The somatic reproductive tissues of C. elegans promote longevity through steroid hormone signaling
| Autor: | Monika Suchanek-Kavipurapu, Marta Maria Gaglia, Seung-Jae Lee, Jennifer R. Berman, Mark A. McCormick, Cynthia Kenyon, Tracy M. Yamawaki |
|---|---|
| Jazyk: | angličtina |
| Rok vydání: | 2010 |
| Předmět: |
Somatic cell
QH301-705.5 medicine.medical_treatment Longevity Receptors Cytoplasmic and Nuclear Biology Genetics and Genomics/Complex Traits Ligands General Biochemistry Genetics and Molecular Biology Germline medicine Animals Biology (General) Caenorhabditis elegans Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins Gonads Transcription factor Genetics General Immunology and Microbiology Cholestenes General Neuroscience Reproduction fungi Gene Expression Regulation Developmental biology.organism_classification Cell biology Steroid hormone Germ Cells Nuclear receptor Steroids Drosophila melanogaster Signal transduction General Agricultural and Biological Sciences Signal Transduction Research Article |
| Zdroj: | PLoS Biology, Vol 8, Iss 8 (2010) PLoS Biology |
| ISSN: | 1545-7885 1544-9173 |
| Popis: | Removal of the germ cells of C. elegans extends lifespan in part because signals from the somatic reproductive tissues activate the nuclear hormone receptor DAF-12. In Caenorhabditis elegans and Drosophila melanogaster, removing the germline precursor cells increases lifespan. In worms, and possibly also in flies, this lifespan extension requires the presence of somatic reproductive tissues. How the somatic gonad signals other tissues to increase lifespan is not known. The lifespan increase triggered by loss of the germ cells is known to require sterol hormone signaling, as reducing the activity of the nuclear hormone receptor DAF-12, or genes required for synthesis of the DAF-12 ligand dafachronic acid, prevents germline loss from extending lifespan. In addition to sterol signaling, the FOXO transcription factor DAF-16 is required to extend lifespan in animals that lack germ cells. DAF-12/NHR is known to assist with the nuclear accumulation of DAF-16/FOXO in these animals, yet we find that loss of DAF-12/NHR has little or no effect on the expression of at least some DAF-16/FOXO target genes. In this study, we show that the DAF-12-sterol signaling pathway has a second function to activate a distinct set of genes and extend lifespan in response to the somatic reproductive tissues. When germline-deficient animals lacking somatic reproductive tissues are given dafachronic acid, their expression of DAF-12/NHR-dependent target genes is restored and their lifespan is increased. Together, our findings indicate that in C. elegans lacking germ cells, the somatic reproductive tissues promote longevity via steroid hormone signaling to DAF-12. Author Summary Reproductive tissues are known to generate important intercellular signals. For example, in mammals, the reproductive tissues produce steroid hormones such as estrogen and testosterone that have profound effects on development and physiology. Studies of the nematode C. elegans and other organisms have shown that the reproductive system can also affect the rate at which an animal ages. Removal of C. elegans' germ cells extends lifespan but this effect is not simply due to sterility, as removal of both the somatic reproductive tissues and the germ cells does not extend lifespan. Instead, loss of the germ cells extends lifespan by activating a pathway that requires input from the somatic gonad. In this study, we demonstrate that the somatic reproductive tissues promote longevity by controlling the activity of a steroid signaling pathway that regulates the DAF-12 nuclear hormone receptor. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
| Externí odkaz: |
|