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- Title
- A neuronal G protein-coupled receptor mediates the effect of diet on lifespan and development in Caenorhabditis elegans through autophagy.
- Creator
- Parker, Thomas A., Jia, Kailiang, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Biological Sciences
- Abstract/Description
-
Animals rely on the integration of a variety of external cues to understand and respond appropriately to their environment. The relative amounts of food and constitutively secreted pheromone detected by the nematode C. elegans determines how it will develop and grow. Starvation conditions cause the animal to enter a protective stage, termed dauer. Dauer animals are non-eating, long-lived and stress resistant. Yet, when these animals are introduced to food replete conditions they will recover...
Show moreAnimals rely on the integration of a variety of external cues to understand and respond appropriately to their environment. The relative amounts of food and constitutively secreted pheromone detected by the nematode C. elegans determines how it will develop and grow. Starvation conditions cause the animal to enter a protective stage, termed dauer. Dauer animals are non-eating, long-lived and stress resistant. Yet, when these animals are introduced to food replete conditions they will recover from dauer and proceed into normal development. Furthermore, food restriction has been demonstrated to extend the lifespan of a wide-range of species including C. elegans. However, the exact mechanism by which food signals are detected and transduced by C. elegans to influence development and longevity remains unknown. Here, we identify a G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) DCAR-1 that acts in two chemosensory neurons to mediate food signaling in an autophagy-related manner. The DCAR-1 ligand Dihydrocaffeic acid (DHCA) competes with dauer-inducing pheromone to promote growth. DHCA is a key intermediate in the shikimate pathway, which is required to synthesize folate and aromatic amino acids. We report that dcar-1 mutations influence dauer formation and extend wildtype lifespan via a mechanism of dietary restriction. Moreover, we show that the lifespan extension of dcar-1 mutants is completely dependent on autophagy gene atg- 18. Furthermore, our data suggests metabolites derived from shikimate are food signals that control aging and dauer development through GPCR signaling in C. elegans. These studies will contribute to the delineation of mechanisms behind the beneficial effects of dietary restriction in eukaryotic organisms.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2019
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00013338
- Subject Headings
- Caenorhabditis elegans, Autophagy, Receptors, G-Protein-Coupled, Longevity, Diet
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Analysis of the Role of Autophagy in Dauer Formation and Dauer Recovery Regulated by TGF-β Signaling Pathway in Caenorhabditis elegans.
- Creator
- Ritter, Portia, Jia, Kailiang, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Biological Sciences
- Abstract/Description
-
Caenorhabditis elegans optionally enter into a dauer diapause phase that results in a prolonged life in a semi-dormant state. Entry into and recovery from dauer diapause includes many physical changes in body structure, physiology, and gene expression. Entry into dauer diapause is regulated by several signaling pathways including transforming growth factor (TGF-β). Autophagy plays an important role in dauer formation and recover. During dauer transformation autophagy is up-regulated and may...
Show moreCaenorhabditis elegans optionally enter into a dauer diapause phase that results in a prolonged life in a semi-dormant state. Entry into and recovery from dauer diapause includes many physical changes in body structure, physiology, and gene expression. Entry into dauer diapause is regulated by several signaling pathways including transforming growth factor (TGF-β). Autophagy plays an important role in dauer formation and recover. During dauer transformation autophagy is up-regulated and may play a role in remodeling the molecular structure for long term survival during dauer diapause. This research helps determine the role of autophagy in dauer development and recovery mediated through the TGF-β signaling pathway. This research also determines in which tissue autophagy is necessary for dauer formation and recovery through TGF-β signaling. This research is shedding light on the function of autophagy in the TGF-β signaling pathway, both processes of which have been linked to tumorigenesis, heart disease and cancer.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2017
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004921, http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004921
- Subject Headings
- Aging--Molecular aspects., Aging--Physiological aspects., Caenorhabditis elegans--Molecular genetics., Autophagic vacuoles., Gene expression., Apoptosis., Cellular signal transduction., DNA-binding proteins., Transforming growth factors-beta--Receptors.
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Autophagy gene atg-18 regulates C. elegans lifespan cell nonautonomously by neuropeptide signaling.
- Creator
- Minnerly, Justin, Jia, Kailiang, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Biological Sciences
- Abstract/Description
-
In the round worm C. elegans, it has recently been shown that autophagy, a highly conserved lysosomal degradation pathway that is present in all eukaryotic cells, is required for maintaining healthspan and for increasing the adult lifespan of worms fed under dietary restriction conditions or with reduced IGF signaling. It is currently unknown how extracellular signals regulate autophagy activity within different tissues during these processes and whether autophagy functions cell-autonomously...
Show moreIn the round worm C. elegans, it has recently been shown that autophagy, a highly conserved lysosomal degradation pathway that is present in all eukaryotic cells, is required for maintaining healthspan and for increasing the adult lifespan of worms fed under dietary restriction conditions or with reduced IGF signaling. It is currently unknown how extracellular signals regulate autophagy activity within different tissues during these processes and whether autophagy functions cell-autonomously or nonautonomously. We have data that for the first time shows autophagy activity in the neurons and intestinal cells plays a major role in regulating adult lifespan and the longevity conferred by altered IGF signaling and dietary restriction, suggesting autophagy can control these phenotypes cell non-autonomously. We hypothesize that autophagy in the neurons and intestinal cells is an essential cellular process regulated by different signaling pathways to control wild type adult lifespan, IGF mediated longevity and dietary restriction induced longevity. Excitingly we also have found that in animals with reduced IGF signaling autophagy can control longevity in only a small subset of neurons alone. Autophagy in either specific individual chemosensory neurons or a small group of them is completely sufficient to control IGF mediated longevity. This work provides novel insight to the function and regulation of autophagy which will help shed light on understanding this essential process in higher organisms, including mammals.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2017
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004862, http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004862
- Subject Headings
- Caenorhabditis elegans--Molecular genetics., Aging--Molecular aspects., Life cycles (Biology), Cell death., Gene expression., Autophagic vacuoles., Apoptosis., Eukaryotic cells.
- Format
- Document (PDF)
- Title
- Intestinal autophagy activity protects against Salmonella typhimurium infection in Caenorhabditis elegans.
- Creator
- Curt, Alexander L., Jia, Kailiang, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Biological Sciences
- Abstract/Description
-
Autophagy is a lysosomal degradation pathway present in eukaryotes that allows a cell to break down cytoplasmic proteins and organelles to maintain homeostasis. The autophagy pathway has been shown to play a significant role in the immune systems protective response against various bacterial pathogen infections, such as the intestinal pathogen Salmonella typhimurium, in Caenorhabditis elegans and in mammals. This study investigated if the autophagy pathway acts in a tissue-specific manner to...
Show moreAutophagy is a lysosomal degradation pathway present in eukaryotes that allows a cell to break down cytoplasmic proteins and organelles to maintain homeostasis. The autophagy pathway has been shown to play a significant role in the immune systems protective response against various bacterial pathogen infections, such as the intestinal pathogen Salmonella typhimurium, in Caenorhabditis elegans and in mammals. This study investigated if the autophagy pathway acts in a tissue-specific manner to protect against S. typhimurium infection in C. elegans. Wild type C. elegans and worms where the autophagy gene bec-1 was inhibited in different tissues by RNAi treatment were infected by S. typhimurium and their survival measured. My data showed that the autophagy gene bec-1 only protected C. elegans against S. typhimurium infection in the intestinal tissues, suggesting that the autophagy pathway acts in a tissue specific manner to help protect against Salmonella invasions in C. elegans.
Show less - Date Issued
- 2012
- PURL
- http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004244
- Format
- Document (PDF)