlated neurobehavioral phenotyping throughout the entire life span of the nematode. Neurobehavioral traits like locomotion gaits, rigidity, or cognitive decline are quantifiable and carefully mimic key aspects of the human diseases. Underlying molecular pathways of neurodegeneration are elucidated in pollutant-exposed C. elegans Alzheimer's or Parkinson's models by transcriptomics (RNA-seq), mass spectrometry-based proteomics and omics addressing other biochemical traits. Validation of the identified disease pathways can be achieved by genome-wide association studies in matching human cohorts. A consistent One Health approach includes isolation of nematodes from contaminated sites and their comparative investigation by imaging, neurobehavioral profiling and single worm proteomics. C. elegans models of neurodegenerative diseases are likewise well-suited for high throughput methods that provide a promising strategy to identify resilience pathways of neurosafety and keep up with the number of pollutants, nonchemical exposome factors, and their interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna von Mikecz
- IUF − Leibniz Research Institute
of Environmental Medicine GmbH, Auf’m Hennekamp 50, 40225 Duesseldorf, Germany
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Deserno M, Bozek K. WormSwin: Instance segmentation of C. elegans using vision transformer. Sci Rep 2023; 13:11021. [PMID: 37419938 PMCID: PMC10328995 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-38213-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2023] [Accepted: 07/05/2023] [Indexed: 07/09/2023] Open
Abstract
The possibility to extract motion of a single organism from video recordings at a large-scale provides means for the quantitative study of its behavior, both individual and collective. This task is particularly difficult for organisms that interact with one another, overlap, and occlude parts of their bodies in the recording. Here we propose WormSwin-an approach to extract single animal postures of Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) from recordings of many organisms in a single microscope well. Based on transformer neural network architecture our method segments individual worms across a range of videos and images generated in different labs. Our solutions offers accuracy of 0.990 average precision ([Formula: see text]) and comparable results on the benchmark image dataset BBBC010. Finally, it allows to segment challenging overlapping postures of mating worms with an accuracy sufficient to track the organisms with a simple tracking heuristic. An accurate and efficient method for C. elegans segmentation opens up new opportunities for studying of its behaviors previously inaccessible due to the difficulty in the worm extraction from the video frames.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maurice Deserno
- Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, University of Cologne, Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
- Institute for Biomedical Informatics, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, University of Cologne, Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
- Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, University of Cologne, Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
| | - Katarzyna Bozek
- Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, University of Cologne, Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
- Institute for Biomedical Informatics, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, University of Cologne, Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
- Cologne Excellence Cluster on Cellular Stress Responses in Aging-Associated Diseases (CECAD), University of Cologne, Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
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Yang A, Lin X, Liu Z, Duan X, Yuan Y, Zhang J, Liang Q, Ji X, Sun N, Yu H, He W, Zhu L, Xu B, Lin X. Worm Generator: A System for High-Throughput in Vivo Screening. NANO LETTERS 2023; 23:1280-1288. [PMID: 36719250 DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.2c04456] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Large-scale screening of molecules in organisms requires high-throughput and cost-effective evaluating tools during preclinical development. Here, a novel in vivo screening strategy combining hierarchically structured biohybrid triboelectric nanogenerators (HB-TENGs) arrays with computational bioinformatics analysis for high-throughput pharmacological evaluation using Caenorhabditis elegans is described. Unlike the traditional methods for behavioral monitoring of the animals, which are laborious and costly, HB-TENGs with micropillars are designed to efficiently convert animals' behaviors into friction deformation and result in a contact-separation motion between two triboelectric layers to generate electrical outputs. The triboelectric signals are recorded and extracted to various bioinformation for each screened compound. Moreover, the information-rich electrical readouts are successfully demonstrated to be sufficient to predict a drug's identity by multiple-Gaussian-kernels-based machine learning methods. This proposed strategy can be readily applied to various fields and is especially useful in in vivo explorations to accelerate the identification of novel therapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anqi Yang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Sensor Technology and Biomedical Instrument School of Biomedical Engineering, Shenzhen Campus of Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen 518000, China
| | - Xiang Lin
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Sensor Technology and Biomedical Instrument School of Biomedical Engineering, Shenzhen Campus of Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen 518000, China
| | - Zijian Liu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Sensor Technology and Biomedical Instrument School of Biomedical Engineering, Shenzhen Campus of Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen 518000, China
| | - Xin Duan
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Sensor Technology and Biomedical Instrument School of Biomedical Engineering, Shenzhen Campus of Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen 518000, China
| | - Yurou Yuan
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Sensor Technology and Biomedical Instrument School of Biomedical Engineering, Shenzhen Campus of Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen 518000, China
| | - Jiaxuan Zhang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Sensor Technology and Biomedical Instrument School of Biomedical Engineering, Shenzhen Campus of Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen 518000, China
| | - Qilin Liang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Sensor Technology and Biomedical Instrument School of Biomedical Engineering, Shenzhen Campus of Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen 518000, China
| | - Xianglin Ji
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR 999077, China
| | - Nannan Sun
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Guangdong Medical University, Zhanjiang 524023, China
| | - Huajun Yu
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Guangdong Medical University, Zhanjiang 524023, China
| | - Weiwei He
- School of Pharmacy, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
| | - Lili Zhu
- School of Pharmacy, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China
| | - Bingzhe Xu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Sensor Technology and Biomedical Instrument School of Biomedical Engineering, Shenzhen Campus of Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen 518000, China
| | - Xudong Lin
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Sensor Technology and Biomedical Instrument School of Biomedical Engineering, Shenzhen Campus of Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen 518000, China
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Phenotypic Profiling of Macrocyclic Lactones on Parasitic Schistosoma Flatworms. Antimicrob Agents Chemother 2023; 67:e0123022. [PMID: 36695583 PMCID: PMC9933704 DOI: 10.1128/aac.01230-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Macrocyclic lactones are front-line therapies for parasitic roundworm infections; however, there are no comprehensive studies on the activity of this drug class against parasitic flatworms. Ivermectin is well known to be inactive against flatworms. However, the structure-activity relationship of macrocyclic lactones may vary across phyla, and it is entirely possible other members of this drug class do in fact show antiparasitic activity on flatworms. For example, there are several reports hinting at the anti-schistosomal activity of doramectin and moxidectin. To explore this class further, we developed an automated imaging assay combined with measurement of lactate levels from worm media. This assay was applied to the screening of 21 macrocyclic lactones (avermectins, milbemycins, and others such as spinosyns) against adult schistosomes. These in vitro assays identified several macrocyclic lactones (emamectin, milbemycin oxime, and the moxidectin metabolite 23-ketonemadectin) that caused contractile paralysis and lack of lactate production. Several of these were also active against miracidia, which infect the snail intermediate host. Hits prioritized from these in vitro assays were administered to mice harboring patent schistosome infections. However, no reduction in worm burden was observed. Nevertheless, these data show the utility of a multiplexed in vitro screening platform to quantitatively assess drug action and exclude inactive compounds from a chemical series before proceeding to in vivo studies. While the prototypical macrocyclic lactone ivermectin displays minimal activity against adult Schistosoma mansoni, this family of compounds does contain schistocidal compounds which may serve as a starting point for development of new anti-flatworm chemotherapies.
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Saida K, Maroofian R, Sengoku T, Mitani T, Pagnamenta AT, Marafi D, Zaki MS, O'Brien TJ, Karimiani EG, Kaiyrzhanov R, Takizawa M, Ohori S, Leong HY, Akay G, Galehdari H, Zamani M, Romy R, Carroll CJ, Toosi MB, Ashrafzadeh F, Imannezhad S, Malek H, Ahangari N, Tomoum H, Gowda VK, Srinivasan VM, Murphy D, Dominik N, Elbendary HM, Rafat K, Yilmaz S, Kanmaz S, Serin M, Krishnakumar D, Gardham A, Maw A, Rao TS, Alsubhi S, Srour M, Buhas D, Jewett T, Goldberg RE, Shamseldin H, Frengen E, Misceo D, Strømme P, Magliocco Ceroni JR, Kim CA, Yesil G, Sengenc E, Guler S, Hull M, Parnes M, Aktas D, Anlar B, Bayram Y, Pehlivan D, Posey JE, Alavi S, Madani Manshadi SA, Alzaidan H, Al-Owain M, Alabdi L, Abdulwahab F, Sekiguchi F, Hamanaka K, Fujita A, Uchiyama Y, Mizuguchi T, Miyatake S, Miyake N, Elshafie RM, Salayev K, Guliyeva U, Alkuraya FS, Gleeson JG, Monaghan KG, Langley KG, Yang H, Motavaf M, Safari S, Alipour M, Ogata K, Brown AEX, Lupski JR, Houlden H, Matsumoto N. Brain monoamine vesicular transport disease caused by homozygous SLC18A2 variants: A study in 42 affected individuals. Genet Med 2023; 25:90-102. [PMID: 36318270 DOI: 10.1016/j.gim.2022.09.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2022] [Revised: 09/15/2022] [Accepted: 09/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
PURPOSE Brain monoamine vesicular transport disease is an infantile-onset movement disorder that mimics cerebral palsy. In 2013, the homozygous SLC18A2 variant, p.Pro387Leu, was first reported as a cause of this rare disorder, and dopamine agonists were efficient for treating affected individuals from a single large family. To date, only 6 variants have been reported. In this study, we evaluated genotype-phenotype correlations in individuals with biallelic SLC18A2 variants. METHODS A total of 42 affected individuals with homozygous SLC18A2 variant alleles were identified. We evaluated genotype-phenotype correlations and the missense variants in the affected individuals based on the structural modeling of rat VMAT2 encoded by Slc18a2, with cytoplasm- and lumen-facing conformations. A Caenorhabditis elegans model was created for functional studies. RESULTS A total of 19 homozygous SLC18A2 variants, including 3 recurrent variants, were identified using exome sequencing. The affected individuals typically showed global developmental delay, hypotonia, dystonia, oculogyric crisis, and autonomic nervous system involvement (temperature dysregulation/sweating, hypersalivation, and gastrointestinal dysmotility). Among the 58 affected individuals described to date, 16 (28%) died before the age of 13 years. Of the 17 patients with p.Pro237His, 9 died, whereas all 14 patients with p.Pro387Leu survived. Although a dopamine agonist mildly improved the disease symptoms in 18 of 21 patients (86%), some affected individuals with p.Ile43Phe and p.Pro387Leu showed milder phenotypes and presented prolonged survival even without treatment. The C. elegans model showed behavioral abnormalities. CONCLUSION These data expand the phenotypic and genotypic spectra of SLC18A2-related disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ken Saida
- Department of Human Genetics, Yokohama City University Graduate School of Medicine, Yokohama, Japan
| | - Reza Maroofian
- Department of Neuromuscular Disorders, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Toru Sengoku
- Department of Biochemistry, Yokohama City University Graduate School of Medicine, Yokohama, Japan
| | - Tadahiro Mitani
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX
| | - Alistair T Pagnamenta
- NIHR Oxford Biomedical Research Centre, Wellcome Centre for Human Genetics, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Dana Marafi
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Kuwait University, Safat, Kuwait
| | - Maha S Zaki
- Department of Clinical Genetics, Human Genetics and Genome Research Institute, National Research Centre, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Thomas J O'Brien
- MRC London Institute of Medical Sciences, London, United Kingdom; Faculty of Medicine, Institute of Clinical Sciences, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Ehsan Ghayoor Karimiani
- Molecular and Clinical Sciences Research Institute, St. George's, University of London, London, United Kingdom; Innovative Medical Research Center, Mashhad Branch, Islamic Azad University, Mashhad, Iran
| | - Rauan Kaiyrzhanov
- Department of Neuromuscular Disorders, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Marina Takizawa
- Department of Human Genetics, Yokohama City University Graduate School of Medicine, Yokohama, Japan
| | - Sachiko Ohori
- Department of Human Genetics, Yokohama City University Graduate School of Medicine, Yokohama, Japan
| | - Huey Yin Leong
- Genetics Department, Hospital Kuala Lumpur, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
| | - Gulsen Akay
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX
| | - Hamid Galehdari
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, Ahvaz, Iran
| | - Mina Zamani
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, Ahvaz, Iran
| | - Ratna Romy
- Molecular and Clinical Sciences Research Institute, St. George's, University of London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Christopher J Carroll
- Molecular and Clinical Sciences Research Institute, St. George's, University of London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Mehran Beiraghi Toosi
- Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran; Neuroscience Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
| | - Farah Ashrafzadeh
- Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
| | - Shima Imannezhad
- Department of Pediatric Neurology, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran
| | - Hadis Malek
- Department of Medical Genetics, Next Generation Genetic Polyclinic, Mashhad, Iran
| | - Najmeh Ahangari
- Department of Medical Genetics, Next Generation Genetic Polyclinic, Mashhad, Iran
| | - Hoda Tomoum
- Department of Pediatrics, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Vykuntaraju K Gowda
- Department of Pediatric Neurology, Indira Gandhi Institute of Child Health, Bangalore, India
| | | | - David Murphy
- Department of Clinical and Movement Neurosciences, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Natalia Dominik
- Department of Neuromuscular Disorders, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Hasnaa M Elbendary
- Department of Clinical Genetics, Human Genetics and Genome Research Institute, National Research Centre, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Karima Rafat
- Department of Clinical Genetics, Human Genetics and Genome Research Institute, National Research Centre, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Sanem Yilmaz
- Division of Pediatric Neurology, Department of Pediatrics, Ege University Faculty of Medicine, Izmir, Turkey
| | - Seda Kanmaz
- Division of Pediatric Neurology, Department of Pediatrics, Ege University Faculty of Medicine, Izmir, Turkey
| | - Mine Serin
- Division of Pediatric Neurology, Department of Pediatrics, Ege University Faculty of Medicine, Izmir, Turkey
| | - Deepa Krishnakumar
- North West Thames Regional Genetics Service, Northwick Park Hospital, London, United Kingdom
| | - Alice Gardham
- North West Thames Regional Genetics Service, Northwick Park Hospital, London, United Kingdom
| | - Anna Maw
- Department of Paediatric Neurology, Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Tekki Sreenivasa Rao
- Department of Paediatrics, Luton and Dunstable University Hospital, Luton, United Kingdom
| | - Sarah Alsubhi
- Division of Pediatric Neurology, Departments of Pediatrics, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Myriam Srour
- Division of Pediatric Neurology, Departments of Pediatrics, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Research Institute of the McGill University Health Center (MUHC), Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Daniela Buhas
- Division of Medical Genetics, Department of Specialized Medicine, McGill University Health Center (MUHC), Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Department of Human Genetics, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Tamison Jewett
- Department of Pediatrics, Section on Medical Genetics, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC
| | - Rachel E Goldberg
- Department of Pediatrics, Section on Medical Genetics, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC
| | - Hanan Shamseldin
- Department of Translational Genomics, Center for Genomic Medicine, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
| | - Eirik Frengen
- Department of Medical Genetics, Oslo University Hospital and University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Doriana Misceo
- Department of Medical Genetics, Oslo University Hospital and University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Petter Strømme
- Division of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, Oslo University Hospital and University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | | | - Chong Ae Kim
- Genetic Unit, Instituto da Crianca, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade de Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil
| | - Gozde Yesil
- Department of Medical Genetics, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey
| | - Esma Sengenc
- Department of Pediatric Neurology, Faculty of Medicine, Bezmialem Vakif University, Istanbul, Turkey
| | - Serhat Guler
- Department of Child Neurology, Cerrahpasa Medical Faculty, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey
| | | | | | - Dilek Aktas
- Damagen Genetic Diagnostic Center, Ankara, Turkey
| | - Banu Anlar
- Department of Pediatric Neurology, Hacettepe University Faculty of Medicine, Ankara, Turkey
| | - Yavuz Bayram
- Division of Genomic Diagnostics, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA; Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
| | - Davut Pehlivan
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX; Division of Pediatric Neurology and Developmental Neuroscience, Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX
| | - Jennifer E Posey
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX
| | - Shahryar Alavi
- Department of Cell and Molecular Biology and Microbiology, Faculty of Biological Science and Technology, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran
| | | | - Hamad Alzaidan
- Department of Medical Genetics, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
| | - Mohammad Al-Owain
- Department of Medical Genetics, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
| | - Lama Alabdi
- Department of Translational Genomics, Center for Genomic Medicine, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; Department of Zoology, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
| | - Ferdous Abdulwahab
- Department of Translational Genomics, Center for Genomic Medicine, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
| | - Futoshi Sekiguchi
- Department of Human Genetics, Yokohama City University Graduate School of Medicine, Yokohama, Japan
| | - Kohei Hamanaka
- Department of Human Genetics, Yokohama City University Graduate School of Medicine, Yokohama, Japan
| | - Atsushi Fujita
- Department of Human Genetics, Yokohama City University Graduate School of Medicine, Yokohama, Japan
| | - Yuri Uchiyama
- Department of Human Genetics, Yokohama City University Graduate School of Medicine, Yokohama, Japan; Department of Rare Disease Genomics, Yokohama City University Hospital, Yokohama, Japan
| | - Takeshi Mizuguchi
- Department of Human Genetics, Yokohama City University Graduate School of Medicine, Yokohama, Japan
| | - Satoko Miyatake
- Department of Human Genetics, Yokohama City University Graduate School of Medicine, Yokohama, Japan; Clinical Genetics Department, Yokohama City University Hospital, Yokohama, Japan
| | - Noriko Miyake
- Department of Human Genetics, Yokohama City University Graduate School of Medicine, Yokohama, Japan; Department of Human Genetics, Research Institute, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
| | | | - Kamran Salayev
- Department of Neurology, Azerbaijan Medical University, Baku, Azerbaijan
| | | | - Fowzan S Alkuraya
- Department of Translational Genomics, Center for Genomic Medicine, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, College of Medicine, Alfaisal University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
| | - Joseph G Gleeson
- Department of Neurosciences, University of California San Diego, San Diego, CA; Rady Children's Institute for Genomic Medicine, San Diego, CA
| | | | | | | | - Mahsa Motavaf
- Functional Neurosurgery Research Center, Shohada Tajrish Comprehensive Neurosurgical Center of Excellence, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Saeid Safari
- Functional Neurosurgery Research Center, Shohada Tajrish Comprehensive Neurosurgical Center of Excellence, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Mozhgan Alipour
- Functional Neurosurgery Research Center, Shohada Tajrish Comprehensive Neurosurgical Center of Excellence, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; Department of Biophysics, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran
| | - Kazuhiro Ogata
- Department of Biochemistry, Yokohama City University Graduate School of Medicine, Yokohama, Japan
| | - André E X Brown
- MRC London Institute of Medical Sciences, London, United Kingdom; Faculty of Medicine, Institute of Clinical Sciences, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - James R Lupski
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX; Human Genome Sequencing Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX; Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX
| | - Henry Houlden
- Department of Neuromuscular Disorders, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Naomichi Matsumoto
- Department of Human Genetics, Yokohama City University Graduate School of Medicine, Yokohama, Japan.
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Preusser F, Neuschulz A, Junker JP, Rajewsky N, Preibisch S. Long-term imaging reveals behavioral plasticity during C. elegans dauer exit. BMC Biol 2022; 20:277. [PMID: 36514066 DOI: 10.1186/s12915-022-01471-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2022] [Accepted: 11/18/2022] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND During their lifetime, animals must adapt their behavior to survive in changing environments. This ability requires the nervous system to undergo adjustments at distinct temporal scales, from short-term dynamic changes in expression of neurotransmitters and receptors to longer-term growth, spatial and connectivity reorganization, while integrating external stimuli. The nematode Caenorhabditis elegans provides a model of nervous system plasticity, in particular its dauer exit decision. Under unfavorable conditions, larvae will enter the non-feeding and non-reproductive stress-resistant dauer stage and adapt their behavior to cope with the harsh new environment, with active reversal under improved conditions leading to resumption of reproductive development. However, how different environmental stimuli regulate the exit decision mechanism and thereby drive the larva's behavioral change is unknown. To fill this gap and provide insights on behavioral changes over extended periods of time, we developed a new open hardware method for long-term imaging (12h) of C. elegans larvae. RESULTS Our WormObserver platform comprises open hardware and software components for video acquisition, automated processing of large image data (> 80k images/experiment) and data analysis. We identified dauer-specific behavioral motifs and characterized the behavioral trajectory of dauer exit in different environments and genetic backgrounds to identify key decision points and stimuli promoting dauer exit. Combining long-term behavioral imaging with transcriptomics data, we find that bacterial ingestion triggers a change in neuropeptide gene expression to establish post-dauer behavior. CONCLUSIONS Taken together, we show how a developing nervous system can robustly integrate environmental changes activate a developmental switch and adapt the organism's behavior to a new environment. WormObserver is generally applicable to other research questions within and beyond the C. elegans field, having a modular and customizable character and allowing assessment of behavioral plasticity over longer periods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Friedrich Preusser
- Berlin Institute for Medical Systems Biology (BIMSB), Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), 10115, Berlin, Germany. .,Institute for Biology, Humboldt University of Berlin, 10099, Berlin, Germany.
| | - Anika Neuschulz
- Berlin Institute for Medical Systems Biology (BIMSB), Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), 10115, Berlin, Germany.,Institute for Biology, Humboldt University of Berlin, 10099, Berlin, Germany
| | - Jan Philipp Junker
- Berlin Institute for Medical Systems Biology (BIMSB), Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), 10115, Berlin, Germany
| | - Nikolaus Rajewsky
- Berlin Institute for Medical Systems Biology (BIMSB), Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), 10115, Berlin, Germany
| | - Stephan Preibisch
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, VA, 20147, USA.
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Wheeler NJ, Hallem EA, Zamanian M. Making sense of sensory behaviors in vector-borne helminths. Trends Parasitol 2022; 38:841-853. [PMID: 35931639 PMCID: PMC9481669 DOI: 10.1016/j.pt.2022.07.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2022] [Revised: 07/07/2022] [Accepted: 07/10/2022] [Indexed: 10/16/2022]
Abstract
Migrations performed by helminths are impressive and diverse, and accumulating evidence shows that many are controlled by sophisticated sensory programs. The migrations of vector-borne helminths are particularly complex, requiring precise, stage-specific regulation. We review the contrasting states of knowledge on snail-borne schistosomes and mosquito-borne filarial nematodes. Rich observational data exist for the chemosensory behaviors of schistosomes, while the molecular sensory pathways in nematodes are well described. Recent investigations on the molecular mechanisms of sensation in schistosomes and filarial nematodes have revealed some features conserved within their respective phyla, but adaptations correlated with parasitism are pronounced. Technological developments are likely to extend these advances, and we forecast how these technologies may be applied.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicolas J Wheeler
- Department of Pathobiological Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Elissa A Hallem
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology & Molecular Genetics and Molecular Biology Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Mostafa Zamanian
- Department of Pathobiological Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA.
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Kerr RA, Roux AE, Goudeau J, Kenyon C. The C. elegans Observatory: High-throughput exploration of behavioral aging. FRONTIERS IN AGING 2022; 3:932656. [PMID: 36105851 PMCID: PMC9466599 DOI: 10.3389/fragi.2022.932656] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2022] [Accepted: 07/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
Organisms undergo a variety of characteristic changes as they age, suggesting a substantial commonality in the mechanistic basis of aging. Experiments in model organisms have revealed a variety of cellular systems that impact lifespan, but technical challenges have prevented a comprehensive evaluation of how these components impact the trajectory of aging, and many components likely remain undiscovered. To facilitate the deeper exploration of aging trajectories at a sufficient scale to enable primary screening, we have created the Caenorhabditis elegans Observatory, an automated system for monitoring the behavior of group-housed C. elegans throughout their lifespans. One Observatory consists of a set of computers running custom software to control an incubator containing custom imaging and motion-control hardware. In its standard configuration, the Observatory cycles through trays of standard 6 cm plates, running four assays per day on up to 576 plates per incubator. High-speed image processing captures a range of behavioral metrics, including movement speed and stimulus-induced turning, and a data processing pipeline continuously computes summary statistics. The Observatory software includes a web interface that allows the user to input metadata and view graphs of the trajectory of behavioral aging as the experiment unfolds. Compared to the manual use of a plate-based C. elegans tracker, the Observatory reduces the effort required by close to two orders of magnitude. Within the Observatory, reducing the function of known lifespan genes with RNA interference (RNAi) gives the expected phenotypic changes, including extended motility in daf-2(RNAi) and progeria in hsf-1(RNAi). Lifespans scored manually from worms raised in conventional conditions match those scored from images captured by the Observatory. We have used the Observatory for a small candidate-gene screen and identified an extended youthful vigor phenotype for tank-1(RNAi) and a progeric phenotype for cdc-42(RNAi). By utilizing the Observatory, it is now feasible to conduct whole-genome screens for an aging-trajectory phenotype, thus greatly increasing our ability to discover and analyze new components of the aging program.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rex A. Kerr
- Calico Life Sciences LLC, South San Francisco, CA, United States
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