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Rubio-Tomás T, Alegre-Cortés E, Lionaki E, Fuentes JM, Tavernarakis N. Heat shock and thermotolerance in Caenorhabditis elegans: An overview of laboratory techniques. Methods Cell Biol 2024; 185:1-17. [PMID: 38556443 DOI: 10.1016/bs.mcb.2024.02.001] [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] [Indexed: 04/02/2024]
Abstract
The soil nematode worm Caenorhabditis elegans is a simple and well-established model for the study of many biological processes. Heat shock and thermotolerance assays have been developed for this nematode, and have been used to decipher the molecular relationships between thermal stress and aging, among others. Nevertheless, a systematic and methodological comparison of the different approaches and tools utilized is lacking in the literature. Here, we aim to provide a comprehensive summary of the most commonly used strategies for carrying out heat shock and thermotolerance assays that have been reported, highlighting specific readouts and scientific questions that can be addressed. Furthermore, we offer examples of thermotolerance assays performed with wild type nematodes, that can serve as a gauge of the animal survival under diverse conditions of stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Teresa Rubio-Tomás
- Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, Foundation for Research and Technology-Hellas, Heraklion, Greece
| | - Eva Alegre-Cortés
- Universidad de Extremadura, Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular y Genética, Facultad de Enfermería y Terapia Ocupacional, Cáceres, Spain; Instituto Universitario de Investigación Biosanitaria de Extremadura (INUBE), Cáceres, Spain
| | - Eirini Lionaki
- Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, Foundation for Research and Technology-Hellas, Heraklion, Greece
| | - José M Fuentes
- Universidad de Extremadura, Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular y Genética, Facultad de Enfermería y Terapia Ocupacional, Cáceres, Spain; Instituto Universitario de Investigación Biosanitaria de Extremadura (INUBE), Cáceres, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red en Enfermedades Neurodegenerativas-Instituto de Salud Carlos III (CIBER-CIBERNED-ISCIII), Madrid, Spain.
| | - Nektarios Tavernarakis
- Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, Foundation for Research and Technology-Hellas, Heraklion, Greece; Division of Basic Sciences, School of Medicine, University of Crete, Heraklion, Greece.
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Wang Q, Wang L, Huang Z, Xiao Y, Liu M, Liu H, Yu Y, Liang M, Luo N, Li K, Mishra A, Huang Z. Abalone peptide increases stress resilience and cost-free longevity via SKN-1-governed transcriptional metabolic reprogramming in C. elegans. Aging Cell 2024; 23:e14046. [PMID: 37990605 PMCID: PMC10861207 DOI: 10.1111/acel.14046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2023] [Accepted: 10/30/2023] [Indexed: 11/23/2023] Open
Abstract
A major goal of healthy aging is to prevent declining resilience and increasing frailty, which are associated with many chronic diseases and deterioration of stress response. Here, we propose a loss-or-gain survival model, represented by the ratio of cumulative stress span to life span, to quantify stress resilience at organismal level. As a proof of concept, this is demonstrated by reduced survival resilience in Caenorhabditis elegans exposed to exogenous oxidative stress induced by paraquat or with endogenous proteotoxic stress caused by polyglutamine or amyloid-β aggregation. Based on this, we reveal that a hidden peptide ("cryptide")-AbaPep#07 (SETYELRK)-derived from abalone hemocyanin not only enhances survival resilience against paraquat-induced oxidative stress but also rescues proteotoxicity-mediated behavioral deficits in C. elegans, indicating its capacity against stress and neurodegeneration. Interestingly, AbaPep#07 is also found to increase cost-free longevity and age-related physical fitness in nematodes. We then demonstrate that AbaPep#07 can promote nuclear localization of SKN-1/Nrf, but not DAF-16/FOXO, transcription factor. In contrast to its effects in wild-type nematodes, AbaPep#07 cannot increase oxidative stress survival and physical motility in loss-of-function skn-1 mutant, suggesting an SKN-1/Nrf-dependent fashion of these effects. Further investigation reveals that AbaPep#07 can induce transcriptional activation of immune defense, lipid metabolism, and metabolic detoxification pathways, including many SKN-1/Nrf target genes. Together, our findings demonstrate that AbaPep#07 is able to boost stress resilience and reduce behavioral frailty via SKN-1/Nrf-governed transcriptional reprogramming, and provide an insight into the health-promoting potential of antioxidant cryptides as geroprotectors in aging and associated conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiangqiang Wang
- Institute for Food Nutrition and Human Health, School of Food Science and Engineering, South China University of TechnologyGuangzhouChina
- Guangdong Province Key Laboratory for BiocosmeticsGuangzhouChina
| | - Liangyi Wang
- Institute for Food Nutrition and Human Health, School of Food Science and Engineering, South China University of TechnologyGuangzhouChina
- Center for Bioresources and Drug Discovery, School of Biosciences and Biopharmaceutics, Guangdong Pharmaceutical UniversityGuangzhouChina
| | - Ziliang Huang
- Institute for Food Nutrition and Human Health, School of Food Science and Engineering, South China University of TechnologyGuangzhouChina
- Center for Bioresources and Drug Discovery, School of Biosciences and Biopharmaceutics, Guangdong Pharmaceutical UniversityGuangzhouChina
| | - Yue Xiao
- Institute for Food Nutrition and Human Health, School of Food Science and Engineering, South China University of TechnologyGuangzhouChina
- Guangdong Province Key Laboratory for BiocosmeticsGuangzhouChina
| | - Mao Liu
- Institute for Food Nutrition and Human Health, School of Food Science and Engineering, South China University of TechnologyGuangzhouChina
- Guangdong Province Key Laboratory for BiocosmeticsGuangzhouChina
| | - Huihui Liu
- Institute for Food Nutrition and Human Health, School of Food Science and Engineering, South China University of TechnologyGuangzhouChina
- Center for Bioresources and Drug Discovery, School of Biosciences and Biopharmaceutics, Guangdong Pharmaceutical UniversityGuangzhouChina
| | - Yi Yu
- Research and Development Center, Infinitus (China) Company LtdGuangzhouChina
| | - Ming Liang
- Research and Development Center, Infinitus (China) Company LtdGuangzhouChina
| | - Ning Luo
- Institute of Chinese Medicinal Sciences, Guangdong Pharmaceutical UniversityGuangzhouChina
| | - Kunping Li
- Institute of Chinese Medicinal Sciences, Guangdong Pharmaceutical UniversityGuangzhouChina
| | - Ajay Mishra
- European Bioinformatics InstituteCambridgeUK
| | - Zebo Huang
- Institute for Food Nutrition and Human Health, School of Food Science and Engineering, South China University of TechnologyGuangzhouChina
- Guangdong Province Key Laboratory for BiocosmeticsGuangzhouChina
- Center for Bioresources and Drug Discovery, School of Biosciences and Biopharmaceutics, Guangdong Pharmaceutical UniversityGuangzhouChina
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Wang Z, Tian W, Wang D, Guo Y, Cheng Z, Zhang Y, Li X, Zhi Y, Li D, Li Z, Jiang R, Li G, Tian Y, Kang X, Li H, Dunn IC, Liu X. Comparative analyses of dynamic transcriptome profiles highlight key response genes and dominant isoforms for muscle development and growth in chicken. Genet Sel Evol 2023; 55:73. [PMID: 37872550 PMCID: PMC10591418 DOI: 10.1186/s12711-023-00849-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2023] [Accepted: 10/06/2023] [Indexed: 10/25/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Modern breeding strategies have resulted in significant differences in muscle mass between indigenous chicken and specialized broiler. However, the molecular regulatory mechanisms that underlie these differences remain elusive. The aim of this study was to identify key genes and regulatory mechanisms underlying differences in breast muscle development between indigenous chicken and specialized broiler. RESULTS Two time-series RNA-sequencing profiles of breast muscles were generated from commercial Arbor Acres (AA) broiler (fast-growing) and Chinese indigenous Lushi blue-shelled-egg (LS) chicken (slow-growing) at embryonic days 10, 14, and 18, and post-hatching day 1 and weeks 1, 3, and 5. Principal component analysis of the transcriptome profiles showed that the top four principal components accounted for more than 80% of the total variance in each breed. The developmental axes between the AA and LS chicken overlapped at the embryonic stages but gradually separated at the adult stages. Integrative investigation of differentially-expressed transcripts contained in the top four principal components identified 44 genes that formed a molecular network associated with differences in breast muscle mass between the two breeds. In addition, alternative splicing analysis revealed that genes with multiple isoforms always had one dominant transcript that exhibited a significantly higher expression level than the others. Among the 44 genes, the TNFRSF6B gene, a mediator of signal transduction pathways and cell proliferation, harbored two alternative splicing isoforms, TNFRSF6B-X1 and TNFRSF6B-X2. TNFRSF6B-X1 was the dominant isoform in both breeds before the age of one week. A switching event of the dominant isoform occurred at one week of age, resulting in TNFRSF6B-X2 being the dominant isoform in AA broiler, whereas TNFRSF6B-X1 remained the dominant isoform in LS chicken. Gain-of-function assays demonstrated that both isoforms promoted the proliferation of chicken primary myoblasts, but only TNFRSF6B-X2 augmented the differentiation and intracellular protein content of chicken primary myoblasts. CONCLUSIONS For the first time, we identified several key genes and dominant isoforms that may be responsible for differences in muscle mass between slow-growing indigenous chicken and fast-growing commercial broiler. These findings provide new insights into the regulatory mechanisms underlying breast muscle development in chicken.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhang Wang
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan Agricultural University, No. 63, Nongye Road, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
| | - Weihua Tian
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan Agricultural University, No. 63, Nongye Road, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
| | - Dandan Wang
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan Agricultural University, No. 63, Nongye Road, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
| | - Yulong Guo
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan Agricultural University, No. 63, Nongye Road, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
| | - Zhimin Cheng
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan Agricultural University, No. 63, Nongye Road, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
| | - Yanyan Zhang
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan Agricultural University, No. 63, Nongye Road, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
| | - Xinyan Li
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan Agricultural University, No. 63, Nongye Road, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
| | - Yihao Zhi
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan Agricultural University, No. 63, Nongye Road, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
| | - Donghua Li
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan Agricultural University, No. 63, Nongye Road, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
- Henan Innovative Engineering Research Center of Poultry Germplasm Resource, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
- International Joint Research Laboratory for Poultry Breeding of Henan, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
| | - Zhuanjian Li
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan Agricultural University, No. 63, Nongye Road, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
- Henan Innovative Engineering Research Center of Poultry Germplasm Resource, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
- International Joint Research Laboratory for Poultry Breeding of Henan, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
| | - Ruirui Jiang
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan Agricultural University, No. 63, Nongye Road, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
- Henan Innovative Engineering Research Center of Poultry Germplasm Resource, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
- International Joint Research Laboratory for Poultry Breeding of Henan, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
| | - Guoxi Li
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan Agricultural University, No. 63, Nongye Road, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
- Henan Innovative Engineering Research Center of Poultry Germplasm Resource, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
- International Joint Research Laboratory for Poultry Breeding of Henan, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
| | - Yadong Tian
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan Agricultural University, No. 63, Nongye Road, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
- Henan Innovative Engineering Research Center of Poultry Germplasm Resource, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
- International Joint Research Laboratory for Poultry Breeding of Henan, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
| | - Xiangtao Kang
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan Agricultural University, No. 63, Nongye Road, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
- Henan Innovative Engineering Research Center of Poultry Germplasm Resource, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
- International Joint Research Laboratory for Poultry Breeding of Henan, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
| | - Hong Li
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan Agricultural University, No. 63, Nongye Road, Zhengzhou, 450002, China.
- Henan Innovative Engineering Research Center of Poultry Germplasm Resource, Zhengzhou, 450002, China.
- International Joint Research Laboratory for Poultry Breeding of Henan, Zhengzhou, 450002, China.
| | - Ian C Dunn
- The Roslin Institute and Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH25 9RG, UK.
| | - Xiaojun Liu
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Henan Agricultural University, No. 63, Nongye Road, Zhengzhou, 450002, China.
- Henan Innovative Engineering Research Center of Poultry Germplasm Resource, Zhengzhou, 450002, China.
- International Joint Research Laboratory for Poultry Breeding of Henan, Zhengzhou, 450002, China.
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The role of gene expression and symbiosis in reef-building coral acquired heat tolerance. Nat Commun 2022; 13:4513. [PMID: 35922443 PMCID: PMC9349291 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-32217-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2022] [Accepted: 07/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Predicting how reef-building corals will respond to accelerating ocean warming caused by climate change requires knowledge of how acclimation and symbiosis modulate heat tolerance in coral early life-history stages. We assayed transcriptional responses to heat in larvae and juveniles of 11 reproductive crosses of Acropora tenuis colonies along the Great Barrier Reef. Larvae produced from the warmest reef had the highest heat tolerance, although gene expression responses to heat were largely conserved by cross identity. Juvenile transcriptional responses were driven strongly by symbiosis – when in symbiosis with heat-evolved Symbiodiniaceae, hosts displayed intermediate expression between its progenitor Cladocopium and the more stress tolerant Durusdinium, indicating the acquisition of tolerance is a conserved evolutionary process in symbionts. Heat-evolved Symbiodiniaceae facilitated juvenile survival under heat stress, although host transcriptional responses to heat were positively correlated among those hosting different genera of Symbiodiniaceae. These findings reveal the relative contribution of parental environmental history as well as symbiosis establishment in coral molecular responses to heat in early life-history stages. Coral responses to ocean warming depend not only on the coral themselves, but also on their symbionts. Here, the authors experimentally assess how symbiosis and gene expression plasticity contribute to the heat stress responses of a common coral.
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van Sluijs L, Bosman KJ, Pankok F, Blokhina T, Wilten JIHA, te Molder DM, Riksen JAG, Snoek BL, Pijlman GP, Kammenga JE, Sterken MG. Balancing Selection of the Intracellular Pathogen Response in Natural Caenorhabditis elegans Populations. Front Cell Infect Microbiol 2022; 11:758331. [PMID: 35174100 PMCID: PMC8841876 DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2021.758331] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2021] [Accepted: 12/21/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Genetic variation in host populations may lead to differential viral susceptibilities. Here, we investigate the role of natural genetic variation in the Intracellular Pathogen Response (IPR), an important antiviral pathway in the model organism Caenorhabditis elegans against Orsay virus (OrV). The IPR involves transcriptional activity of 80 genes including the pals-genes. We examine the genetic variation in the pals-family for traces of selection and explore the molecular and phenotypic effects of having distinct pals-gene alleles. Genetic analysis of 330 global C. elegans strains reveals that genetic diversity within the IPR-related pals-genes can be categorized in a few haplotypes worldwide. Importantly, two key IPR regulators, pals-22 and pals-25, are in a genomic region carrying signatures of balancing selection, suggesting that different evolutionary strategies exist in IPR regulation. We infected eleven C. elegans strains that represent three distinct pals-22 pals-25 haplotypes with Orsay virus to determine their susceptibility. For two of these strains, N2 and CB4856, the transcriptional response to infection was also measured. The results indicate that pals-22 pals-25 haplotype shapes the defense against OrV and host genetic variation can result in constitutive activation of IPR genes. Our work presents evidence for balancing genetic selection of immunity genes in C. elegans and provides a novel perspective on the functional diversity that can develop within a main antiviral response in natural host populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lisa van Sluijs
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, Netherlands
- Laboratory of Virology, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, Netherlands
| | - Kobus J. Bosman
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, Netherlands
| | - Frederik Pankok
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, Netherlands
| | - Tatiana Blokhina
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, Netherlands
| | - Jop I. H. A. Wilten
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, Netherlands
| | - Dennie M. te Molder
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, Netherlands
| | - Joost A. G. Riksen
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, Netherlands
| | - Basten L. Snoek
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, Netherlands
| | - Gorben P. Pijlman
- Laboratory of Virology, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, Netherlands
| | - Jan E. Kammenga
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, Netherlands
| | - Mark G. Sterken
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, Netherlands
- Laboratory of Virology, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, Netherlands
- *Correspondence: Mark G. Sterken,
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Snoek BL, Sterken MG, Nijveen H, Volkers RJM, Riksen J, Rosenstiel PC, Schulenburg H, Kammenga JE. The genetics of gene expression in a Caenorhabditis elegans multiparental recombinant inbred line population. G3-GENES GENOMES GENETICS 2021; 11:6347583. [PMID: 34568931 PMCID: PMC8496280 DOI: 10.1093/g3journal/jkab258] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2021] [Accepted: 07/17/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Studying genetic variation of gene expression provides a powerful way to unravel the molecular components underlying complex traits. Expression quantitative trait locus (eQTL) studies have been performed in several different model species, yet most of these linkage studies have been based on the genetic segregation of two parental alleles. Recently, we developed a multiparental segregating population of 200 recombinant inbred lines (mpRILs) derived from four wild isolates (JU1511, JU1926, JU1931, and JU1941) in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. We used RNA-seq to investigate how multiple alleles affect gene expression in these mpRILs. We found 1789 genes differentially expressed between the parental lines. Transgression, expression beyond any of the parental lines in the mpRILs, was found for 7896 genes. For expression QTL mapping almost 9000 SNPs were available. By combining these SNPs and the RNA-seq profiles of the mpRILs, we detected almost 6800 eQTLs. Most trans-eQTLs (63%) co-locate in six newly identified trans-bands. The trans-eQTLs found in previous two-parental allele eQTL experiments and this study showed some overlap (17.5–46.8%), highlighting on the one hand that a large group of genes is affected by polymorphic regulators across populations and conditions, on the other hand, it shows that the mpRIL population allows identification of novel gene expression regulatory loci. Taken together, the analysis of our mpRIL population provides a more refined insight into C. elegans complex trait genetics and eQTLs in general, as well as a starting point to further test and develop advanced statistical models for detection of multiallelic eQTLs and systems genetics studying the genotype–phenotype relationship.
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Affiliation(s)
- Basten L Snoek
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University, NL-6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands.,Theoretical Biology and Bioinformatics, Utrecht University, 3584 CH Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Mark G Sterken
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University, NL-6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Harm Nijveen
- Bioinformatics Group, Wageningen University, NL-6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Rita J M Volkers
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University, NL-6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Joost Riksen
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University, NL-6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Philip C Rosenstiel
- Institute for Clinical Molecular Biology, University of Kiel, 24098 Kiel, Germany.,Competence Centre for Genomic Analysis (CCGA) Kiel, University of Kiel, 24098 Kiel, Germany
| | - Hinrich Schulenburg
- Zoological Institute, University of Kiel, 24098 Kiel, Germany.,Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, 24306 Ploen, Germany
| | - Jan E Kammenga
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University, NL-6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands
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Huang Y, Sterken MG, van Zwet K, van Sluijs L, Pijlman GP, Kammenga JE. Heat Stress Reduces the Susceptibility of Caenorhabditis elegans to Orsay Virus Infection. Genes (Basel) 2021; 12:1161. [PMID: 34440335 PMCID: PMC8392475 DOI: 10.3390/genes12081161] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2021] [Revised: 07/21/2021] [Accepted: 07/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The nematode Caenorhabditis elegans has been a versatile model for understanding the molecular responses to abiotic stress and pathogens. In particular, the response to heat stress and virus infection has been studied in detail. The Orsay virus (OrV) is a natural virus of C. elegans and infection leads to intracellular infection and proteostatic stress, which activates the intracellular pathogen response (IPR). IPR related gene expression is regulated by the genes pals-22 and pals-25, which also control thermotolerance and immunity against other natural pathogens. So far, we have a limited understanding of the molecular responses upon the combined exposure to heat stress and virus infection. We test the hypothesis that the response of C. elegans to OrV infection and heat stress are co-regulated and may affect each other. We conducted a combined heat-stress-virus infection assay and found that after applying heat stress, the susceptibility of C. elegans to OrV was decreased. This difference was found across different wild types of C. elegans. Transcriptome analysis revealed a list of potential candidate genes associated with heat stress and OrV infection. Subsequent mutant screens suggest that pals-22 provides a link between viral response and heat stress, leading to enhanced OrV tolerance of C. elegans after heat stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuqing Huang
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University & Research, Droevendaalsesteeg 1, 6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands; (Y.H.); (M.G.S.); (K.v.Z.); (L.v.S.)
| | - Mark G. Sterken
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University & Research, Droevendaalsesteeg 1, 6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands; (Y.H.); (M.G.S.); (K.v.Z.); (L.v.S.)
| | - Koen van Zwet
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University & Research, Droevendaalsesteeg 1, 6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands; (Y.H.); (M.G.S.); (K.v.Z.); (L.v.S.)
| | - Lisa van Sluijs
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University & Research, Droevendaalsesteeg 1, 6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands; (Y.H.); (M.G.S.); (K.v.Z.); (L.v.S.)
| | - Gorben P. Pijlman
- Laboratory of Virology, Wageningen University & Research, Droevendaalsesteeg 1, 6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands;
| | - Jan E. Kammenga
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University & Research, Droevendaalsesteeg 1, 6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands; (Y.H.); (M.G.S.); (K.v.Z.); (L.v.S.)
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8
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Sterken MG, Bevers RPJ, Volkers RJM, Riksen JAG, Kammenga JE, Snoek BL. Dissecting the eQTL Micro-Architecture in Caenorhabditis elegans. Front Genet 2020; 11:501376. [PMID: 33240309 PMCID: PMC7670075 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2020.501376] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2019] [Accepted: 10/13/2020] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
The study of expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) using natural variation in inbred populations has yielded detailed information about the transcriptional regulation of complex traits. Studies on eQTL using recombinant inbred lines (RILs) led to insights on cis and trans regulatory loci of transcript abundance. However, determining the underlying causal polymorphic genes or variants is difficult, but ultimately essential for the understanding of regulatory networks of complex traits. This requires insight into whether associated loci are single eQTL or a combination of closely linked eQTL, and how this QTL micro-architecture depends on the environment. We addressed these questions by testing for independent replication of previously mapped eQTL in Caenorhabditis elegans using new data from introgression lines (ILs). Both populations indicate that the overall heritability of gene expression, number, and position of eQTL differed among environments. Across environments we were able to replicate 70% of the cis- and 40% of the trans-eQTL using the ILs. Testing eight different simulation models, we suggest that additive effects explain up to 60-93% of RIL/IL heritability for all three environments. Closely linked eQTL explained up to 40% of RIL/IL heritability in the control environment whereas only 7% in the heat-stress and recovery environments. In conclusion, we show that reproducibility of eQTL was higher for cis vs. trans eQTL and that the environment affects the eQTL micro-architecture.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark G. Sterken
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen, Netherlands
| | - Roel P. J. Bevers
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen, Netherlands
| | - Rita J. M. Volkers
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen, Netherlands
| | - Joost A. G. Riksen
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen, Netherlands
| | - Jan E. Kammenga
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen, Netherlands
| | - Basten L. Snoek
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen, Netherlands
- Theoretical Biology & Bioinformatics, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
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Neves RC, Stuart RM, Møbjerg N. New insights into the limited thermotolerance of anhydrobiotic tardigrades. Commun Integr Biol 2020; 13:140-146. [PMID: 33014266 PMCID: PMC7518453 DOI: 10.1080/19420889.2020.1812865] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The recent discovery of an upper limit in the tolerance of an extremotolerant tardigrade to high temperatures is astounding. Although these microinvertebrates are able to endure severe environmental conditions, including desiccation, freezing and high levels of radiation, high temperatures seem to be an Achilles’ heel for active tardigrades. Moreover, exposure-time appears to be a limiting factor for the heat stress tolerance of the otherwise highly resilient desiccated (anhydrobiotic) tardigrades. Indeed, the survival rate of desiccated tardigrades exposed to high temperatures for 24 hours is significantly lower than for exposures of only 1 hour. Here, we investigate the effect of 1 week of high temperature exposures on desiccated tardigrades with the aim of elucidating whether exposure-times longer than 24 hours decrease survival even further. From our analyses we estimate a significant decrease in the 50% mortality temperature from 63ºC to 56ºC for Ramazzottius varieornatus exposed to high temperatures in the desiccated tun state for 24 hours and 1 week, respectively. This negative correlation between exposure-time and tolerance to high temperatures probably results from the interference of intracellular temperature with the homeostasis of macromolecules. We hypothesize that high temperatures denature molecules that play a vital role in sustaining and protecting the anhydrobiotic state.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ricardo Cardoso Neves
- Department of Biology, August Krogh Building, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Robyn M Stuart
- Data Science Laboratory, Department of Mathematical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Nadja Møbjerg
- Department of Biology, August Krogh Building, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
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