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Cornwell AB, Zhang Y, Thondamal M, Johnson DW, Thakar J, Samuelson AV. The C. elegans Myc-family of transcription factors coordinate a dynamic adaptive response to dietary restriction. GeroScience 2024; 46:4827-4854. [PMID: 38878153 PMCID: PMC11336136 DOI: 10.1007/s11357-024-01197-x] [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: 02/16/2024] [Accepted: 05/08/2024] [Indexed: 06/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Dietary restriction (DR), the process of decreasing overall food consumption over an extended period of time, has been shown to increase longevity across evolutionarily diverse species and delay the onset of age-associated diseases in humans. In Caenorhabditis elegans, the Myc-family transcription factors (TFs) MXL-2 (Mlx) and MML-1 (MondoA/ChREBP), which function as obligate heterodimers, and PHA-4 (orthologous to FOXA) are both necessary for the full physiological benefits of DR. However, the adaptive transcriptional response to DR and the role of MML-1::MXL-2 and PHA-4 remains elusive. We identified the transcriptional signature of C. elegans DR, using the eat-2 genetic model, and demonstrate broad changes in metabolic gene expression in eat-2 DR animals, which requires both mxl-2 and pha-4. While the requirement for these factors in DR gene expression overlaps, we found many of the DR genes exhibit an opposing change in relative gene expression in eat-2;mxl-2 animals compared to wild-type, which was not observed in eat-2 animals with pha-4 loss. Surprisingly, we discovered more than 2000 genes synthetically dysregulated in eat-2;mxl-2, out of which the promoters of down-regulated genes were substantially enriched for PQM-1 and ELT-1/3 GATA TF binding motifs. We further show functional deficiencies of the mxl-2 loss in DR outside of lifespan, as eat-2;mxl-2 animals exhibit substantially smaller brood sizes and lay a proportion of dead eggs, indicating that MML-1::MXL-2 has a role in maintaining the balance between resource allocation to the soma and to reproduction under conditions of chronic food scarcity. While eat-2 animals do not show a significantly different metabolic rate compared to wild-type, we also find that loss of mxl-2 in DR does not affect the rate of oxygen consumption in young animals. The gene expression signature of eat-2 mutant animals is consistent with optimization of energy utilization and resource allocation, rather than induction of canonical gene expression changes associated with acute metabolic stress, such as induction of autophagy after TORC1 inhibition. Consistently, eat-2 animals are not substantially resistant to stress, providing further support to the idea that chronic DR may benefit healthspan and lifespan through efficient use of limited resources rather than broad upregulation of stress responses, and also indicates that MML-1::MXL-2 and PHA-4 may have distinct roles in promotion of benefits in response to different pro-longevity stimuli.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam B Cornwell
- Department of Biomedical Genetics, University of Rochester Medical Center, 601 Elmwood Avenue, Rochester, NY, 14642, USA
| | - Yun Zhang
- Department of Biomedical Genetics, University of Rochester Medical Center, 601 Elmwood Avenue, Rochester, NY, 14642, USA
| | - Manjunatha Thondamal
- Department of Biomedical Genetics, University of Rochester Medical Center, 601 Elmwood Avenue, Rochester, NY, 14642, USA
- MURTI Centre and Department of Biotechnology, School of Technology, Gandhi Institute of Technology and Management (GITAM), Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, 530045, India
| | - David W Johnson
- Department of Biomedical Genetics, University of Rochester Medical Center, 601 Elmwood Avenue, Rochester, NY, 14642, USA
- Department of Math and Science, Genesee Community College, One College Rd, Batavia, NY, 14020, USA
| | - Juilee Thakar
- Department of Biomedical Genetics, University of Rochester Medical Center, 601 Elmwood Avenue, Rochester, NY, 14642, USA
- Department of Biostatistics and Computational Biology, University of Rochester Medical Center, 601 Elmwood Avenue, Rochester, NY, 14642, USA
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Rochester Medical Center, 601 Elmwood Avenue, Rochester, NY, 14642, USA
| | - Andrew V Samuelson
- Department of Biomedical Genetics, University of Rochester Medical Center, 601 Elmwood Avenue, Rochester, NY, 14642, USA.
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2
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Shen K, Durieux J, Mena CG, Webster BM, Tsui CK, Zhang H, Joe L, Berendzen KM, Dillin A. The germline coordinates mitokine signaling. Cell 2024; 187:4605-4620.e17. [PMID: 38959891 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2024.06.010] [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: 10/04/2023] [Revised: 04/01/2024] [Accepted: 06/08/2024] [Indexed: 07/05/2024]
Abstract
The ability of mitochondria to coordinate stress responses across tissues is critical for health. In C. elegans, neurons experiencing mitochondrial stress elicit an inter-tissue signaling pathway through the release of mitokine signals, such as serotonin or the Wnt ligand EGL-20, which activate the mitochondrial unfolded protein response (UPRMT) in the periphery to promote organismal health and lifespan. We find that germline mitochondria play a surprising role in neuron-to-periphery UPRMT signaling. Specifically, we find that germline mitochondria signal downstream of neuronal mitokines, Wnt and serotonin, and upstream of lipid metabolic pathways in the periphery to regulate UPRMT activation. We also find that the germline tissue itself is essential for UPRMT signaling. We propose that the germline has a central signaling role in coordinating mitochondrial stress responses across tissues, and germline mitochondria play a defining role in this coordination because of their inherent roles in germline integrity and inter-tissue signaling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Koning Shen
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Jenni Durieux
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Cesar G Mena
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Brant M Webster
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - C Kimberly Tsui
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Hanlin Zhang
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Larry Joe
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Kristen M Berendzen
- Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
| | - Andrew Dillin
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; The Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.
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3
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Reigada I, Kapp K, Kaudela T, García Soria M, Oksanen T, Hanski L. Tracking Chlamydia - Host interactions and antichlamydial activity in Caenorhabditis elegans. Biomed Pharmacother 2024; 177:116956. [PMID: 38901202 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2024.116956] [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: 02/20/2024] [Revised: 06/02/2024] [Accepted: 06/15/2024] [Indexed: 06/22/2024] Open
Abstract
The fading efficacy of antibiotics is a growing global health concern due to its life-threatening consequences and increased healthcare costs. Non-genetic mechanisms of antimicrobial resistance, such as those employed by Chlamydia pneumoniae and Chlamydia trachomatis, complicate treatment as these bacteria can enter a non-replicative, persistent state under stress, evading antibiotics and linking to inflammatory conditions. Understanding chlamydial persistence at the molecular level is challenging, and new models for studying Chlamydia-host interactions in vivo are urgently needed. Caenorhabditis elegans offers an alternative given its immune system and numerous orthologues of human genes. This study established C. elegans as an in vivo model for chlamydial infection. Both Chlamydia species reduced the worm's lifespan, their DNA being detectable at three- and six-days post-infection. Azithromycin at its MIC (25 nM) failed to prevent the infection-induced lifespan reduction, indicating a persister phenotype. In contrast, the methanolic extract of Schisandra chinensis berries showed anti-chlamydial activity both in vitro (in THP-1 macrophages) and in vivo, significantly extending the lifespan of infected C. elegans and reducing the bacterial load. Moreover, S. chinensis increased the transcriptional activity of SKN-1 in the worms, but was unable to impact the bacterial load or lifespan in a sek-1 defective C. elegans strain. In summary, this study validated C. elegans as a chlamydial infection model and showcased S. chinensis berries' in vivo anti-chlamydial potential, possibly through SEK/SKN-1 signaling modulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Inés Reigada
- Drug Research Program, Division of Pharmaceutical Biosciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Helsinki, Helsinki 00014, Finland
| | - Karmen Kapp
- Drug Research Program, Division of Pharmaceutical Biosciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Helsinki, Helsinki 00014, Finland
| | - Theresa Kaudela
- Drug Research Program, Division of Pharmaceutical Biosciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Helsinki, Helsinki 00014, Finland
| | - María García Soria
- Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universidad San Jorge (San Jorge University), Zaragoza 50830, Spain
| | - Timo Oksanen
- Drug Research Program, Division of Pharmaceutical Biosciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Helsinki, Helsinki 00014, Finland
| | - Leena Hanski
- Drug Research Program, Division of Pharmaceutical Biosciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Helsinki, Helsinki 00014, Finland.
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4
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Mathisen AF, Legøy TA, Larsen U, Unger L, Abadpour S, Paulo JA, Scholz H, Ghila L, Chera S. The age-dependent regulation of pancreatic islet landscape is fueled by a HNF1a-immune signaling loop. Mech Ageing Dev 2024; 220:111951. [PMID: 38825059 DOI: 10.1016/j.mad.2024.111951] [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: 01/09/2024] [Revised: 04/30/2024] [Accepted: 05/21/2024] [Indexed: 06/04/2024]
Abstract
Animal longevity is a function of global vital organ functionality and, consequently, a complex polygenic trait. Yet, monogenic regulators controlling overall or organ-specific ageing exist, owing their conservation to their function in growth and development. Here, by using pathway analysis combined with wet-biology methods on several dynamic timelines, we identified Hnf1a as a novel master regulator of the maturation and ageing in the adult pancreatic islet during the first year of life. Conditional transgenic mice bearing suboptimal levels of this transcription factor in the pancreatic islets displayed age-dependent changes, with a profile echoing precocious maturation. Additionally, the comparative pathway analysis revealed a link between Hnf1a age-dependent regulation and immune signaling, which was confirmed in the ageing timeline of an overly immunodeficient mouse model. Last, the global proteome analysis of human islets spanning three decades of life largely backed the age-specific regulation observed in mice. Collectively, our results suggest a novel role of Hnf1a as a monogenic regulator of the maturation and ageing process in the pancreatic islet via a direct or indirect regulatory loop with immune signaling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Frøslev Mathisen
- Mohn Research Center for Diabetes Precision Medicine, Department of Clinical Science, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
| | - Thomas Aga Legøy
- Mohn Research Center for Diabetes Precision Medicine, Department of Clinical Science, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
| | - Ulrik Larsen
- Mohn Research Center for Diabetes Precision Medicine, Department of Clinical Science, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
| | - Lucas Unger
- Mohn Research Center for Diabetes Precision Medicine, Department of Clinical Science, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
| | - Shadab Abadpour
- Hybrid Technology Hub-Centre of Excellence, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo, Norway; Institute for Surgical Research, Department of Transplant Medicine, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
| | - Joao A Paulo
- Department of Cell Biology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Hanne Scholz
- Hybrid Technology Hub-Centre of Excellence, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo, Norway; Institute for Surgical Research, Department of Transplant Medicine, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
| | - Luiza Ghila
- Mohn Research Center for Diabetes Precision Medicine, Department of Clinical Science, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
| | - Simona Chera
- Mohn Research Center for Diabetes Precision Medicine, Department of Clinical Science, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway.
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5
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Eder M, Martin OMF, Oswal N, Sedlackova L, Moutinho C, Del Carmen-Fabregat A, Menendez Bravo S, Sebé-Pedrós A, Heyn H, Stroustrup N. Systematic mapping of organism-scale gene-regulatory networks in aging using population asynchrony. Cell 2024; 187:3919-3935.e19. [PMID: 38908368 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2024.05.050] [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: 09/12/2023] [Revised: 04/02/2024] [Accepted: 05/27/2024] [Indexed: 06/24/2024]
Abstract
In aging, physiologic networks decline in function at rates that differ between individuals, producing a wide distribution of lifespan. Though 70% of human lifespan variance remains unexplained by heritable factors, little is known about the intrinsic sources of physiologic heterogeneity in aging. To understand how complex physiologic networks generate lifespan variation, new methods are needed. Here, we present Asynch-seq, an approach that uses gene-expression heterogeneity within isogenic populations to study the processes generating lifespan variation. By collecting thousands of single-individual transcriptomes, we capture the Caenorhabditis elegans "pan-transcriptome"-a highly resolved atlas of non-genetic variation. We use our atlas to guide a large-scale perturbation screen that identifies the decoupling of total mRNA content between germline and soma as the largest source of physiologic heterogeneity in aging, driven by pleiotropic genes whose knockdown dramatically reduces lifespan variance. Our work demonstrates how systematic mapping of physiologic heterogeneity can be applied to reduce inter-individual disparities in aging.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthias Eder
- Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG), Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, Dr. Aiguader 88, Barcelona 08003, Spain
| | - Olivier M F Martin
- Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG), Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, Dr. Aiguader 88, Barcelona 08003, Spain; Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Natasha Oswal
- Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG), Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, Dr. Aiguader 88, Barcelona 08003, Spain; Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Lucia Sedlackova
- Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG), Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, Dr. Aiguader 88, Barcelona 08003, Spain
| | - Cátia Moutinho
- CNAG-CRG, Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Andrea Del Carmen-Fabregat
- Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG), Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, Dr. Aiguader 88, Barcelona 08003, Spain; Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Simon Menendez Bravo
- Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG), Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, Dr. Aiguader 88, Barcelona 08003, Spain
| | - Arnau Sebé-Pedrós
- Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG), Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, Dr. Aiguader 88, Barcelona 08003, Spain; Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF), Barcelona, Spain; ICREA, Pg. Lluis Companys 23, Barcelona 08010, Spain
| | - Holger Heyn
- CNAG-CRG, Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG), Barcelona, Spain; ICREA, Pg. Lluis Companys 23, Barcelona 08010, Spain
| | - Nicholas Stroustrup
- Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG), Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, Dr. Aiguader 88, Barcelona 08003, Spain; Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF), Barcelona, Spain.
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6
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Ow MC, Nishiguchi MA, Dar AR, Butcher RA, Hall SE. RNAi-dependent expression of sperm genes in ADL chemosensory neurons is required for olfactory responses in Caenorhabditis elegans. Front Mol Biosci 2024; 11:1396587. [PMID: 39055986 PMCID: PMC11269235 DOI: 10.3389/fmolb.2024.1396587] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2024] [Accepted: 06/11/2024] [Indexed: 07/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Environmental conditions experienced early in the life of an animal can result in gene expression changes later in its life history. We have previously shown that C. elegans animals that experienced the developmentally arrested and stress resistant dauer stage (postdauers) retain a cellular memory of early-life stress that manifests during adulthood as genome-wide changes in gene expression, chromatin states, and altered life history traits. One consequence of developmental reprogramming in C. elegans postdauer adults is the downregulation of osm-9 TRPV channel gene expression in the ADL chemosensory neurons resulting in reduced avoidance to a pheromone component, ascr#3. This altered response to ascr#3 requires the principal effector of the somatic nuclear RNAi pathway, the Argonaute (AGO) NRDE-3. To investigate the role of the somatic nuclear RNAi pathway in regulating the developmental reprogramming of ADL due to early-life stress, we profiled the mRNA transcriptome of control and postdauer ADL in wild-type and nrde-3 mutant adults. We found 711 differentially expressed (DE) genes between control and postdauer ADL neurons, 90% of which are dependent upon NRDE-3. Additionally, we identified a conserved sequence that is enriched in the upstream regulatory sequences of the NRDE-3-dependent differentially expressed genes. Surprisingly, 214 of the ADL DE genes are considered "germline-expressed", including 21 genes encoding the Major Sperm Proteins and two genes encoding the sperm-specific PP1 phosphatases, GSP-3 and GSP-4. Loss of function mutations in gsp-3 resulted in both aberrant avoidance and attraction behaviors. We also show that an AGO pseudogene, Y49F6A.1 (wago-11), is expressed in ADL and is required for ascr#3 avoidance. Overall, our results suggest that small RNAs and reproductive genes program the ADL mRNA transcriptome during their developmental history and highlight a nexus between neuronal and reproductive networks in calibrating animal neuroplasticity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria C. Ow
- Biology Department, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY, United States
| | | | - Abdul Rouf Dar
- Department of Chemistry, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
| | - Rebecca A. Butcher
- Department of Chemistry, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
| | - Sarah E. Hall
- Biology Department, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY, United States
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7
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Weng Y, Zhou S, Morillo K, Kaletsky R, Lin S, Murphy CT. The neuron-specific IIS/FOXO transcriptome in aged animals reveals regulatory mechanisms of cognitive aging. eLife 2024; 13:RP95621. [PMID: 38922671 PMCID: PMC11208049 DOI: 10.7554/elife.95621] [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] [Indexed: 06/27/2024] Open
Abstract
Cognitive decline is a significant health concern in our aging society. Here, we used the model organism C. elegans to investigate the impact of the IIS/FOXO pathway on age-related cognitive decline. The daf-2 Insulin/IGF-1 receptor mutant exhibits a significant extension of learning and memory span with age compared to wild-type worms, an effect that is dependent on the DAF-16 transcription factor. To identify possible mechanisms by which aging daf-2 mutants maintain learning and memory with age while wild-type worms lose neuronal function, we carried out neuron-specific transcriptomic analysis in aged animals. We observed downregulation of neuronal genes and upregulation of transcriptional regulation genes in aging wild-type neurons. By contrast, IIS/FOXO pathway mutants exhibit distinct neuronal transcriptomic alterations in response to cognitive aging, including upregulation of stress response genes and downregulation of specific insulin signaling genes. We tested the roles of significantly transcriptionally-changed genes in regulating cognitive functions, identifying novel regulators of learning and memory. In addition to other mechanistic insights, a comparison of the aged vs young daf-2 neuronal transcriptome revealed that a new set of potentially neuroprotective genes is upregulated; instead of simply mimicking a young state, daf-2 may enhance neuronal resilience to accumulation of harm and take a more active approach to combat aging. These findings suggest a potential mechanism for regulating cognitive function with age and offer insights into novel therapeutic targets for age-related cognitive decline.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yifei Weng
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton UniversityPrincetonUnited States
| | - Shiyi Zhou
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton UniversityPrincetonUnited States
| | - Katherine Morillo
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton UniversityPrincetonUnited States
| | - Rachel Kaletsky
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton UniversityPrincetonUnited States
- Princeton UniversityPrincetonUnited States
| | - Sarah Lin
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton UniversityPrincetonUnited States
| | - Coleen T Murphy
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton UniversityPrincetonUnited States
- Princeton UniversityPrincetonUnited States
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Weng Y, Murphy CT. Male-specific behavioral and transcriptomic changes in aging C. elegans neurons. iScience 2024; 27:109910. [PMID: 38783998 PMCID: PMC11111838 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.109910] [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: 12/18/2023] [Revised: 03/20/2024] [Accepted: 05/03/2024] [Indexed: 05/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Aging is a complex biological process with sexually dimorphic aspects. Although cognitive aging of Caenorhabditis elegans hermaphrodites has been studied, less is known about cognitive decline in males. We found that cognitive aging has both sex-shared and sex-dimorphic characteristics, and we identified neuron-specific age-associated sex-differential targets. In addition to sex-shared neuronal aging genes, males differentially downregulate mitochondrial metabolic genes and upregulate GPCR genes with age, while the X chromosome exhibits increased gene expression in hermaphrodites and altered dosage compensation complex expression with age, indicating possible X chromosome dysregulation that contributes to sexual dimorphism in cognitive aging. Finally, the sex-differentially expressed gene hrg-7, an aspartic-type endopeptidase, regulates male cognitive aging but does not affect hermaphrodites' behaviors. These results suggest that males and hermaphrodites exhibit different age-related neuronal changes. This study will strengthen our understanding of sex-specific vulnerability and resilience and identify pathways to target with treatments that could benefit both sexes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yifei Weng
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
- LSI Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
| | - Coleen T. Murphy
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
- LSI Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
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9
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Tan CH, Wang TY, Park H, Lomenick B, Chou TF, Sternberg PW. Single-tissue proteomics in Caenorhabditis elegans reveals proteins resident in intestinal lysosome-related organelles. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2322588121. [PMID: 38861598 PMCID: PMC11194598 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2322588121] [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: 12/25/2023] [Accepted: 05/06/2024] [Indexed: 06/13/2024] Open
Abstract
The nematode intestine is the primary site for nutrient uptake and storage as well as the synthesis of biomolecules; lysosome-related organelles known as gut granules are important for many of these functions. Aspects of intestine biology are not well understood, including the export of the nutrients it imports and the molecules it synthesizes, as well as the complete functions and protein content of the gut granules. Here, we report a mass spectrometry (MS)-based proteomic analysis of the intestine of the Caenorhabditis elegans and of its gut granules. Overall, we identified approximately 5,000 proteins each in the intestine and the gonad and showed that most of these proteins can be detected in samples extracted from a single worm, suggesting the feasibility of individual-level genetic analysis using proteomes. Comparing proteomes and published transcriptomes of the intestine and the gonad, we identified proteins that appear to be synthesized in the intestine and then transferred to the gonad. To identify gut granule proteins, we compared the proteome of individual intestines deficient in gut granules to the wild type. The identified gut granule proteome includes proteins known to be exclusively localized to the granules and additional putative gut granule proteins. We selected two of these putative gut granule proteins for validation via immunohistochemistry, and our successful confirmation of both suggests that our strategy was effective in identifying the gut granule proteome. Our results demonstrate the practicability of single-tissue MS-based proteomic analysis in small organisms and in its future utility.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chieh-Hsiang Tan
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125
| | - Ting-Yu Wang
- Proteome Exploration Laboratory, Beckman Institute, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125
| | - Heenam Park
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125
| | - Brett Lomenick
- Proteome Exploration Laboratory, Beckman Institute, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125
| | - Tsui-Fen Chou
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125
- Proteome Exploration Laboratory, Beckman Institute, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125
| | - Paul W Sternberg
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125
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10
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Breen PC, Kanakanui KG, Newman MA, Dowen RH. The F-box protein FBXL-5 governs vitellogenesis and lipid homeostasis in C. elegans. Front Cell Dev Biol 2024; 12:1389077. [PMID: 38946799 PMCID: PMC11211535 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2024.1389077] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2024] [Accepted: 05/22/2024] [Indexed: 07/02/2024] Open
Abstract
The molecular mechanisms that govern the metabolic commitment to reproduction, which often occurs at the expense of somatic reserves, remain poorly understood. We identified the Caenorhabditis elegans F-box protein FBXL-5 as a negative regulator of maternal provisioning of vitellogenin lipoproteins, which mediate the transfer of intestinal lipids to the germline. Mutations in fbxl-5 partially suppress the vitellogenesis defects observed in the heterochronic mutants lin-4 and lin-29, both of which ectopically express fbxl-5 at the adult developmental stage. FBXL-5 functions in the intestine to negatively regulate expression of the vitellogenin genes; and consistently, intestine-specific over-expression of FBXL-5 is sufficient to inhibit vitellogenesis, restrict lipid accumulation, and shorten lifespan. Our epistasis analyses suggest that fbxl-5 functions in concert with cul-6, a cullin gene, and the Skp1-related gene skr-3 to regulate vitellogenesis. Additionally, fbxl-5 acts genetically upstream of rict-1, which encodes the core mTORC2 protein Rictor, to govern vitellogenesis. Together, our results reveal an unexpected role for a SCF ubiquitin-ligase complex in controlling intestinal lipid homeostasis by engaging mTORC2 signaling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter C Breen
- Integrative Program for Biological and Genome Sciences, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, Unites States
| | - Kendall G Kanakanui
- Integrative Program for Biological and Genome Sciences, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, Unites States
| | - Martin A Newman
- Integrative Program for Biological and Genome Sciences, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, Unites States
| | - Robert H Dowen
- Integrative Program for Biological and Genome Sciences, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, Unites States
- Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, Unites States
- Department of Biology, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, Unites States
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11
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Caro L, Wei AD, Thomas CA, Posch G, Uremis A, Franzi MC, Abell SJ, Laszlo AH, Gundlach JH, Ramirez JM, Ailion M. Mechanism of an animal toxin-antidote system. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.06.11.598564. [PMID: 38915716 PMCID: PMC11195288 DOI: 10.1101/2024.06.11.598564] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/26/2024]
Abstract
Toxin-antidote systems are selfish genetic elements composed of a linked toxin and antidote. The peel-1 zeel-1 toxin-antidote system in C. elegans consists of a transmembrane toxin protein PEEL-1 which acts cell autonomously to kill cells. Here we investigate the molecular mechanism of PEEL-1 toxicity. We find that PEEL-1 requires a small membrane protein, PMPL-1, for toxicity. Together, PEEL-1 and PMPL-1 are sufficient for toxicity in a heterologous system, HEK293T cells, and cause cell swelling and increased cell permeability to monovalent cations. Using purified proteins, we show that PEEL-1 and PMPL-1 allow ion flux through lipid bilayers and generate currents which resemble ion channel gating. Our work suggests that PEEL-1 kills cells by co-opting PMPL-1 and creating a cation channel.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lews Caro
- Molecular and Cellular Biology Ph.D. Program, University of Washington; Seattle, WA 98195, USA
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington; Seattle, WA 91895, USA
| | - Aguan D. Wei
- Norcliffe Foundation Center for Integrative Brain Research, Seattle Children’s Research Institute; Seattle, WA 98101, USA
| | | | - Galen Posch
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington; Seattle, WA 91895, USA
| | - Ahmet Uremis
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington; Seattle, WA 91895, USA
| | | | - Sarah J. Abell
- Department of Physics, University of Washington; Seattle, WA 91895, USA
| | - Andrew H. Laszlo
- Department of Physics, University of Washington; Seattle, WA 91895, USA
| | - Jens H. Gundlach
- Department of Physics, University of Washington; Seattle, WA 91895, USA
| | - Jan-Marino Ramirez
- Norcliffe Foundation Center for Integrative Brain Research, Seattle Children’s Research Institute; Seattle, WA 98101, USA
- Department of Neurological Surgery, University of Washington School of Medicine; Seattle, WA 98104, USA
| | - Michael Ailion
- Molecular and Cellular Biology Ph.D. Program, University of Washington; Seattle, WA 98195, USA
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington; Seattle, WA 91895, USA
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12
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Funk OH, Levy DL, Fay DS. Epidermal cell fusion promotes the transition from an embryonic to a larval transcriptome in C. elegans. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.05.22.595354. [PMID: 38826300 PMCID: PMC11142173 DOI: 10.1101/2024.05.22.595354] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/04/2024]
Abstract
Cell fusion is a fundamental process in the development of multicellular organisms, yet its impact on gene regulation, particularly during crucial developmental stages, remains poorly understood. The Caenorhabditis elegans epidermis comprises 8-10 syncytial cells, with the largest integrating 139 individual nuclei through cell-cell fusion governed by the fusogenic protein EFF-1. To explore the effects of cell fusion on developmental progression and associated gene expression changes, we conducted transcriptomic analyses of eff-1 fusion-deficient mutants. Our RNAseq findings showed widespread transcriptomic changes that were enriched for epidermal genes and key molecular pathways involved in epidermal function during larval development. Subsequent single-molecule fluorescence in situ hybridization validated the altered expression of mRNA transcripts, confirming quantifiable changes in gene expression in the absence of embryonic epidermal fusion. These results underscore the significance of cell-cell fusion in shaping transcriptional programs during development and raise questions regarding the precise identities and specialized functions of different subclasses of nuclei within developing syncytial cells and tissues.
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13
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Wolfe Z, Liska D, Norris A. Deep Transcriptomics Reveals Cell-Specific Isoforms of Pan-Neuronal Genes. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.05.16.594572. [PMID: 38826410 PMCID: PMC11142100 DOI: 10.1101/2024.05.16.594572] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/04/2024]
Abstract
Profiling gene expression in single neurons using single-cell RNA-Seq is a powerful method for understanding the molecular diversity of the nervous system. Profiling alternative splicing in single neurons using these methods is more challenging, however, due to low capture efficiency and sensitivity. As a result, we know much less about splicing patterns and regulation across neurons than we do about gene expression. Here we leverage unique attributes of the C. elegans nervous system to investigate deep cell-specific transcriptomes complete with biological replicates generated by the CeNGEN consortium, enabling high-confidence assessment of splicing across neuron types even for lowly-expressed genes. Global splicing maps reveal several striking observations, including pan-neuronal genes that harbor cell-specific splice variants, abundant differential intron retention across neuron types, and a single neuron highly enriched for upstream alternative 3' splice sites. We develop an algorithm to identify unique cell-specific expression patterns and use it to discover both cell-specific isoforms and potential regulatory RNA binding proteins that establish these isoforms. Genetic interrogation of these RNA binding proteins in vivo identifies three distinct regulatory factors employed to establish unique splicing patterns in a single neuron. Finally, we develop a user-friendly platform for spatial transcriptomic visualization of these splicing patterns with single-neuron resolution.
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14
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VanDerMolen KR, Newman MA, Breen PC, Huff LA, Dowen RH. Non-cell-autonomous regulation of mTORC2 by Hedgehog signaling maintains lipid homeostasis. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.05.06.592795. [PMID: 38766075 PMCID: PMC11100691 DOI: 10.1101/2024.05.06.592795] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/22/2024]
Abstract
Organisms must appropriately allocate energetic resources between essential cellular processes to maintain homeostasis and in turn, maximize fitness. The nutritional and homeostatic regulators of energy homeostasis have been studied in detail; however, how developmental signals might impinge on these pathways to govern cellular metabolism is poorly understood. Here, we identify a non-canonical role for Hedgehog (Hh), a classic regulator of development, in maintaining intestinal lipid homeostasis in C. elegans . We find that expression of two Hh ligands, GRD-3 and GRD-4, is controlled by the LIN-29/EGR transcription factor in the hypodermis, where the Hh secretion factor CHE-14/Dispatched also facilitates non-cell autonomous Hh signaling. We demonstrate, using C. elegans and mouse hepatocytes, that Hh metabolic regulation does not occur through the canonical Hh transcription factor, TRA-1/GLI, but rather through non-canonical signaling that engages mTOR Complex 2 (mTORC2) in the intestine. Hh mutants display impaired lipid homeostasis, including reduced lipoprotein synthesis and fat accumulation, decreased growth, and upregulation of autophagy factors, mimicking loss of mTORC2. Additionally, we found that Hh inhibits p38 MAPK signaling in parallel to mTORC2 activation and that both pathways act together to modulate of lipid homeostasis. Our findings show a non-canonical role for Hedgehog signaling in lipid metabolism via regulation of core homeostatic pathways and reveal a new mechanism by which developmental timing events govern metabolic decisions.
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15
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Hayden AN, Brandel KL, Merlau PR, Vijayakumar P, Leptich EJ, Pietryk EW, Gaytan ES, Ni CW, Chao HT, Rosenfeld JA, Arey RN. Behavioral screening of conserved RNA-binding proteins reveals CEY-1/YBX RNA-binding protein dysfunction leads to impairments in memory and cognition. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.01.05.574402. [PMID: 38260399 PMCID: PMC10802296 DOI: 10.1101/2024.01.05.574402] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/24/2024]
Abstract
RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) regulate translation and plasticity which are required for memory. RBP dysfunction has been linked to a range of neurological disorders where cognitive impairments are a key symptom. However, of the 2,000 RBPs in the human genome, many are uncharacterized with regards to neurological phenotypes. To address this, we used the model organism C. elegans to assess the role of 20 conserved RBPs in memory. We identified eight previously uncharacterized memory regulators, three of which are in the C. elegans Y-Box (CEY) RBP family. Of these, we determined that cey-1 is the closest ortholog to the mammalian Y-Box (YBX) RBPs. We found that CEY-1 is both necessary in the nervous system for memory ability and sufficient to increase memory. Leveraging human datasets, we found both copy number variation losses and single nucleotide variants in YBX1 and YBX3 in individuals with neurological symptoms. We identified one predicted deleterious YBX3 variant of unknown significance, p.Asn127Tyr, in two individuals with neurological symptoms. Introducing this variant into endogenous cey-1 locus caused memory deficits in the worm. We further generated two humanized worm lines expressing human YBX3 or YBX1 at the cey-1 locus to test evolutionary conservation of YBXs in memory and the potential functional significance of the p.Asn127Tyr variant. Both YBX1/3 can functionally replace cey-1, and introduction of p.Asn127Tyr into the humanized YBX3 locus caused memory deficits. Our study highlights the worm as a model to reveal memory regulators and identifies YBX dysfunction as a potential new source of rare neurological disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ashley N Hayden
- Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030
- Center for Precision Environmental Health, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030
| | - Katie L Brandel
- Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030
- Center for Precision Environmental Health, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030
| | - Paul R Merlau
- Center for Precision Environmental Health, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030
| | | | - Emily J Leptich
- Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030
- Center for Precision Environmental Health, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030
| | - Edward W Pietryk
- Center for Precision Environmental Health, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030
| | - Elizabeth S Gaytan
- Center for Precision Environmental Health, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030
- Postbaccalaureate Research Education Program, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030
| | - Connie W Ni
- Center for Precision Environmental Health, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030
- Department of Neuroscience, Rice University, Houston, TX 77005
| | - Hsiao-Tuan Chao
- Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neurology and Developmental Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030
- Cain Pediatric Neurology Research Foundation Laboratories, Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX, 77030
- McNair Medical Institute, The Robert and Janice McNair Foundation, Houston, TX, 77030
| | - Jill A Rosenfeld
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030
- Baylor Genetics Laboratories, Houston, TX 77021
| | - Rachel N Arey
- Center for Precision Environmental Health, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030
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16
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Lessenger AT, Swaffer MP, Skotheim JM, Feldman JL. Somatic polyploidy supports biosynthesis and tissue function by increasing transcriptional output. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.03.25.586714. [PMID: 38585999 PMCID: PMC10996643 DOI: 10.1101/2024.03.25.586714] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/09/2024]
Abstract
Cell size and biosynthetic capacity generally increase with increased DNA content. Polyploidy has therefore been proposed to be an adaptive strategy to increase cell size in specialized tissues with high biosynthetic demands. However, if and how DNA concentration limits cellular biosynthesis in vivo is not well understood, and the impacts of polyploidy in non-disease states is not well studied. Here, we show that polyploidy in the C. elegans intestine is critical for cell growth and yolk biosynthesis, a central role of this organ. Artificially lowering the DNA/cytoplasm ratio by reducing polyploidization in the intestine gave rise to smaller cells with more dilute mRNA. Highly-expressed transcripts were more sensitive to this mRNA dilution, whereas lowly-expressed genes were partially compensated - in part by loading more RNA Polymerase II on the remaining genomes. DNA-dilute cells had normal total protein concentration, which we propose is achieved by increasing production of translational machinery at the expense of specialized, cell-type specific proteins.
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17
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Zhao L, Li Z, Huang B, Mi D, Xu D, Sun Y. Integrating evolutionarily conserved mechanism of response to radiation for exploring novel Caenorhabditis elegans radiation-responsive genes for estimation of radiation dose associated with spaceflight. CHEMOSPHERE 2024; 351:141148. [PMID: 38211791 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2024.141148] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/18/2023] [Revised: 12/09/2023] [Accepted: 01/06/2024] [Indexed: 01/13/2024]
Abstract
During space exploration, space radiation is widely recognized as an inescapable perilous stressor, owing to its capacity to induce genomic DNA damage and escalate the likelihood of detrimental health outcomes. Rapid and reliable estimation of space radiation dose holds paramount significance in accurately assessing the health risks associated with spaceflight. However, the identification of space radiation-responsive genes, with their potential to serve as early indicators for diagnosing radiation dose associated with spaceflight, continues to pose a significant challenge. In this study, based on the evolutionarily conserved mechanism of radiation response, an in silico analysis method of homologous comparison was performed to identify the Caenorhabditis elegans orthologues of human radiation-responsive genes with possible roles in the major processes of response to radiation, and thereby to explore the potential C. elegans radiation-responsive genes for evaluating the levels of space radiation exposure. The results showed that there were 60 known C. elegans radiation-responsive genes and 211 C. elegans orthologues of human radiation-responsive genes implicated in the major processes of response to radiation. Through an investigation of all available transcriptomic datasets obtained from space-flown C. elegans, it was observed that the expression levels of the majority of these putative C. elegans radiation-responsive genes identified in this study were notably changed across various spaceflight conditions. Furthermore, this study indicated that within the identified genes, 19 known C. elegans radiation-responsive genes and 40 newly identified C. elegans orthologues of human radiation-responsive genes exhibited a remarkable positive correlation with the duration of spaceflight. Moreover, a noteworthy presence of substantial multi-collinearity among the majority of these identified genes was observed. This observation lends support to the possibility of treating each identified gene as an independent indicator of radiation dose in space. Ultimately, a subset of 15 potential radiation-responsive genes was identified, presenting the most promising indicators for estimation of radiation dose associated with spaceflight in C. elegans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lei Zhao
- Institute of Environmental Systems Biology, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian, 116026, Liaoning, China.
| | - Zejun Li
- Institute of Environmental Systems Biology, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian, 116026, Liaoning, China
| | - Baohang Huang
- Institute of Environmental Systems Biology, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian, 116026, Liaoning, China
| | - Dong Mi
- College of Science, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian, 116026, Liaoning, China
| | - Dan Xu
- Institute of Environmental Systems Biology, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian, 116026, Liaoning, China
| | - Yeqing Sun
- Institute of Environmental Systems Biology, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian, 116026, Liaoning, China.
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18
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Goodell DJ, Whitby FG, Mellem JE, Lei N, Brockie PJ, Maricq AJ, Eckert DM, Hill CP, Madsen DM, Maricq AV. Mechanistic and structural studies reveal NRAP-1-dependent coincident activation of NMDARs. Cell Rep 2024; 43:113694. [PMID: 38265937 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2024.113694] [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: 06/30/2022] [Revised: 11/27/2023] [Accepted: 01/05/2024] [Indexed: 01/26/2024] Open
Abstract
N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA)-type ionotropic glutamate receptors have essential roles in neurotransmission and synaptic plasticity. Previously, we identified an evolutionarily conserved protein, NRAP-1, that is required for NMDA receptor (NMDAR) function in C. elegans. Here, we demonstrate that NRAP-1 was sufficient to gate NMDARs and greatly enhanced glutamate-mediated NMDAR gating, thus conferring coincident activation properties to the NMDAR. Intriguingly, vertebrate NMDARs-and chimeric NMDARs where the amino-terminal domain (ATD) of C. elegans NMDARs was replaced by the ATD from vertebrate receptors-were spontaneously active when ectopically expressed in C. elegans neurons. Thus, the ATD is a primary determinant of NRAP-1- and glutamate-mediated gating of NMDARs. We determined the crystal structure of NRAP-1 at 1.9-Å resolution, which revealed two distinct domains positioned around a central low-density lipoprotein receptor class A domain. The NRAP-1 structure, combined with chimeric and mutational analyses, suggests a model where the three NRAP-1 domains work cooperatively to modify the gating of NMDARs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dayton J Goodell
- Department of Neurobiology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-9458, USA
| | - Frank G Whitby
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-5650, USA
| | - Jerry E Mellem
- Department of Neurobiology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-9458, USA
| | - Ning Lei
- Department of Neurobiology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-9458, USA
| | - Penelope J Brockie
- Department of Neurobiology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-9458, USA
| | | | - Debra M Eckert
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-5650, USA
| | - Christopher P Hill
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-5650, USA
| | - David M Madsen
- Department of Neurobiology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-9458, USA
| | - Andres V Maricq
- Department of Neurobiology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-9458, USA.
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19
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Ange JS, Weng Y, Stevenson ME, Kaletsky R, Moore RS, Zhou S, Murphy CT. Adult Single-nucleus Neuronal Transcriptomes of Insulin Signaling Mutants Reveal Regulators of Behavior and Learning. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.02.07.579364. [PMID: 38370779 PMCID: PMC10871314 DOI: 10.1101/2024.02.07.579364] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/20/2024]
Abstract
The insulin/insulin-like signaling (IIS) pathway regulates many of C. elegans' adult functions, including learning and memory 1 . While whole-worm and tissue-specific transcriptomic analyses have identified IIS targets 2,3 , a higher-resolution single-cell approach is required to identify changes that confer neuron-specific improvements in the long-lived insulin receptor mutant, daf-2 . To understand how behaviors that are controlled by a small number of neurons change in daf-2 mutants, we used the deep resolution of single-nucleus RNA sequencing to define each neuron type's transcriptome in adult wild-type and daf-2 mutants. First, we found surprising differences between wild-type L4 larval neurons and young adult neurons in chemoreceptor expression, synaptic genes, and learning and memory genes. These Day 1 adult neuron transcriptomes allowed us to identify adult AWC-specific regulators of chemosensory function and to predict neuron-to-neuron peptide/receptor pairs. We then identified gene expression changes that correlate with daf-2's improved cognitive functions, particularly in the AWC sensory neuron that controls learning and associative memory 4 , and used behavioral assays to test their roles in cognitive function. Combining deep single-neuron transcriptomics, genetic manipulation, and behavioral analyses enabled us to identify genes that may function in a single adult neuron to control behavior, including conserved genes that function in learning and memory. One-Sentence Summary Single-nucleus sequencing of adult wild-type and daf-2 C. elegans neurons reveals functionally relevant transcriptional changes, including regulators of chemosensation, learning, and memory.
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20
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Fabrizio P, Alcolei A, Solari F. Considering Caenorhabditis elegans Aging on a Temporal and Tissue Scale: The Case of Insulin/IGF-1 Signaling. Cells 2024; 13:288. [PMID: 38334680 PMCID: PMC10854721 DOI: 10.3390/cells13030288] [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: 12/23/2023] [Revised: 01/24/2024] [Accepted: 01/31/2024] [Indexed: 02/10/2024] Open
Abstract
The aging process is inherently complex, involving multiple mechanisms that interact at different biological scales. The nematode Caenorhabditis elegans is a simple model organism that has played a pivotal role in aging research following the discovery of mutations extending lifespan. Longevity pathways identified in C. elegans were subsequently found to be conserved and regulate lifespan in multiple species. These pathways intersect with fundamental hallmarks of aging that include nutrient sensing, epigenetic alterations, proteostasis loss, and mitochondrial dysfunction. Here we summarize recent data obtained in C. elegans highlighting the importance of studying aging at both the tissue and temporal scale. We then focus on the neuromuscular system to illustrate the kinetics of changes that take place with age. We describe recently developed tools that enabled the dissection of the contribution of the insulin/IGF-1 receptor ortholog DAF-2 to the regulation of worm mobility in specific tissues and at different ages. We also discuss guidelines and potential pitfalls in the use of these new tools. We further highlight the opportunities that they present, especially when combined with recent transcriptomic data, to address and resolve the inherent complexity of aging. Understanding how different aging processes interact within and between tissues at different life stages could ultimately suggest potential intervention points for age-related diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paola Fabrizio
- Laboratoire de Biologie et Modélisation de la Cellule, Ecole Normale Supérieure de Lyon, CNRS UMR5239, INSERM 1210, University Claude Bernard Lyon 1, 69364 Lyon, France;
| | - Allan Alcolei
- INMG, MeLiS, CNRS UMR 5284, INSERM U1314, University Claude Bernard Lyon 1, 69008 Lyon, France;
| | - Florence Solari
- INMG, MeLiS, CNRS UMR 5284, INSERM U1314, University Claude Bernard Lyon 1, 69008 Lyon, France;
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21
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Wang X, Jiang Q, Zhang H, He Z, Song Y, Chen Y, Tang N, Zhou Y, Li Y, Antebi A, Wu L, Han JDJ, Shen Y. Tissue-specific profiling of age-dependent miRNAomic changes in Caenorhabditis elegans. Nat Commun 2024; 15:955. [PMID: 38302463 PMCID: PMC10834975 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-45249-4] [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: 05/11/2023] [Accepted: 01/18/2024] [Indexed: 02/03/2024] Open
Abstract
Ageing exhibits common and distinct features in various tissues, making it critical to decipher the tissue-specific ageing mechanisms. MiRNAs are essential regulators in ageing and are recently highlighted as a class of intercellular messengers. However, little is known about the tissue-specific transcriptomic changes of miRNAs during ageing. C. elegans is a well-established model organism in ageing research. Here, we profile the age-dependent miRNAomic changes in five isolated worm tissues. Besides the diverse ageing-regulated miRNA expression across tissues, we discover numerous miRNAs in the tissues without their transcription. We further profile miRNAs in the extracellular vesicles and find that worm miRNAs undergo inter-tissue trafficking via these vesicles in an age-dependent manner. Using these datasets, we uncover the interaction between body wall muscle-derived mir-1 and DAF-16/FOXO in the intestine, suggesting mir-1 as a messenger in inter-tissue signalling. Taken together, we systematically investigate worm miRNAs in the somatic tissues and extracellular vesicles during ageing, providing a valuable resource to study tissue-autonomous and nonautonomous functions of miRNAs in ageing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xueqing Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Cell Biology, Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 200031, Shanghai, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100049, Beijing, China
| | - Quanlong Jiang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Computational Biology, Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 200031, Shanghai, China
- Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Academy for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies, Center for Quantitative Biology (CQB), Peking University, 102213, Beijing, China
| | - Hongdao Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Cell Biology, Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 200031, Shanghai, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100049, Beijing, China
| | - Zhidong He
- State Key Laboratory of Cell Biology, Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 200031, Shanghai, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100049, Beijing, China
| | - Yuanyuan Song
- State Key Laboratory of Cell Biology, Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 200031, Shanghai, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100049, Beijing, China
| | - Yifan Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Cell Biology, Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 200031, Shanghai, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100049, Beijing, China
| | - Na Tang
- State Key Laboratory of Cell Biology, Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 200031, Shanghai, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100049, Beijing, China
| | - Yifei Zhou
- State Key Laboratory of Cell Biology, Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 200031, Shanghai, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100049, Beijing, China
| | - Yiping Li
- State Key Laboratory of Cell Biology, Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 200031, Shanghai, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100049, Beijing, China
| | - Adam Antebi
- Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing, D-50931, Cologne, Germany
- Cologne Excellence Cluster on Cellular Stress Responses in Aging-Associated Diseases (CECAD), University of Cologne, 50674, Cologne, Germany
| | - Ligang Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Cell Biology, Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 200031, Shanghai, China.
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100049, Beijing, China.
| | - Jing-Dong J Han
- Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Academy for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies, Center for Quantitative Biology (CQB), Peking University, 102213, Beijing, China.
| | - Yidong Shen
- State Key Laboratory of Cell Biology, Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 200031, Shanghai, China.
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100049, Beijing, China.
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22
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Panska L, Nedvedova S, Vacek V, Krivska D, Konecny L, Knop F, Kutil Z, Skultetyova L, Leontovyc A, Ulrychova L, Sakanari J, Asahina M, Barinka C, Macurkova M, Dvorak J. Uncovering the essential roles of glutamate carboxypeptidase 2 orthologs in Caenorhabditis elegans. Biosci Rep 2024; 44:BSR20230502. [PMID: 38108122 PMCID: PMC10794815 DOI: 10.1042/bsr20230502] [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: 03/17/2023] [Revised: 12/13/2023] [Accepted: 12/15/2023] [Indexed: 12/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Human glutamate carboxypeptidase 2 (GCP2) from the M28B metalloprotease group is an important target for therapy in neurological disorders and an established tumor marker. However, its physiological functions remain unclear. To better understand general roles, we used the model organism Caenorhabditis elegans to genetically manipulate its three existing orthologous genes and evaluate the impact on worm physiology. The results of gene knockout studies showed that C. elegans GCP2 orthologs affect the pharyngeal physiology, reproduction, and structural integrity of the organism. Promoter-driven GFP expression revealed distinct localization for each of the three gene paralogs, with gcp-2.1 being most abundant in muscles, intestine, and pharyngeal interneurons, gcp-2.2 restricted to the phasmid neurons, and gcp-2.3 located in the excretory cell. The present study provides new insight into the unique phenotypic effects of GCP2 gene knockouts in C. elegans, and the specific tissue localizations. We believe that elucidation of particular roles in a non-mammalian organism can help to explain important questions linked to physiology of this protease group and in extension to human GCP2 involvement in pathophysiological processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucie Panska
- Department of Zoology and Fisheries, Center of Infectious Animal Diseases, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamycka 129, Prague 165 00, Czech Republic
- Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Center of Infectious Animal Diseases, Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague, Kamycka 129, Prague 165 00, Czech Republic
| | - Stepanka Nedvedova
- Department of Zoology and Fisheries, Center of Infectious Animal Diseases, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamycka 129, Prague 165 00, Czech Republic
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamycka 129, Prague 165 00, Czech Republic
| | - Vojtech Vacek
- Department of Zoology and Fisheries, Center of Infectious Animal Diseases, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamycka 129, Prague 165 00, Czech Republic
| | - Daniela Krivska
- Department of Zoology and Fisheries, Center of Infectious Animal Diseases, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamycka 129, Prague 165 00, Czech Republic
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamycka 129, Prague 165 00, Czech Republic
| | - Lukas Konecny
- Department of Zoology and Fisheries, Center of Infectious Animal Diseases, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamycka 129, Prague 165 00, Czech Republic
- Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Vinicna 7, Prague 2 128 00, Czech Republic
| | - Filip Knop
- Department of Cell Biology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Vinicna 7, Prague 2 128 00, Czech Republic
| | - Zsofia Kutil
- Laboratory of Structural Biology, Institute of Biotechnology of the Czech Academy of Sciences, BIOCEV, Prumyslova 595, Vestec 252 50, Czech Republic
| | - Lubica Skultetyova
- Laboratory of Structural Biology, Institute of Biotechnology of the Czech Academy of Sciences, BIOCEV, Prumyslova 595, Vestec 252 50, Czech Republic
| | - Adrian Leontovyc
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Flemingovo n. 2, Prague 160 00, Czech Republic
| | - Lenka Ulrychova
- Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Vinicna 7, Prague 2 128 00, Czech Republic
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Flemingovo n. 2, Prague 160 00, Czech Republic
| | - Judy Sakanari
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, University of California, San Francisco, 1700 4th Street, CA 94143, USA
| | - Masako Asahina
- Department of Physiology, University of California, San Francisco, 600 16th Street, CA 94143, U.S.A
| | - Cyril Barinka
- Laboratory of Structural Biology, Institute of Biotechnology of the Czech Academy of Sciences, BIOCEV, Prumyslova 595, Vestec 252 50, Czech Republic
| | - Marie Macurkova
- Department of Cell Biology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Vinicna 7, Prague 2 128 00, Czech Republic
| | - Jan Dvorak
- Department of Zoology and Fisheries, Center of Infectious Animal Diseases, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamycka 129, Prague 165 00, Czech Republic
- Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Center of Infectious Animal Diseases, Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague, Kamycka 129, Prague 165 00, Czech Republic
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Flemingovo n. 2, Prague 160 00, Czech Republic
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23
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Purice MD, Severs LJ, Singhvi A. Glia in Invertebrate Models: Insights from Caenorhabditis elegans. ADVANCES IN NEUROBIOLOGY 2024; 39:19-49. [PMID: 39190070 DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-64839-7_2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/28/2024]
Abstract
Glial cells modulate brain development, function, and health across all bilaterian animals, and studies in the past two decades have made rapid strides to uncover the underlying molecular mechanisms of glial functions. The nervous system of the invertebrate genetic model Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) has small cell numbers with invariant lineages, mapped connectome, easy genetic manipulation, and a short lifespan, and the animal is also optically transparent. These characteristics are revealing C. elegans to be a powerful experimental platform for studying glial biology. This chapter discusses studies in C. elegans that add to our understanding of how glia modulate adult neural functions, and thereby animal behaviors, as well as emerging evidence of their roles as autonomous sensory cells. The rapid molecular and cellular advancements in understanding C. elegans glia in recent years underscore the utility of this model in studies of glial biology. We conclude with a perspective on future research avenues for C. elegans glia that may readily contribute molecular mechanistic insights into glial functions in the nervous system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria D Purice
- Division of Basic Sciences, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Liza J Severs
- Division of Basic Sciences, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Aakanksha Singhvi
- Division of Basic Sciences, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, Seattle, WA, USA.
- Department of Biological Structure, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA, USA.
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24
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Cornwell A, Zhang Y, Thondamal M, Johnson DW, Thakar J, Samuelson AV. The C. elegans Myc-family of transcription factors coordinate a dynamic adaptive response to dietary restriction. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.11.22.568222. [PMID: 38045350 PMCID: PMC10690244 DOI: 10.1101/2023.11.22.568222] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/05/2023]
Abstract
Dietary restriction (DR), the process of decreasing overall food consumption over an extended period of time, has been shown to increase longevity across evolutionarily diverse species and delay the onset of age-associated diseases in humans. In Caenorhabditis elegans, the Myc-family transcription factors (TFs) MXL-2 (Mlx) and MML-1 (MondoA/ChREBP), which function as obligate heterodimers, and PHA-4 (orthologous to forkhead box transcription factor A) are both necessary for the full physiological benefits of DR. However, the adaptive transcriptional response to DR and the role of MML-1::MXL-2 and PHA-4 remains elusive. We identified the transcriptional signature of C. elegans DR, using the eat-2 genetic model, and demonstrate broad changes in metabolic gene expression in eat-2 DR animals, which requires both mxl-2 and pha-4. While the requirement for these factors in DR gene expression overlaps, we found many of the DR genes exhibit an opposing change in relative gene expression in eat-2;mxl-2 animals compared to wild-type, which was not observed in eat-2 animals with pha-4 loss. We further show functional deficiencies of the mxl-2 loss in DR outside of lifespan, as eat-2;mxl-2 animals exhibit substantially smaller brood sizes and lay a proportion of dead eggs, indicating that MML-1::MXL-2 has a role in maintaining the balance between resource allocation to the soma and to reproduction under conditions of chronic food scarcity. While eat-2 animals do not show a significantly different metabolic rate compared to wild-type, we also find that loss of mxl-2 in DR does not affect the rate of oxygen consumption in young animals. The gene expression signature of eat-2 mutant animals is consistent with optimization of energy utilization and resource allocation, rather than induction of canonical gene expression changes associated with acute metabolic stress -such as induction of autophagy after TORC1 inhibition. Consistently, eat-2 animals are not substantially resistant to stress, providing further support to the idea that chronic DR may benefit healthspan and lifespan through efficient use of limited resources rather than broad upregulation of stress responses, and also indicates that MML-1::MXL-2 and PHA-4 may have different roles in promotion of benefits in response to different pro-longevity stimuli.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam Cornwell
- Department of Biomedical Genetics, University of Rochester Medical Center, 601 Elmwood Avenue, Rochester, NY 14642, USA
| | - Yun Zhang
- Department of Biomedical Genetics, University of Rochester Medical Center, 601 Elmwood Avenue, Rochester, NY 14642, USA
| | - Manjunatha Thondamal
- Department of Biomedical Genetics, University of Rochester Medical Center, 601 Elmwood Avenue, Rochester, NY 14642, USA
- Department of Biological Sciences, GITAM University, Andhra Pradesh, India
| | - David W Johnson
- Department of Biomedical Genetics, University of Rochester Medical Center, 601 Elmwood Avenue, Rochester, NY 14642, USA
- Department of Math and Science, Genesee Community College, One College Rd Batavia, NY 14020, USA
| | - Juilee Thakar
- Department of Biomedical Genetics, University of Rochester Medical Center, 601 Elmwood Avenue, Rochester, NY 14642, USA
- Department of Biostatistics and Computational Biology, University of Rochester Medical Center, 601 Elmwood Avenue, Rochester, NY 14642, USA
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Rochester Medical Center, 601 Elmwood Avenue, Rochester, NY 14642, USA
| | - Andrew V Samuelson
- Department of Biomedical Genetics, University of Rochester Medical Center, 601 Elmwood Avenue, Rochester, NY 14642, USA
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25
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Shen K, Durieux J, Mena CG, Webster BM, Kimberly Tsui C, Zhang H, Joe L, Berendzen K, Dillin A. The germline coordinates mitokine signaling. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.08.21.554217. [PMID: 37873079 PMCID: PMC10592821 DOI: 10.1101/2023.08.21.554217] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2023]
Abstract
The ability of mitochondria to coordinate stress responses across tissues is critical for health. In C. elegans , neurons experiencing mitochondrial stress elicit an inter-tissue signaling pathway through the release of mitokine signals, such as serotonin or the WNT ligand EGL-20, which activate the mitochondrial unfolded protein response (UPR MT ) in the periphery to promote organismal health and lifespan. We find that germline mitochondria play a surprising role in neuron-to-peripheral UPR MT signaling. Specifically, we find that germline mitochondria signal downstream of neuronal mitokines, like WNT and serotonin, and upstream of lipid metabolic pathways in the periphery to regulate UPR MT activation. We also find that the germline tissue itself is essential in UPR MT signaling. We propose that the germline has a central signaling role in coordinating mitochondrial stress responses across tissues, and germline mitochondria play a defining role in this coordination because of their inherent roles in germline integrity and inter-tissue signaling.
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26
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Weng JW, Park H, Valotteau C, Chen RT, Essmann CL, Pujol N, Sternberg PW, Chen CH. Body stiffness is a mechanical property that facilitates contact-mediated mate recognition in Caenorhabditis elegans. Curr Biol 2023; 33:3585-3596.e5. [PMID: 37541249 PMCID: PMC10530406 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.07.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2022] [Revised: 06/01/2023] [Accepted: 07/12/2023] [Indexed: 08/06/2023]
Abstract
Physical contact is prevalent in the animal kingdom to recognize suitable mates by decoding information about sex, species, and maturity. Although chemical cues for mate recognition have been extensively studied, the role of mechanical cues remains elusive. Here, we show that C. elegans males recognize conspecific and reproductive mates through short-range cues, and that the attractiveness of potential mates depends on the sex and developmental stages of the hypodermis. We find that a particular group of cuticular collagens is required for mate attractiveness. These collagens maintain body stiffness to sustain mate attractiveness but do not affect the surface properties that evoke the initial step of mate recognition, suggesting that males utilize multiple sensory mechanisms to recognize suitable mates. Manipulations of body stiffness via physical interventions, chemical treatments, and 3D-printed bionic worms indicate that body stiffness is a mechanical property for mate recognition and increases mating efficiency. Our study thus extends the repertoire of sensory cues of mate recognition in C. elegans and provides a paradigm to study the important roles of mechanosensory cues in social behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jen-Wei Weng
- Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biology, College of Life Science, National Taiwan University. No. 1, Sec. 4, Roosevelt Road, Taipei 10617, Taiwan
| | - Heenam Park
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, 1200 E California Boulevard, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA
| | - Claire Valotteau
- Aix-Marseille Univ, INSERM, CNRS, LAI, Turing Centre for Living Systems, 163 Avenue de Luminy, 13009 Marseille, France
| | - Rui-Tsung Chen
- Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biology, College of Life Science, National Taiwan University. No. 1, Sec. 4, Roosevelt Road, Taipei 10617, Taiwan
| | - Clara L Essmann
- Bio3/Bioinformatics and Molecular Genetics, Albert-Ludwigs-University, Schaenzlestr. 1, 79104 Freiburg, Germany
| | - Nathalie Pujol
- Aix Marseille Univ, INSERM, CNRS, CIML, Turing Centre for Living Systems, 163 Avenue de Luminy, case 906, 13009 Marseille, France
| | - Paul W Sternberg
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, 1200 E California Boulevard, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA.
| | - Chun-Hao Chen
- Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biology, College of Life Science, National Taiwan University. No. 1, Sec. 4, Roosevelt Road, Taipei 10617, Taiwan; Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, 1200 E California Boulevard, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA.
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27
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Rahman MM, Balachandran RS, Stevenson JB, Kim Y, Proenca RB, Hedgecock EM, Kipreos ET. The Caenorhabditis elegans cullin-RING ubiquitin ligase CRL4DCAF-1 is required for proper germline nucleolus morphology and male development. Genetics 2023; 225:iyad126. [PMID: 37433110 PMCID: PMC10686702 DOI: 10.1093/genetics/iyad126] [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: 06/08/2023] [Revised: 06/08/2023] [Accepted: 07/02/2023] [Indexed: 07/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Cullin-RING ubiquitin ligases (CRLs) are the largest class of ubiquitin ligases with diverse functions encompassing hundreds of cellular processes. Inactivation of core components of the CRL4 ubiquitin ligase produces a germ cell defect in Caenorhabditis elegans that is marked by abnormal globular morphology of the nucleolus and fewer germ cells. We identified DDB1 Cullin4 associated factor (DCAF)-1 as the CRL4 substrate receptor that ensures proper germ cell nucleolus morphology. We demonstrate that the dcaf-1 gene is the ncl-2 (abnormal nucleoli) gene, whose molecular identity was not previously known. We also observed that CRL4DCAF-1 is required for male tail development. Additionally, the inactivation of CRL4DCAF-1 results in a male-specific lethality in which a percentage of male progeny arrest as embryos or larvae. Analysis of the germ cell nucleolus defect using transmission electron microscopy revealed that dcaf-1 mutant germ cells possess significantly fewer ribosomes, suggesting a defect in ribosome biogenesis. We discovered that inactivation of the sperm-fate specification gene fog-1 (feminization of the germ line-1) or its protein-interacting partner, fog-3, rescues the dcaf-1 nucleolus morphology defect. Epitope-tagged versions of both FOG-1 and FOG-3 proteins are aberrantly present in adult dcaf-1(RNAi) animals, suggesting that DCAF-1 negatively regulates FOG-1 and FOG-3 expression. Murine CRL4DCAF-1 targets the degradation of the ribosome assembly factor periodic trptophan protein 1 (PWP1). We observed that the inactivation of Caenorhabditis elegansDCAF-1 increases the nucleolar levels of PWP1 in the germ line, intestine, and hypodermis. Reducing the level of PWP-1 rescues the dcaf-1 mutant defects of fewer germ cell numbers and abnormal nucleolus morphology, suggesting that the increase in PWP-1 levels contributes to the dcaf-1 germline defect. Our results suggest that CRL4DCAF-1 has an evolutionarily ancient role in regulating ribosome biogenesis including a conserved target in PWP1.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohammad M Rahman
- Department of Cellular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA
| | - Riju S Balachandran
- Department of Cellular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA
| | | | - Youngjo Kim
- Department of Cellular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA
| | - Rui B Proenca
- Department of Biology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
| | - Edward M Hedgecock
- Department of Biology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
| | - Edward T Kipreos
- Department of Cellular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA
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28
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Roux AE, Yuan H, Podshivalova K, Hendrickson D, Kerr R, Kenyon C, Kelley D. Individual cell types in C. elegans age differently and activate distinct cell-protective responses. Cell Rep 2023; 42:112902. [PMID: 37531250 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2023.112902] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2023] [Revised: 05/17/2023] [Accepted: 07/14/2023] [Indexed: 08/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Aging is characterized by a global decline in physiological function. However, by constructing a complete single-cell gene expression atlas, we find that Caenorhabditis elegans aging is not random in nature but instead is characterized by coordinated changes in functionally related metabolic, proteostasis, and stress-response genes in a cell-type-specific fashion, with downregulation of energy metabolism being the only nearly universal change. Similarly, the rates at which cells age differ significantly between cell types. In some cell types, aging is characterized by an increase in cell-to-cell variance, whereas in others, variance actually decreases. Remarkably, multiple resilience-enhancing transcription factors known to extend lifespan are activated across many cell types with age; we discovered new longevity candidates, such as GEI-3, among these. Together, our findings suggest that cells do not age passively but instead react strongly, and individualistically, to events that occur during aging. This atlas can be queried through a public interface.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Han Yuan
- Calico Life Sciences LLC, South San Francisco, CA 94080, USA
| | | | | | - Rex Kerr
- Calico Life Sciences LLC, South San Francisco, CA 94080, USA
| | - Cynthia Kenyon
- Calico Life Sciences LLC, South San Francisco, CA 94080, USA.
| | - David Kelley
- Calico Life Sciences LLC, South San Francisco, CA 94080, USA.
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29
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Doering KRS, Ermakova G, Taubert S. Nuclear hormone receptor NHR-49 is an essential regulator of stress resilience and healthy aging in Caenorhabditis elegans. Front Physiol 2023; 14:1241591. [PMID: 37645565 PMCID: PMC10461480 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2023.1241591] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2023] [Accepted: 08/01/2023] [Indexed: 08/31/2023] Open
Abstract
The genome of Caenorhabditis elegans encodes 284 nuclear hormone receptor, which perform diverse functions in development and physiology. One of the best characterized of these is NHR-49, related in sequence and function to mammalian hepatocyte nuclear factor 4α and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α. Initially identified as regulator of lipid metabolism, including fatty acid catabolism and desaturation, additional important roles for NHR-49 have since emerged. It is an essential contributor to longevity in several genetic and environmental contexts, and also plays vital roles in the resistance to several stresses and innate immune response to infection with various bacterial pathogens. Here, we review how NHR-49 is integrated into pertinent signaling circuits and how it achieves its diverse functions. We also highlight areas for future investigation including identification of regulatory inputs that drive NHR-49 activity and identification of tissue-specific gene regulatory outputs. We anticipate that future work on this protein will provide information that could be useful for developing strategies to age-associated declines in health and age-related human diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kelsie R. S. Doering
- Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
- Edwin S. H. Leong Centre for Healthy Aging, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
- British Columbia Children’s Hospital Research Institute, Vancouver, BC, Canada
- Department of Medical Genetics, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Glafira Ermakova
- Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
- Edwin S. H. Leong Centre for Healthy Aging, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
- British Columbia Children’s Hospital Research Institute, Vancouver, BC, Canada
- Department of Medical Genetics, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Stefan Taubert
- Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
- Edwin S. H. Leong Centre for Healthy Aging, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
- British Columbia Children’s Hospital Research Institute, Vancouver, BC, Canada
- Department of Medical Genetics, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
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30
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Williams RTP, King DC, Mastroianni IR, Hill JL, Apenes NW, Ramirez G, Miner EC, Moore A, Coleman K, Nishimura EO. Transcriptome profiling of the Caenorhabditis elegans intestine reveals that ELT-2 negatively and positively regulates intestinal gene expression within the context of a gene regulatory network. Genetics 2023; 224:iyad088. [PMID: 37183501 PMCID: PMC10411582 DOI: 10.1093/genetics/iyad088] [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: 03/06/2023] [Revised: 04/28/2023] [Accepted: 04/30/2023] [Indexed: 05/16/2023] Open
Abstract
ELT-2 is the major transcription factor (TF) required for Caenorhabditis elegans intestinal development. ELT-2 expression initiates in embryos to promote development and then persists after hatching through the larval and adult stages. Though the sites of ELT-2 binding are characterized and the transcriptional changes that result from ELT-2 depletion are known, an intestine-specific transcriptome profile spanning developmental time has been missing. We generated this dataset by performing Fluorescence Activated Cell Sorting on intestine cells at distinct developmental stages. We analyzed this dataset in conjunction with previously conducted ELT-2 studies to evaluate the role of ELT-2 in directing the intestinal gene regulatory network through development. We found that only 33% of intestine-enriched genes in the embryo were direct targets of ELT-2 but that number increased to 75% by the L3 stage. This suggests additional TFs promote intestinal transcription especially in the embryo. Furthermore, only half of ELT-2's direct target genes were dependent on ELT-2 for their proper expression levels, and an equal proportion of those responded to elt-2 depletion with over-expression as with under-expression. That is, ELT-2 can either activate or repress direct target genes. Additionally, we observed that ELT-2 repressed its own promoter, implicating new models for its autoregulation. Together, our results illustrate that ELT-2 impacts roughly 20-50% of intestine-specific genes, that ELT-2 both positively and negatively controls its direct targets, and that the current model of the intestinal regulatory network is incomplete as the factors responsible for directing the expression of many intestinal genes remain unknown.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert T P Williams
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - David C King
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - Izabella R Mastroianni
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
- Laboratory of Immunoregulation, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Jessica L Hill
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - Nicolai W Apenes
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
- Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Gabriela Ramirez
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
- Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - E Catherine Miner
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
- College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - Andrew Moore
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - Karissa Coleman
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - Erin Osborne Nishimura
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
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31
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Scott A, Willis CR, Muratani M, Higashitani A, Etheridge T, Szewczyk NJ, Deane CS. Caenorhabditis elegans in microgravity: An omics perspective. iScience 2023; 26:107189. [PMID: 37456835 PMCID: PMC10344948 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.107189] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/18/2023] Open
Abstract
The application of omics to study Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) in the context of spaceflight is increasing, illuminating the wide-ranging biological impacts of spaceflight on physiology. In this review, we highlight the application of omics, including transcriptomics, genomics, proteomics, multi-omics, and integrated omics in the study of spaceflown C. elegans, and discuss the impact, use, and future direction of this branch of research. We highlight the variety of molecular alterations that occur in response to spaceflight, most notably changes in metabolic and neuromuscular gene regulation. These transcriptional features are reproducible and evident across many spaceflown species (e.g., mice and astronauts), supporting the use of C. elegans as a model organism to study spaceflight physiology with translational capital. Integrating tissue-specific, spatial, and multi-omics approaches, which quantitatively link molecular responses to phenotypic adaptations, will facilitate the identification of candidate regulatory molecules for therapeutic intervention and thus represents the next frontiers in C. elegans space omics research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda Scott
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine, Ohio University, Athens, OH, USA
| | - Craig R.G. Willis
- School of Chemistry and Biosciences, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Bradford, Bradford, UK
| | - Masafumi Muratani
- Transborder Medical Research Center and Department of Genome Biology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8575, Japan
| | | | - Timothy Etheridge
- Department of Sport and Health Sciences, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK
| | - Nathaniel J. Szewczyk
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine, Ohio University, Athens, OH, USA
- Ohio Musculoskeletal and Neurological Institute, Ohio University, Athens, OH, USA
| | - Colleen S. Deane
- Department of Sport and Health Sciences, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK
- Human Development & Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton, Southampton General Hospital, Southampton, UK
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Xu F, Li R, von Gromoff ED, Drepper F, Knapp B, Warscheid B, Baumeister R, Qi W. Reprogramming of the transcriptome after heat stress mediates heat hormesis in Caenorhabditis elegans. Nat Commun 2023; 14:4176. [PMID: 37443152 PMCID: PMC10345090 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-39882-8] [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: 12/12/2022] [Accepted: 07/03/2023] [Indexed: 07/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Transient stress experiences not only trigger acute stress responses, but can also have long-lasting effects on cellular functions. In Caenorhabditis elegans, a brief exposure to heat shock during early adulthood extends lifespan and improves stress resistance, a phenomenon known as heat hormesis. Here, we investigated the prolonged effect of hormetic heat stress on the transcriptome of worms and found that the canonical heat shock response is followed by a profound transcriptional reprogramming in the post-stress period. This reprogramming relies on the endoribonuclease ENDU-2 but not the heat shock factor 1. ENDU-2 co-localizes with chromatin and interacts with RNA polymerase II, enabling specific regulation of transcription after the stress period. Failure to activate the post-stress response does not affect the resistance of animals to heat shock but eliminates the beneficial effects of hormetic heat stress. In summary, our work discovers that the RNA-binding protein ENDU-2 mediates the long-term impacts of transient heat stress via reprogramming transcriptome after stress exposure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fan Xu
- Bioinformatics and Molecular Genetics (Faculty of Biology), Albert-Ludwigs-University Freiburg, Freiburg, 79104, Germany
- Spemann Graduate School of Biology and Medicine (SGBM), Albert-Ludwigs-University Freiburg, Freiburg, 79104, Germany
| | - Ruoyao Li
- Bioinformatics and Molecular Genetics (Faculty of Biology), Albert-Ludwigs-University Freiburg, Freiburg, 79104, Germany
| | - Erika D von Gromoff
- Bioinformatics and Molecular Genetics (Faculty of Biology), Albert-Ludwigs-University Freiburg, Freiburg, 79104, Germany
| | - Friedel Drepper
- Biochemistry-Functional Proteomics, Institute of Biology II, Faculty of Biology, Albert-Ludwigs-University Freiburg, Freiburg, 79104, Germany
| | - Bettina Knapp
- Biochemistry-Functional Proteomics, Institute of Biology II, Faculty of Biology, Albert-Ludwigs-University Freiburg, Freiburg, 79104, Germany
| | - Bettina Warscheid
- Biochemistry-Functional Proteomics, Institute of Biology II, Faculty of Biology, Albert-Ludwigs-University Freiburg, Freiburg, 79104, Germany
- Signalling Research Centers BIOSS and CIBSS, Albert-Ludwigs-University Freiburg, Freiburg, 79104, Germany
- Biochemistry II, Theodor Boveri-Institute, Biocenter, University of Würzburg, 97074, Würzburg, Germany
| | - Ralf Baumeister
- Bioinformatics and Molecular Genetics (Faculty of Biology), Albert-Ludwigs-University Freiburg, Freiburg, 79104, Germany
- Spemann Graduate School of Biology and Medicine (SGBM), Albert-Ludwigs-University Freiburg, Freiburg, 79104, Germany
- Signalling Research Centers BIOSS and CIBSS, Albert-Ludwigs-University Freiburg, Freiburg, 79104, Germany
- Center for Biochemistry and Molecular Cell Research (Faculty of Medicine), Albert-Ludwigs-University Freiburg, Freiburg, 79104, Germany
| | - Wenjing Qi
- Bioinformatics and Molecular Genetics (Faculty of Biology), Albert-Ludwigs-University Freiburg, Freiburg, 79104, Germany.
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Wu F, Wei H, Chen X, Du Z, Huang Y, Shi H, Yang Y, Du A, Ma G. Fatty acid- and retinol-binding protein 6 does not control worm fatty acid content in Caenorhabditis elegans but might play a role in Haemonchus contortus parasitism. Parasit Vectors 2023; 16:230. [PMID: 37430357 DOI: 10.1186/s13071-023-05836-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2023] [Accepted: 06/14/2023] [Indexed: 07/12/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Nematodes have lost the ability to synthesise necessary lipids de novo and have complementally evolved the capacity to acquire fatty acids and their derivatives from a diet or host animal. Nematode-specific fatty acid- and retinol-binding protein (FAR) family is one approach that facilitates lipid acquisition, representing an Achilles heel and potential target against roundworms of socioeconomic significance. However, little is known about their detailed functional roles in either free-living or parasitic nematodes. METHODS A genome-wide identification and curation were performed to screen the FAR family members of Haemonchus contortus. Their transcription patterns in worms were also analysed to identify the targets. Ligand binding assay and molecular docking were conducted to verify the fatty acid binding activities of FAR proteins of interest. RNA interference (RNAi) and heterologous expression (rescuing) experiments were designed to explore the potential roles of the selected FAR protein in nematodes. Localisation of the protein was shown in sections of paraffin-embedded worms after an immunohistochemistry (IHC) assay. RESULTS Here, an orthologue of far-6 in the model organism Caenorhabditis elegans (Ce-far-6) was functionally characterised in a parasitic nematode, H. contortus (Hc-far-6). It is demonstrated that knockdown of Ce-far-6 gene did not affect worm fat content, reproduction, or lifespan, but decreased worm body length at an early life stage of C. elegans. In particular, the Ce-far-6 mutant associated phenotype was completely rescued by Hc-far-6, suggesting a conserved functional role. Surprisingly, there were distinct tissue expression patterns of FAR-6 in the free-living C. elegans and parasitic H. contortus. High transcriptional level of Hc-far-6 and dominant expression of FAR-6 in the intestine of the parasitic stage of H. contortus link this gene/protein to nematode parasitism. CONCLUSIONS These findings substantially enhance our understanding of far genes and the associated lipid biology of this important parasitic nematode at a molecular level, and the approaches established are readily applicable to the studies of far genes in a broad range of parasites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fei Wu
- College of Animal Sciences, Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Institute of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Haidian Wei
- Guangxi Key Laboratory of Veterinary Biotechnology, Guangxi Veterinary Research Institute, Nanning, 530004, China
| | - Xueqiu Chen
- College of Animal Sciences, Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Institute of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Zhendong Du
- College of Animal Sciences, Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Institute of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Yan Huang
- College of Animal Sciences, Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Institute of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Hengzhi Shi
- College of Animal Sciences, Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Institute of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Yi Yang
- College of Animal Sciences, Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Institute of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Aifang Du
- College of Animal Sciences, Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Institute of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China.
| | - Guangxu Ma
- College of Animal Sciences, Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Institute of Preventive Veterinary Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China.
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de la Cruz-Ruiz P, Rodríguez-Palero MJ, Askjaer P, Artal-Sanz M. Tissue-specific chromatin-binding patterns of Caenorhabditis elegans heterochromatin proteins HPL-1 and HPL-2 reveal differential roles in the regulation of gene expression. Genetics 2023; 224:iyad081. [PMID: 37119802 PMCID: PMC10324947 DOI: 10.1093/genetics/iyad081] [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: 03/08/2023] [Revised: 04/20/2023] [Accepted: 04/21/2023] [Indexed: 05/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Heterochromatin is characterized by an enrichment of repetitive elements and low gene density and is often maintained in a repressed state across cell division and differentiation. The silencing is mainly regulated by repressive histone marks such as H3K9 and H3K27 methylated forms and the heterochromatin protein 1 (HP1) family. Here, we analyzed in a tissue-specific manner the binding profile of the two HP1 homologs in Caenorhabditis elegans, HPL-1 and HPL-2, at the L4 developmental stage. We identified the genome-wide binding profile of intestinal and hypodermal HPL-2 and intestinal HPL-1 and compared them with heterochromatin marks and other features. HPL-2 associated preferentially to the distal arms of autosomes and correlated positively with the methylated forms of H3K9 and H3K27. HPL-1 was also enriched in regions containing H3K9me3 and H3K27me3 but exhibited a more even distribution between autosome arms and centers. HPL-2 showed a differential tissue-specific enrichment for repetitive elements conversely with HPL-1, which exhibited a poor association. Finally, we found a significant intersection of genomic regions bound by the BLMP-1/PRDM1 transcription factor and intestinal HPL-1, suggesting a corepressive role during cell differentiation. Our study uncovers both shared and singular properties of conserved HP1 proteins, providing information about genomic binding preferences in relation to their role as heterochromatic markers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patricia de la Cruz-Ruiz
- Andalusian Centre for Developmental Biology, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas/Junta de Andalucía/Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Seville 41013, Spain
| | - María Jesús Rodríguez-Palero
- Andalusian Centre for Developmental Biology, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas/Junta de Andalucía/Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Seville 41013, Spain
- Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemical Engineering, Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Seville 41013, Spain
| | - Peter Askjaer
- Andalusian Centre for Developmental Biology, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas/Junta de Andalucía/Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Seville 41013, Spain
| | - Marta Artal-Sanz
- Andalusian Centre for Developmental Biology, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas/Junta de Andalucía/Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Seville 41013, Spain
- Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemical Engineering, Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Seville 41013, Spain
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Ghaddar A, Armingol E, Huynh C, Gevirtzman L, Lewis NE, Waterston R, O’Rourke EJ. Whole-body gene expression atlas of an adult metazoan. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2023; 9:eadg0506. [PMID: 37352352 PMCID: PMC10289653 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adg0506] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2022] [Accepted: 05/17/2023] [Indexed: 06/25/2023]
Abstract
Gene activity defines cell identity, drives intercellular communication, and underlies the functioning of multicellular organisms. We present the single-cell resolution atlas of gene activity of a fertile adult metazoan: Caenorhabditis elegans. This compendium comprises 180 distinct cell types and 19,657 expressed genes. We predict 7541 transcription factor expression profile associations likely responsible for defining cellular identity. We predict thousands of intercellular interactions across the C. elegans body and the ligand-receptor pairs that mediate them, some of which we experimentally validate. We identify 172 genes that show consistent expression across cell types, are involved in basic and essential functions, and are conserved across phyla; therefore, we present them as experimentally validated housekeeping genes. We developed the WormSeq application to explore these data. In addition to the integrated gene-to-systems biology, we present genome-scale single-cell resolution testable hypotheses that we anticipate will advance our understanding of the molecular mechanisms, underlying the functioning of a multicellular organism and the perturbations that lead to its malfunction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abbas Ghaddar
- Department of Biology, College of Arts and Sciences, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22903, USA
| | - Erick Armingol
- Bioinformatics and Systems Biology Graduate Program, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
| | - Chau Huynh
- Department of Genome Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Louis Gevirtzman
- Department of Genome Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Nathan E. Lewis
- Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
- Department of Bioengineering, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
| | - Robert Waterston
- Department of Genome Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Eyleen J. O’Rourke
- Department of Biology, College of Arts and Sciences, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22903, USA
- Department of Cell Biology, University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, VA 22903, USA
- Robert M. Berne Cardiovascular Research Center, School of Medicine, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22903, USA
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36
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Johnson LC, Vo AA, Clancy JC, Myles KM, Pooranachithra M, Aguilera J, Levenson MT, Wohlenberg C, Rechtsteiner A, Ragle JM, Chisholm AD, Ward JD. NHR-23 activity is necessary for C. elegans developmental progression and apical extracellular matrix structure and function. Development 2023; 150:dev201085. [PMID: 37129010 PMCID: PMC10233720 DOI: 10.1242/dev.201085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2022] [Accepted: 04/11/2023] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
Nematode molting is a remarkable process where animals must repeatedly build a new apical extracellular matrix (aECM) beneath a previously built aECM that is subsequently shed. The nuclear hormone receptor NHR-23 (also known as NR1F1) is an important regulator of C. elegans molting. NHR-23 expression oscillates in the epidermal epithelium, and soma-specific NHR-23 depletion causes severe developmental delay and death. Tissue-specific RNAi suggests that nhr-23 acts primarily in seam and hypodermal cells. NHR-23 coordinates the expression of factors involved in molting, lipid transport/metabolism and remodeling of the aECM. NHR-23 depletion causes dampened expression of a nas-37 promoter reporter and a loss of reporter oscillation. The cuticle collagen ROL-6 and zona pellucida protein NOAH-1 display aberrant annular localization and severe disorganization over the seam cells after NHR-23 depletion, while the expression of the adult-specific cuticle collagen BLI-1 is diminished and frequently found in patches. Consistent with these localization defects, the cuticle barrier is severely compromised when NHR-23 is depleted. Together, this work provides insight into how NHR-23 acts in the seam and hypodermal cells to coordinate aECM regeneration during development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Londen C. Johnson
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - An A. Vo
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - John C. Clancy
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Krista M. Myles
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Murugesan Pooranachithra
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
| | - Joseph Aguilera
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Max T. Levenson
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Chloe Wohlenberg
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Andreas Rechtsteiner
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - James Matthew Ragle
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Andrew D. Chisholm
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
| | - Jordan D. Ward
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
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Costa DS, Kenny-Ganzert IW, Chi Q, Park K, Kelley LC, Garde A, Matus DQ, Park J, Yogev S, Goldstein B, Gibney TV, Pani AM, Sherwood DR. The Caenorhabditis elegans anchor cell transcriptome: ribosome biogenesis drives cell invasion through basement membrane. Development 2023; 150:dev201570. [PMID: 37039075 PMCID: PMC10259517 DOI: 10.1242/dev.201570] [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: 12/29/2022] [Accepted: 03/27/2023] [Indexed: 04/12/2023]
Abstract
Cell invasion through basement membrane (BM) barriers is important in development, immune function and cancer progression. As invasion through BM is often stochastic, capturing gene expression profiles of actively invading cells in vivo remains elusive. Using the stereotyped timing of Caenorhabditis elegans anchor cell (AC) invasion, we generated an AC transcriptome during BM breaching. Through a focused RNAi screen of transcriptionally enriched genes, we identified new invasion regulators, including translationally controlled tumor protein (TCTP). We also discovered gene enrichment of ribosomal proteins. AC-specific RNAi, endogenous ribosome labeling and ribosome biogenesis analysis revealed that a burst of ribosome production occurs shortly after AC specification, which drives the translation of proteins mediating BM removal. Ribosomes also enrich near the AC endoplasmic reticulum (ER) Sec61 translocon and the endomembrane system expands before invasion. We show that AC invasion is sensitive to ER stress, indicating a heightened requirement for translation of ER-trafficked proteins. These studies reveal key roles for ribosome biogenesis and endomembrane expansion in cell invasion through BM and establish the AC transcriptome as a resource to identify mechanisms underlying BM transmigration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel S. Costa
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Box 90338, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | | | - Qiuyi Chi
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Box 90338, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Kieop Park
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Box 90338, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Laura C. Kelley
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Box 90338, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Aastha Garde
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
| | - David Q. Matus
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA
| | - Junhyun Park
- Department of Neuroscience, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Shaul Yogev
- Department of Neuroscience, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Bob Goldstein
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
| | - Theresa V. Gibney
- Department of Biology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 29903, USA
| | - Ariel M. Pani
- Department of Biology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 29903, USA
- Department of Cell Biology, University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, VA 29904, USA
| | - David R. Sherwood
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Box 90338, Durham, NC 27708, USA
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38
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Ponomarova O, Zhang H, Li X, Nanda S, Leland TB, Fox BW, Starbard AN, Giese GE, Schroeder FC, Yilmaz LS, Walhout AJM. A D-2-hydroxyglutarate dehydrogenase mutant reveals a critical role for ketone body metabolism in Caenorhabditis elegans development. PLoS Biol 2023; 21:e3002057. [PMID: 37043428 PMCID: PMC10096224 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3002057] [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: 06/22/2022] [Accepted: 02/28/2023] [Indexed: 04/13/2023] Open
Abstract
In humans, mutations in D-2-hydroxyglutarate (D-2HG) dehydrogenase (D2HGDH) result in D-2HG accumulation, delayed development, seizures, and ataxia. While the mechanisms of 2HG-associated diseases have been studied extensively, the endogenous metabolism of D-2HG remains unclear in any organism. Here, we find that, in Caenorhabditis elegans, D-2HG is produced in the propionate shunt, which is transcriptionally activated when flux through the canonical, vitamin B12-dependent propionate breakdown pathway is perturbed. Loss of the D2HGDH ortholog, dhgd-1, results in embryonic lethality, mitochondrial defects, and the up-regulation of ketone body metabolism genes. Viability can be rescued by RNAi of hphd-1, which encodes the enzyme that produces D-2HG or by supplementing either vitamin B12 or the ketone bodies 3-hydroxybutyrate (3HB) and acetoacetate (AA). Altogether, our findings support a model in which C. elegans relies on ketone bodies for energy when vitamin B12 levels are low and in which a loss of dhgd-1 causes lethality by limiting ketone body production.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olga Ponomarova
- Department of Systems Biology, University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Hefei Zhang
- Department of Systems Biology, University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Xuhang Li
- Department of Systems Biology, University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Shivani Nanda
- Department of Systems Biology, University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Thomas B. Leland
- Department of Systems Biology, University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Bennett W. Fox
- Boyce Thompson Institute and Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, United States of America
| | - Alyxandra N. Starbard
- Department of Systems Biology, University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Gabrielle E. Giese
- Department of Systems Biology, University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Frank C. Schroeder
- Boyce Thompson Institute and Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, United States of America
| | - L. Safak Yilmaz
- Department of Systems Biology, University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Albertha J. M. Walhout
- Department of Systems Biology, University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States of America
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39
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Wester LE, Lanjuin A, Bruckisch EH, Perez-Matos MC, Stine PG, Heintz C, Denzel MS, Mair WB. A single-copy knockin translating ribosome immunoprecipitation toolkit for tissue-specific profiling of actively translated mRNAs in C. elegans. CELL REPORTS METHODS 2023; 3:100433. [PMID: 37056370 PMCID: PMC10088236 DOI: 10.1016/j.crmeth.2023.100433] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2022] [Revised: 01/11/2023] [Accepted: 02/28/2023] [Indexed: 03/29/2023]
Abstract
Here, we introduce a single-copy knockin translating ribosome immunoprecipitation (SKI TRIP) toolkit, a collection of Caenorhabditis elegans strains engineered by CRISPR in which tissue-specific expression of FLAG-tagged ribosomal subunit protein RPL-22 is driven by cassettes present in single copy from defined sites in the genome. Through in-depth characterization of the effects of the FLAG tag in animals in which endogenous RPL-22 has been tagged, we show that it incorporates into actively translating ribosomes and efficiently and cleanly pulls down cell-type-specific transcripts. Importantly, the presence of the tag does not impact overall mRNA translation, create bias in transcript use, or cause changes to fitness of the animal. We propose SKI TRIP use for the study of tissue-specific differences in translation and for investigating processes that are acutely sensitive to changes in translation like development or aging.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura E. Wester
- Department of Molecular Metabolism, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Department of Molecular Genetics of Ageing, Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing, 50668 Cologne, Germany
| | - Anne Lanjuin
- Department of Molecular Metabolism, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Emanuel H.W. Bruckisch
- Department of Molecular Genetics of Ageing, Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing, 50668 Cologne, Germany
| | - Maria C. Perez-Matos
- Department of Molecular Metabolism, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Peter G. Stine
- Department of Molecular Metabolism, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Caroline Heintz
- Department of Molecular Metabolism, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Martin S. Denzel
- Department of Molecular Genetics of Ageing, Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing, 50668 Cologne, Germany
- Altos Labs, Cambridge, UK
| | - William B. Mair
- Department of Molecular Metabolism, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115, USA
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40
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Godbole AA, Gopalan S, Nguyen TK, Munden AL, Lui DS, Fanelli MJ, Vo P, Lewis CA, Spinelli JB, Fazzio TG, Walker AK. S-adenosylmethionine synthases specify distinct H3K4me3 populations and gene expression patterns during heat stress. eLife 2023; 12:e79511. [PMID: 36756948 PMCID: PMC9984191 DOI: 10.7554/elife.79511] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2022] [Accepted: 02/07/2023] [Indexed: 02/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Methylation is a widely occurring modification that requires the methyl donor S-adenosylmethionine (SAM) and acts in regulation of gene expression and other processes. SAM is synthesized from methionine, which is imported or generated through the 1-carbon cycle (1 CC). Alterations in 1 CC function have clear effects on lifespan and stress responses, but the wide distribution of this modification has made identification of specific mechanistic links difficult. Exploiting a dynamic stress-induced transcription model, we find that two SAM synthases in Caenorhabditis elegans, SAMS-1 and SAMS-4, contribute differently to modification of H3K4me3, gene expression and survival. We find that sams-4 enhances H3K4me3 in heat shocked animals lacking sams-1, however, sams-1 cannot compensate for sams-4, which is required to survive heat stress. This suggests that the regulatory functions of SAM depend on its enzymatic source and that provisioning of SAM may be an important regulatory step linking 1 CC function to phenotypes in aging and stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adwait A Godbole
- Program in Molecular Medicine, UMASS Chan Medical SchoolWorcesterUnited States
| | - Sneha Gopalan
- Cancer Center, UMASS Chan Medical SchoolWorcesterUnited States
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Cancer Biology, UMASS Chan Medical SchoolWorcesterUnited States
| | - Thien-Kim Nguyen
- Program in Molecular Medicine, UMASS Chan Medical SchoolWorcesterUnited States
| | - Alexander L Munden
- Program in Molecular Medicine, UMASS Chan Medical SchoolWorcesterUnited States
| | - Dominique S Lui
- Program in Molecular Medicine, UMASS Chan Medical SchoolWorcesterUnited States
| | - Matthew J Fanelli
- Program in Molecular Medicine, UMASS Chan Medical SchoolWorcesterUnited States
| | - Paula Vo
- Program in Molecular Medicine, UMASS Chan Medical SchoolWorcesterUnited States
| | - Caroline A Lewis
- Program in Molecular Medicine, UMASS Chan Medical SchoolWorcesterUnited States
| | - Jessica B Spinelli
- Program in Molecular Medicine, UMASS Chan Medical SchoolWorcesterUnited States
- Cancer Center, UMASS Chan Medical SchoolWorcesterUnited States
| | - Thomas G Fazzio
- Cancer Center, UMASS Chan Medical SchoolWorcesterUnited States
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Cancer Biology, UMASS Chan Medical SchoolWorcesterUnited States
| | - Amy K Walker
- Program in Molecular Medicine, UMASS Chan Medical SchoolWorcesterUnited States
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Cancer Biology, UMASS Chan Medical SchoolWorcesterUnited States
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Subirana JA, Messeguer X. Unique Features of Satellite DNA Transcription in Different Tissues of Caenorhabditis elegans. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24032970. [PMID: 36769294 PMCID: PMC9918286 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24032970] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2022] [Revised: 01/30/2023] [Accepted: 02/01/2023] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
A large part of the genome is known to be transcribed as non-coding DNA including some tandem repeats (satellites) such as telomeric/centromeric satellites in different species. However, there has been no detailed study on the eventual transcription of the interspersed satellites found in many species. In the present paper, we studied the transcription of the abundant DNA satellites in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans using available RNA-Seq results. We found that many of them have been transcribed, but usually in an irregular manner; different regions of a satellite have been transcribed with variable efficiency. Satellites with a similar repeat sequence also have a different transcription pattern depending on their position in the genome. We also describe the peculiar features of satellites associated with Helitron transposons in C. elegans. Our demonstration that some satellite RNAs are transcribed adds a new family of non-coding RNAs, a new element in the world of RNA interference, with new paths for the control of mRNA translation. This is a field that requires further investigation and will provide a deeper understanding of gene expression and control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juan A. Subirana
- Department of Computer Science, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, 08034 Barcelona, Spain
- Reial Acadèmia de Ciències i Arts de Barcelona, La Rambla, 115, 08002 Barcelona, Spain
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +34-934137844
| | - Xavier Messeguer
- Department of Computer Science, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, 08034 Barcelona, Spain
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Lazaro-Pena MI, Cornwell AB, Diaz-Balzac CA, Das R, Macoretta N, Thakar J, Samuelson AV. Homeodomain-interacting protein kinase maintains neuronal homeostasis during normal Caenorhabditis elegans aging and systemically regulates longevity from serotonergic and GABAergic neurons. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.01.11.523661. [PMID: 36711523 PMCID: PMC9882034 DOI: 10.1101/2023.01.11.523661] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/03/2023]
Abstract
Aging and the age-associated decline of the proteome is determined in part through neuronal control of evolutionarily conserved transcriptional effectors, which safeguard homeostasis under fluctuating metabolic and stress conditions by regulating an expansive proteostatic network. We have discovered the Caenorhabditis elegans h omeodomain-interacting p rotein k inase (HPK-1) acts as a key transcriptional effector to preserve neuronal integrity, function, and proteostasis during aging. Loss of hpk-1 results in drastic dysregulation in expression of neuronal genes, including genes associated with neuronal aging. During normal aging hpk-1 expression increases throughout the nervous system more broadly than any other kinase. Within the aging nervous system, hpk-1 is co-expressed with key longevity transcription factors, including daf-16 (FOXO), hlh-30 (TFEB), skn-1 (Nrf2), and hif-1 , which suggests hpk-1 expression mitigates natural age-associated physiological decline. Consistently, pan-neuronal overexpression of hpk-1 extends longevity, preserves proteostasis both within and outside of the nervous system, and improves stress resistance. Neuronal HPK-1 improves proteostasis through kinase activity. HPK-1 functions cell non-autonomously within serotonergic and GABAergic neurons to improve proteostasis in distal tissues by specifically regulating distinct components of the proteostatic network. Increased serotonergic HPK-1 enhances the heat shock response and survival to acute stress. In contrast, GABAergic HPK-1 induces basal autophagy and extends longevity. Our work establishes hpk-1 as a key neuronal transcriptional regulator critical for preservation of neuronal function during aging. Further, these data provide novel insight as to how the nervous system partitions acute and chronic adaptive response pathways to delay aging by maintaining organismal homeostasis.
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Fragoso-Luna A, Romero-Bueno R, Eibl M, Ayuso C, Muñoz-Jiménez C, Benes V, Cases I, Askjaer P. Expanded FLP toolbox for spatiotemporal protein degradation and transcriptomic profiling in Caenorhabditis elegans. Genetics 2023; 223:iyac166. [PMID: 36321973 PMCID: PMC9836023 DOI: 10.1093/genetics/iyac166] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2022] [Accepted: 10/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/05/2022] Open
Abstract
Control of gene expression in specific tissues and/or at certain stages of development allows the study and manipulation of gene function with high precision. Site-specific genome recombination by the flippase (FLP) and cyclization recombination (Cre) enzymes has proved particularly relevant. Joint efforts of many research groups have led to the creation of efficient FLP and Cre drivers to regulate gene expression in a variety of tissues in Caenorhabditis elegans. Here, we extend this toolkit by the addition of FLP lines that drive recombination specifically in distal tip cells, the somatic gonad, coelomocytes, and the epithelial P lineage. In some cases, recombination-mediated gene knockouts do not completely deplete protein levels due to persistence of long-lived proteins. To overcome this, we developed a spatiotemporally regulated degradation system for green fluorescent fusion proteins based on FLP-mediated recombination. Using 2 stable nuclear pore proteins, MEL-28/ELYS and NPP-2/NUP85 as examples, we report the benefit of combining tissue-specific gene knockout and protein degradation to achieve complete protein depletion. We also demonstrate that FLP-mediated recombination can be utilized to identify transcriptomes in a C. elegans tissue of interest. We have adapted RNA polymerase DamID for the FLP toolbox and by focusing on a well-characterized tissue, the hypodermis, we show that the vast majority of genes identified by RNA polymerase DamID are known to be expressed in this tissue. These tools allow combining FLP activity for simultaneous gene inactivation and transcriptomic profiling, thus enabling the inquiry of gene function in various complex biological processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adrián Fragoso-Luna
- Andalusian Centre for Developmental Biology, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Junta de Andalucía, 41013 Sevilla, Spain
| | - Raquel Romero-Bueno
- Andalusian Centre for Developmental Biology, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Junta de Andalucía, 41013 Sevilla, Spain
| | - Michael Eibl
- Andalusian Centre for Developmental Biology, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Junta de Andalucía, 41013 Sevilla, Spain
| | - Cristina Ayuso
- Andalusian Centre for Developmental Biology, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Junta de Andalucía, 41013 Sevilla, Spain
| | - Celia Muñoz-Jiménez
- Andalusian Centre for Developmental Biology, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Junta de Andalucía, 41013 Sevilla, Spain
| | | | - Ildefonso Cases
- Andalusian Centre for Developmental Biology, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Junta de Andalucía, 41013 Sevilla, Spain
| | - Peter Askjaer
- Andalusian Centre for Developmental Biology, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Universidad Pablo de Olavide, Junta de Andalucía, 41013 Sevilla, Spain
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Horowitz BB, Nanda S, Walhout AJ. A Transcriptional Cofactor Regulatory Network for the C. elegans Intestine. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.01.05.522920. [PMID: 36711629 PMCID: PMC9881946 DOI: 10.1101/2023.01.05.522920] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
Chromatin modifiers and transcriptional cofactors (collectively referred to as CFs) work with DNA-binding transcription factors (TFs) to regulate gene expression. In multicellular eukaryotes, distinct tissues each execute their own gene expression program for accurate differentiation and subsequent functionality. While the function of TFs in differential gene expression has been studied in detail in many systems, the contribution of CFs has remained less explored. Here we uncovered the contributions of CFs to gene regulation in the Caenorhabditis elegans intestine. We first annotated 366 CFs encoded by the C. elegans genome and assembled a library of 335 RNAi clones. Using this library, we analyzed the effects of individually depleting these CFs on the expression of 19 fluorescent transcriptional reporters in the intestine and identified 216 regulatory interactions. We found that different CFs interact specifically with different promoters, and that both essential and intestinally expressed CFs exhibit the highest proportion of interactions. We did not find all members of CF complexes acting on the same set of reporters but instead found diversity in the promoter targets of each complex component. Finally, we found that previously identified activation mechanisms for the acdh-1 promoter use different CFs and TFs. Overall, we demonstrate that CFs function specifically rather than ubiquitously at intestinal promoters and provide an RNAi resource for reverse genetic screens.
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Shi C, Murphy CT. piRNAs regulate a Hedgehog germline-to-soma pro-aging signal. NATURE AGING 2023; 3:47-63. [PMID: 37118518 PMCID: PMC10154208 DOI: 10.1038/s43587-022-00329-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2021] [Accepted: 11/03/2022] [Indexed: 04/30/2023]
Abstract
The reproductive system regulates somatic aging through competing anti- and pro-aging signals. Germline removal extends somatic lifespan through conserved pathways including insulin and mammalian target-of-rapamycin signaling, while germline hyperactivity shortens lifespan through unknown mechanisms. Here we show that mating-induced germline hyperactivity downregulates piRNAs, in turn desilencing their targets, including the Hedgehog-like ligand-encoding genes wrt-1 and wrt-10, ultimately causing somatic collapse and death. Germline-produced Hedgehog signals require PTR-6 and PTR-16 receptors for mating-induced shrinking and death. Our results reveal an unconventional role of the piRNA pathway in transcriptional regulation of Hedgehog signaling and a new role of Hedgehog signaling in the regulation of longevity and somatic maintenance: Hedgehog signaling is controlled by the tunable piRNA pathway to encode the previously unknown germline-to-soma pro-aging signal. Mating-induced piRNA downregulation in the germline and subsequent Hedgehog signaling to the soma enable the animal to tune somatic resource allocation to germline needs, optimizing reproductive timing and survival.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cheng Shi
- Department of Molecular Biology and Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA.
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of New Orleans, New Orleans, LA, USA.
| | - Coleen T Murphy
- Department of Molecular Biology and Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA.
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Targeting the "hallmarks of aging" to slow aging and treat age-related disease: fact or fiction? Mol Psychiatry 2023; 28:242-255. [PMID: 35840801 PMCID: PMC9812785 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-022-01680-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 23.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2022] [Revised: 06/20/2022] [Accepted: 06/27/2022] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
Aging is a major risk factor for a number of chronic diseases, including neurodegenerative and cerebrovascular disorders. Aging processes have therefore been discussed as potential targets for the development of novel and broadly effective preventatives or therapeutics for age-related diseases, including those affecting the brain. Mechanisms thought to contribute to aging have been summarized under the term the "hallmarks of aging" and include a loss of proteostasis, mitochondrial dysfunction, altered nutrient sensing, telomere attrition, genomic instability, cellular senescence, stem cell exhaustion, epigenetic alterations and altered intercellular communication. We here examine key claims about the "hallmarks of aging". Our analysis reveals important weaknesses that preclude strong and definitive conclusions concerning a possible role of these processes in shaping organismal aging rate. Significant ambiguity arises from the overreliance on lifespan as a proxy marker for aging, the use of models with unclear relevance for organismal aging, and the use of study designs that do not allow to properly estimate intervention effects on aging rate. We also discuss future research directions that should be taken to clarify if and to what extent putative aging regulators do in fact interact with aging. These include multidimensional analytical frameworks as well as designs that facilitate the proper assessment of intervention effects on aging rate.
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Phuphisut O, Poodeepiyasawat A, Yoonuan T, Watthanakulpanich D, Chotsiri P, Reamtong O, Mousley A, Gobert GN, Adisakwattana P. Transcriptome profiling of male and female Ascaris lumbricoides reproductive tissues. Parasit Vectors 2022; 15:477. [PMID: 36539906 PMCID: PMC9768952 DOI: 10.1186/s13071-022-05602-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2022] [Accepted: 11/30/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Ascaris lumbricoides causes human ascariasis, the most prevalent helminth disease, infecting approximately 1 billion individuals globally. In 2019 the global disease burden was estimated to be 754,000 DALYs and resulted in 2090 deaths. In the absence of a vaccination strategy, treatment of ascariasis has relied on anthelminthic chemotherapy, but drug resistance is a concern. The propensity for reinfection is also a major challenge to disease control; female worms lay up to 200,000 eggs daily, which contaminate surrounding environments and remain viable for years, resulting in high transmission rates. Understanding the molecular mechanisms of reproductive processes, including control of egg production, spermatogenesis, oogenesis and embryogenesis, will drive the development of new drugs and/or vaccine targets for future ascariasis control. METHODS Transcriptome profiles of discrete reproductive and somatic tissue samples were generated from adult male and female worms using Illumina HiSeq with 2 × 150 bp paired-end sequencing. Male tissues included: testis germinal zone, testis part of vas deferens, seminal vesicle and somatic tissue. Female tissues included: ovary germinal zone, ovary part of the oviduct, uterus and somatic tissue. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified from the fragments per kilobases per million reads (FPKM) profiles. Hierarchical analysis was performed to identify tissue-specific genes. Furthermore, Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analyses were employed to identify significant terms and pathways for the DEGs. RESULTS DEGs involved in protein phosphorylation and adhesion molecules were indicated to play a crucial role in spermatogenesis and fertilization, respectively. Those genes associated with the G-protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) signaling pathway and small GTPase-mediated signal transduction pathway play an essential role in cytoskeleton organization during oogenesis. Additionally, DEGs associated with the SMA genes and TGF-β signaling pathway are crucial in adult female embryogenesis. Some genes associated with particular biological processes and pathways that were identified in this study have been linked to defects in germline development, embryogenesis and reproductive behavior. In the enriched KEGG pathway analysis, Hippo signaling, oxytocin signaling and tight junction pathways were identified to play a role in Ascaris male and female reproductive systems. CONCLUSIONS This study has provided comprehensive transcriptome profiles of discrete A. lumbricoides reproductive tissue samples, revealing the molecular basis of these functionally important tissues. The data generated from this study will provide fundamental knowledge on the reproductive biology of Ascaris and will inform future target identification for anti-ascariasis drugs and/or vaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Orawan Phuphisut
- Department of Helminthology, Faculty of Tropical Medicine, Mahidol University, Bangkok, 10400, Thailand
| | - Akkarin Poodeepiyasawat
- Department of Helminthology, Faculty of Tropical Medicine, Mahidol University, Bangkok, 10400, Thailand
| | - Tippayarat Yoonuan
- Department of Helminthology, Faculty of Tropical Medicine, Mahidol University, Bangkok, 10400, Thailand
| | - Dorn Watthanakulpanich
- Department of Helminthology, Faculty of Tropical Medicine, Mahidol University, Bangkok, 10400, Thailand
| | - Palang Chotsiri
- Mahidol-Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit, Mahidol University, Bangkok, 10400, Thailand
| | - Onrapak Reamtong
- Department of Molecular Tropical Medicine and Genetics, Faculty of Tropical Medicine, Mahidol University, Bangkok, 10400, Thailand
| | - Angela Mousley
- School of Biological Sciences, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast, BT9 5DL, UK
| | - Geoffrey N Gobert
- School of Biological Sciences, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast, BT9 5DL, UK
| | - Poom Adisakwattana
- Department of Helminthology, Faculty of Tropical Medicine, Mahidol University, Bangkok, 10400, Thailand.
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Wang Y, Du T, Li A, Qiao L, Zhang Z, Sun W. Establishment and application of a silkworm CRISPR/Cas9 tool for conditionally manipulating gene disruption in the epidermis. INSECT BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2022; 151:103861. [PMID: 36332793 DOI: 10.1016/j.ibmb.2022.103861] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2022] [Revised: 09/29/2022] [Accepted: 10/18/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Spatial or temporal specific gene knockout system is a valuable tool for studying the molecular mechanisms underlying developmental processes. The integument is essential for insect fitness and survival, but tools for dissecting function of genes in this tissue are lacking. In this study, we firstly identified an epidermis specifically expressed gene of the domesticated silkworm, BmCPG25, by comparative transcriptomic analysis. Furthermore, a transgenic silkworm expressing the RNA dependent CRISPR-Cas9 protein driven by the regulatory region of the BmCPG25 was established. Immunochemistry analysis showed the endonuclease was specifically expressed in the nuclear of epidermal cells. We also validated the efficiency of this system by disrupting the function of an epidermis specifically expressed cuticular protein gene (Cpr21) and a ubiquitously expressed cuticular gene (Cph18), respectively. In summary, we successfully constructed a conditional knockout toolkit to manipulate the gene editing in epidermal cells, which provides a valuable approach to study the molecular mechanism of integument development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yun Wang
- Laboratory of Evolutionary and Functional Genomics, School of Life Sciences, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 401331, China
| | - Tianyi Du
- Laboratory of Evolutionary and Functional Genomics, School of Life Sciences, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 401331, China
| | - Ainan Li
- Laboratory of Evolutionary and Functional Genomics, School of Life Sciences, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 401331, China
| | - Liang Qiao
- Chongqing Key Laboratory of Vector Insects, Institute of Entomology and Molecular Biology, College of Life Sciences, Chongqing Normal University, Chongqing, 401331, China
| | - Ze Zhang
- Laboratory of Evolutionary and Functional Genomics, School of Life Sciences, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 401331, China.
| | - Wei Sun
- Laboratory of Evolutionary and Functional Genomics, School of Life Sciences, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 401331, China.
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Chen M, Vincent J, Ezeanii A, Wakade S, Yerigenahally S, Mor DE. Heparan sulfate proteoglycans mediate prion-like α-synuclein toxicity in Parkinson's in vivo models. Life Sci Alliance 2022; 5:5/11/e202201366. [PMID: 35790300 PMCID: PMC9259873 DOI: 10.26508/lsa.202201366] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2022] [Revised: 06/20/2022] [Accepted: 06/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
This study offers new Caenorhabditis elegans models in which feeding with α-synuclein pre-formed fibrils results in prion-like aggregation of host α-synuclein and dopamine neuron degeneration, and these disease phenotypes are regulated by the heparan sulfate proteoglycan pathway. Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a debilitating neurodegenerative disorder characterized by progressive motor decline and the aggregation of α-synuclein protein. Growing evidence suggests that α-synuclein aggregates may spread from neurons of the digestive tract to the central nervous system in a prion-like manner, yet the mechanisms of α-synuclein transmission and neurotoxicity remain poorly understood. Animal models that are amenable to high-throughput investigations are needed to facilitate the discovery of disease mechanisms. Here we describe the first Caenorhabditis elegans models in which feeding with α-synuclein preformed fibrils (PFFs) induces dopaminergic neurodegeneration, prion-like seeding of aggregation of human α-synuclein expressed in the host, and an associated motor decline. RNAi-mediated knockdown of the C. elegans syndecan sdn-1, or other enzymes involved in heparan sulfate proteoglycan synthesis, protected against PFF-induced α-synuclein aggregation, motor dysfunction, and dopamine neuron degeneration. This work offers new models by which to investigate gut-derived α-synuclein spreading and propagation of disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Merry Chen
- Department of Neuroscience and Regenerative Medicine, Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University, Augusta, GA, USA
| | - Julie Vincent
- Department of Neuroscience and Regenerative Medicine, Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University, Augusta, GA, USA
| | - Alexis Ezeanii
- Department of Neuroscience and Regenerative Medicine, Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University, Augusta, GA, USA
| | - Saurabh Wakade
- College of Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Shobha Yerigenahally
- Department of Neuroscience and Regenerative Medicine, Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University, Augusta, GA, USA
| | - Danielle E Mor
- Department of Neuroscience and Regenerative Medicine, Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University, Augusta, GA, USA
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Ham S, Kim SS, Park S, Kim EJE, Kwon S, Park HEH, Jung Y, Lee SJV. Systematic transcriptome analysis associated with physiological and chronological aging in Caenorhabditis elegans. Genome Res 2022; 32:2003-2014. [PMID: 36351769 PMCID: PMC9808617 DOI: 10.1101/gr.276515.121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2021] [Accepted: 10/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
Aging is associated with changes in a variety of biological processes at the transcriptomic level, including gene expression. Two types of aging occur during a lifetime: chronological and physiological aging. However, dissecting the difference between chronological and physiological ages at the transcriptomic level has been a challenge because of its complexity. We analyzed the transcriptomic features associated with physiological and chronological aging using Caenorhabditis elegans as a model. Many structural and functional transcript elements, such as noncoding RNAs and intron-derived transcripts, were up-regulated with chronological aging. In contrast, mRNAs with many biological functions, including RNA processing, were down-regulated with physiological aging. We also identified an age-dependent increase in the usage of distal 3' splice sites in mRNA transcripts as a biomarker of physiological aging. Our study provides crucial information for dissecting chronological and physiological aging at the transcriptomic level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seokjin Ham
- Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 34141, South Korea
| | - Sieun S Kim
- Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 34141, South Korea
| | - Sangsoon Park
- Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 34141, South Korea
| | - Eun Ji E Kim
- Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 34141, South Korea
| | - Sujeong Kwon
- Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 34141, South Korea
| | - Hae-Eun H Park
- Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 34141, South Korea
| | - Yoonji Jung
- Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 34141, South Korea
| | - Seung-Jae V Lee
- Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 34141, South Korea
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