Faculty Opinions recommendation of Germline signals deploy NHR-49 to modulate fatty-acid β-oxidation and desaturation in somatic tissues of C. elegans.

Proximity-dependent labeling approaches such as BioID have been a great boon to studies of protein-protein interactions in the context of cytoskeletal structures such as centrosomes which are poorly amenable to traditional biochemical approaches like immunoprecipitation and tandem affinity purification. Yet, these methods have so far not been applied extensively to invertebrate experimental models such as C. elegans given the long labeling times required for the original promiscuous biotin ligase variant BirA*. Here, we show that the recently developed variant TurboID successfully probes the interactomes of both stably associated (SPD-5) and dynamically localized (PLK-1) centrosomal components. We further develop an indirect proximity labeling method employing a GFP nanobody- TurboID fusion, which allows the identification of protein interactors in a tissue-specific manner in the context of the whole animal. Critically, this approach utilizes available endogenous GFP fusions, avoiding the need to generate multiple additional strains for each target protein and the potential complications associated with overexpressing the protein from transgenes. Using this method, we identify homologs of two highly conserved centriolar components, Cep97 and Bld10/Cep135, which are present in various somatic tissues of the worm. Surprisingly, neither protein is expressed in early embryos, likely explaining why these proteins have escaped attention until now. Our work expands the experimental repertoire for C. elegans and opens the door for further studies of tissue-specific variation in centrosome architecture.

Download Full-text

A Mediator subunit, MDT-15, integrates regulation of fatty acid metabolism by NHR-49-dependent and -independent pathways in C. elegans

Genes & Development ◽

10.1101/gad.1395406 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 20 (9) ◽

pp. 1137-1149 ◽

Cited By ~ 153

Author(s):

S. Taubert

Keyword(s):

Fatty Acid ◽

Fatty Acid Metabolism ◽

Acid Metabolism ◽

C Elegans

Download Full-text

Phenolic Compounds Reduce the Fat Content in Caenorhabditis elegans by Affecting Lipogenesis, Lipolysis, and Different Stress Responses

Pharmaceuticals ◽

10.3390/ph13110355 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 13 (11) ◽

pp. 355

Author(s):

Paula Aranaz ◽

David Navarro-Herrera ◽

María Zabala ◽

Ana Romo-Hualde ◽

Miguel López-Yoldi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Oxidative Stress ◽

Fatty Acid ◽

Phenolic Compounds ◽

Fatty Acid Metabolism ◽

Acid Metabolism ◽

Lipid Mobilization ◽

C Elegans ◽

Unfolded Protein ◽

Reducing Activity ◽

Protein Response

Supplementation with bioactive compounds capable of regulating energy homeostasis is a promising strategy to manage obesity. Here, we have screened the ability of different phenolic compounds (myricetin, kaempferol, naringin, hesperidin, apigenin, luteolin, resveratrol, curcumin, and epicatechin) and phenolic acids (p-coumaric, ellagic, ferulic, gallic, and vanillic acids) regulating C. elegans fat accumulation. Resveratrol exhibited the strongest lipid-reducing activity, which was accompanied by the improvement of lifespan, oxidative stress, and aging, without affecting worm development. Whole-genome expression microarrays demonstrated that resveratrol affected fat mobilization, fatty acid metabolism, and unfolded protein response of the endoplasmic reticulum (UPRER), mimicking the response to calorie restriction. Apigenin induced the oxidative stress response and lipid mobilization, while vanillic acid affected the unfolded-protein response in ER. In summary, our data demonstrates that phenolic compounds exert a lipid-reducing activity in C. elegans through different biological processes and signaling pathways, including those related with lipid mobilization and fatty acid metabolism, oxidative stress, aging, and UPR-ER response. These findings open the door to the possibility of combining them in order to achieve complementary activity against obesity-related disorders.

Download Full-text

Post-transcriptional regulation of sex determination in Caenorhabditis elegans: widespread expression of the sex-determining gene fem-1 in both sexes.

Molecular Biology of the Cell ◽

10.1091/mbc.7.7.1107 ◽

1996 ◽

Vol 7 (7) ◽

pp. 1107-1121 ◽

Cited By ~ 35

Author(s):

J Gaudet ◽

I VanderElst ◽

A M Spence

Keyword(s):

Sex Determination ◽

Signal Transduction Pathway ◽

Functional Expression ◽

Noncoding Sequences ◽

Somatic Development ◽

C Elegans ◽

Somatic Tissues ◽

Germline Expression ◽

Post Transcriptional Regulation ◽

Do So

The fem-1 gene of C. elegans is one of three genes required for all aspects of male development in the nematode. Current models of sex determination propose that the products of the fem genes act in a novel signal-transduction pathway and that their activity is regulated primarily at the post-translational level in somatic tissues. We analyzed the expression of fem-1 to determine whether it revealed any additional levels of regulation. Both XX hermaphrodites and XO males express fem-1 at approximately constant levels throughout development. Somatic tissues in hermaphrodites adopt female fates, but they nonetheless express fem-1 mRNA and FEM-1 protein, suggesting that the regulation of fem-1 activity is post-transcriptional and probably post-translational. A compact promoter directs functional expression of fem-1 transgenes, as assayed by their masculinizing activity in fem-1 mutants. Activity also requires any two or more introns, suggesting that splicing may enhance fem-1 expression. The minimal noncoding sequences required for activity of fem-1 transgenes suffice to direct expression of a fem-1::lacZ reporter gene in all somatic tissues in both sexes. Many fem-1 transgenes, including those that rescue male somatic development in fem-1 mutants, paradoxically feminize the germline. We suggest that they do so by interfering with the germline expression of the endogenous fem-1 gene.

Download Full-text