scholarly journals Predator-secreted sulfolipids induce fear-like defense responses in C. elegans

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zheng Liu ◽  
Maro J. Kariya ◽  
Christopher D. Chute ◽  
Amy K. Pribadi ◽  
Sarah G. Leinwand ◽  
...  

AbstractAnimals respond to predators by altering their behavior and physiological states, but the underlying signaling mechanisms are poorly understood. Using the interactions between Caenorhabditis elegans and its predator, Pristionchus pacificus, we show that neuronal perception by C. elegans of a predator-specific molecular signature induces instantaneous escape behavior and a prolonged reduction in oviposition. Chemical analysis revealed this predator-specific signature to consist of a class of sulfolipids, produced by a biochemical pathway required for developing predacious behavior and specifically induced by starvation. These sulfolipids are detected by four pairs of C. elegans amphid sensory neurons that act redundantly and recruit cyclic nucleotide-gated (CNG) or transient receptor potential (TRP) channels to drive both escape and reduced oviposition. Specific abolishment of predator-evoked C. elegans responses by the anti-anxiety drug sertraline as well as functional homology of the delineated signaling pathways suggests a conserved or convergent strategy for managing predator threats.

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ziad Sabry ◽  
Alicia Ho ◽  
Danielle Ireland ◽  
Christina Rabeler ◽  
Olivier Cochet-Escartin ◽  
...  

AbstractIn response to noxious stimuli, planarians cease their typical ciliary gliding and exhibit an oscillatory type of locomotion called scrunching. We have previously characterized the biomechanics of scrunching and shown that it is induced by specific stimuli, such as amputation, noxious heat, and extreme pH. Because these specific inducers are known to activate Transient Receptor Potential (TRP) channels in other systems, we hypothesized that TRP channels control scrunching. We found that chemicals known to activate TRPA1 (allyl isothiocyanate (AITC) and hydrogen peroxide) and TRPV (capsaicin and anandamide) in other systems induce scrunching in the planarian species Dugesia japonica and, except for anandamide, in Schmidtea mediterranea. To confirm that these responses were specific to either TRPA1 or TRPV, respectively, we tried to block scrunching using selective TRPA1 or TRPV antagonists and RNA interference (RNAi) mediated knockdown. Unexpectedly, co-treatment with a mammalian TRPA1 antagonist, HC-030031, enhanced AITC-induced scrunching by decreasing the latency time, suggesting an agonistic relationship in planarians. We further confirmed that TRPA1 in both species is necessary for AITC-induced scrunching using RNAi. Conversely, while co-treatment of a mammalian TRPV antagonist, SB-366791, also enhanced capsaicin-induced reactions in D. japonica, combined knockdown of two previously identified D. japonica TRPV genes (DjTRPVa and DjTRPVb) did not inhibit capsaicin-induced scrunching. Surprisingly, RNAi of either DjTRPAa or DjTRPVa/DjTRPVb disrupted scrunching induced by the endocannabinoid and TRPV agonist, anandamide. Overall, our results show that although scrunching induction can involve different initial pathways for sensing stimuli, this behavior’s signature dynamical features are independent of the inducer, implying that scrunching is a stereotypical planarian escape behavior in response to various noxious stimuli that converge on a single downstream pathway. Understanding which aspects of nociception are conserved or not across different organisms can provide insight into the underlying regulatory mechanisms to better understand pain sensation.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kelli L. Benedetti ◽  
Fatema A Saifuddin ◽  
Julia M Miller ◽  
Rashmi Chandra ◽  
Alec Chen ◽  
...  

Memory is one of the most important abilities of the brain. It is defined as an alteration in behavior as a consequence of an experience. For example, the C. elegans nematode will downregulate its chemotactic response to the innately attractive odor, butanone, if the odor is not paired with food. Through repeated, spaced training with this odor in the absence of food, C. elegans will maintain this memory for a prolonged period of time. Although transient receptor potential (TRP) channels are classically thought of as primary sensory receptors, it was reported that the OSM-9/TRPV5/TRPV6 (TRP vanilloid 5/6) channel is required for single exposure learning. Here we describe a new role for osm-9 in consolidation of memory that is induced by repeated, spaced training. In this paradigm, osm-9 mutant animals learn as well as wild-types, but are unable to consolidate the memory. Though sleep is required for memory consolidation, loss of the TRPV channel OSM-9 does not affect sleep. This indicates that the TRP channel promotes memory in a process that acts outside the sleep pathway. We investigate the endogenous expression pattern of OSM-9 and show that it is not expressed in the butanone-responsive AWC olfactory sensory neuron. Instead, it is expressed in the paired AWA olfactory neuron, the ASH nociceptive neurons, the OLQ and two other unidentified sensory neurons which are most likely ADF and ADL as they express osm-9 mRNA. Because OSM-9 acts in sensory neurons that do not participate in butanone sensation, this indicates that the circuit participates in olfactory memory consolidation.


2011 ◽  
Vol 110 (3) ◽  
pp. 789-798 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kaori Ono ◽  
Masako Tsukamoto-Yasui ◽  
Yoshiko Hara-Kimura ◽  
Naohiko Inoue ◽  
Yoshihito Nogusa ◽  
...  

The sympathetic thermoregulatory system controls the magnitude of adaptive thermogenesis in correspondence with the environmental temperature or the state of energy intake and plays a key role in determining the resultant energy storage. However, the nature of the trigger initiating this reflex arc remains to be determined. Here, using capsiate, a digestion-vulnerable capsaicin analog, we examined the involvement of specific activation of transient receptor potential (TRP) channels within the gastrointestinal tract in the thermogenic sympathetic system by measuring the efferent activity of the postganglionic sympathetic nerve innervating brown adipose tissue (BAT) in anesthetized rats. Intragastric administration of capsiate resulted in a time- and dose-dependent increase in integrated BAT sympathetic nerve activity (SNA) over 180 min, which was characterized by an emergence of sporadic high-activity phases composed of low-frequency bursts. This increase in BAT SNA was abolished by blockade of TRP channels as well as of sympathetic ganglionic transmission and was inhibited by ablation of the gastrointestinal vagus nerve. The activation of SNA was delimited to BAT and did not occur in the heart or pancreas. These results point to a neural pathway enabling the selective activation of the central network regulating the BAT SNA in response to a specific stimulation of gastrointestinal TRP channels and offer important implications for understanding the dietary-dependent regulation of energy metabolism and control of obesity.


2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (6) ◽  
pp. 1380 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erik Behringer ◽  
Md Hakim

Effective delivery of oxygen and essential nutrients to vital organs and tissues throughout the body requires adequate blood flow supplied through resistance vessels. The intimate relationship between intracellular calcium ([Ca2+]i) and regulation of membrane potential (Vm) is indispensable for maintaining blood flow regulation. In particular, Ca2+-activated K+ (KCa) channels were ascertained as transducers of elevated [Ca2+]i signals into hyperpolarization of Vm as a pathway for decreasing vascular resistance, thereby enhancing blood flow. Recent evidence also supports the reverse role for KCa channels, in which they facilitate Ca2+ influx into the cell interior through open non-selective cation (e.g., transient receptor potential; TRP) channels in accord with robust electrical (hyperpolarization) and concentration (~20,000-fold) transmembrane gradients for Ca2+. Such an arrangement supports a feed-forward activation of Vm hyperpolarization while potentially boosting production of nitric oxide. Furthermore, in vascular types expressing TRP channels but deficient in functional KCa channels (e.g., collecting lymphatic endothelium), there are profound alterations such as downstream depolarizing ionic fluxes and the absence of dynamic hyperpolarizing events. Altogether, this review is a refined set of evidence-based perspectives focused on the role of the endothelial KCa and TRP channels throughout multiple experimental animal models and vascular types. We discuss the diverse interactions among KCa and TRP channels to integrate Ca2+, oxidative, and electrical signaling in the context of cardiovascular physiology and pathology. Building from a foundation of cellular biophysical data throughout a wide and diverse compilation of significant discoveries, a translational narrative is provided for readers toward the treatment and prevention of chronic, age-related cardiovascular disease.


2009 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 146-158 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elie Abed ◽  
Dominique Labelle ◽  
Corine Martineau ◽  
Andrew Loghin ◽  
Robert Moreau

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