A Forward Genetic Screen for Molecules Involved in Pheromone-Induced Dauer Formation in Caenorhabditis elegans.

Animals must constantly assess their surroundings and integrate sensory cues to make appropriate behavioral and developmental decisions. Pheromones produced by conspecific individuals provide critical information regarding environmental conditions. Ascaroside pheromone concentration and composition are instructive in the decision of Caenorhabditis elegans to either develop into a reproductive adult or enter into the stress-resistant alternate dauer developmental stage. Pheromones are sensed by a small set of sensory neurons, and integrated with additional environmental cues, to regulate neuroendocrine signaling and dauer formation. To identify molecules required for pheromone-induced dauer formation, we performed an unbiased forward genetic screen and identified phd (pheromone response-defective dauer) mutants. Here, we describe new roles in dauer formation for previously identified neuronal molecules such as the WD40 domain protein QUI-1 and MACO-1 Macoilin, report new roles for nociceptive neurons in modulating pheromone-induced dauer formation, and identify tau tubulin kinases as new genes involved in dauer formation. Thus, phd mutants define loci required for the detection, transmission, or integration of pheromone signals in the regulation of dauer formation.

High incidence of lipid deposition in the liver of rats fed a diet supplemented with branched-chain amino acids under vitamin B6 deficiency.

Male Wistar rats were fed four diets composed of purified 20% vitamin-free casein diet with (+) or without (-) vitamin B(6) (7.0 mg of pyridoxine HCl/kg of diet) and with (+) or without (-) branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) of valine, leucine, and isoleucine (4.75%): B(6)(+)BCAA(-); B(6)(+)BCAA(+); B(6)(-)BCAA(-); and B(6)(-)BCAA(+) for 21 d. Among rats fed the B(6)(-)BCAA(+) diet, about a half showed lipid deposition in the liver. On the other hand, serum triacylglycerol levels in the B(6)(-)BCAA(+) group tended to be decreased. Hepatic triacylglycerol and cholesterol levels tended to increase in the B(6)(-)BCAA(+) group compared with the other three groups. Serum apolipoprotein B and apolipoprotein E (apo E) levels in the B(6)(-)BCAA(+) group were the lowest among the three groups. In contrast, hepatic apo E levels in the B(6)(-)BCAA(+) group were the highest among the three groups. High-performance liquid chromatography of pooled serum of rats with lipid deposits revealed that triacylglycerol and cholesterol levels in very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL) were decreased compared with other diet groups. These results strongly suggest that one of the mechanisms of lipid deposition in rats fed a B(6)(-)BCAA(+) diet is due to impaired secretion of VLDL.

Comparisons of uptake and cell surface binding among pyridoxal, pyridoxine, and pyridoxamine in RAW264.7 cells.

OBJECTIVE: Vitamin B6 (B6) suppresses the expression of cyclooxygenase-2 stimulated by lipopolysaccharide in mouse macrophage RAW264.7 cells. The greatest effect is recognized for pyridoxal (PL) compared with pyridoxamine (PM), pyridoxine (PN), and pyridoxal 5'-phosphate (PLP). However, it has not been elucidated why PL has the strongest effect. We compared the uptakes and cell surface interactions among PL, PM, PN, and PLP in RAW264.7 cells. METHODS: Cyclo-oxygenase-2 mRNA expression was evaluated by real-time polymerase chain reaction. Intracellular B6 concentrations were measured by high-performance liquid chromatography. Interactions of B6s with the cell surface were analyzed using a surface plasmon resonance biosensor. B6 uptake speeds were measured using [(3)H]-PN. RESULTS: The intracellular PLP levels did not change significantly when cells were cultured in medium containing PL, PM, PN, or PLP. Only PL interacted with the cell surface. Although PM and PN were associated with the cell surface, their binding was only recognized during sample loading. After the change to phosphate buffered saline after sample loading, the binding resonances of PM and PN returned to baseline, whereas that of PL did not. Uptake of [(3)H]-PN was inhibited by non-labeled PN, PL, or PLP, but not PM, at 1 microM. The inhibition rate of PL was higher than those of PN and PLP. CONCLUSION: The inhibition of cyclo-oxygenase-2 mRNA expression by PL may be related to the cell surface interaction of PL, rather than the intracellular PLP level. The uptake mechanism for PN and PL may differ from that for PM.

Two chemoreceptors mediate developmental effects of dauer pheromone in C. elegans.

Intraspecific chemical communication is mediated by signals called pheromones. Caenorhabditis elegans secretes a mixture of small molecules (collectively termed dauer pheromone) that regulates entry into the alternate dauer larval stage and also modulates adult behavior via as yet unknown receptors. Here, we identify two heterotrimeric GTP-binding protein (G protein)-coupled receptors (GPCRs) that mediate dauer formation in response to a subset of dauer pheromone components. The SRBC-64 and SRBC-66 GPCRs are members of the large Caenorhabditis-specific SRBC subfamily and are expressed in the ASK chemosensory neurons, which are required for pheromone-induced dauer formation. Expression of both, but not each receptor alone, confers pheromone-mediated effects on heterologous cells. Identification of dauer pheromone receptors will allow a better understanding of the signaling cascades that transduce the context-dependent effects of ecologically important chemical signals.

A diacylglycerol kinase modulates long-term thermotactic behavioral plasticity in C. elegans.

A memory of prior thermal experience governs Caenorhabditis elegans thermotactic behavior. On a spatial thermal gradient, C. elegans tracks isotherms near a remembered temperature we call the thermotactic set-point (T(S)). The T(S) corresponds to the previous cultivation temperature and can be reset by sustained exposure to a new temperature. The mechanisms underlying this behavioral plasticity are unknown, partly because sensory and experience-dependent components of thermotactic behavior have been difficult to separate. Using newly developed quantitative behavioral analyses, we demonstrate that the T(S) represents a weighted average of a worm's temperature history. We identify the DGK-3 diacylglycerol kinase as a thermal memory molecule that regulates the rate of T(S) resetting by modulating the temperature range of synaptic output, but not temperature sensitivity, of the AFD thermosensory neurons. These results provide the first mechanistic insight into the basis of experience-dependent plasticity in this complex behavior.

Regulation of neuronal lineage decisions by the HES-related bHLH protein REF-1.

Members of the HES subfamily of bHLH proteins play crucial roles in neural patterning via repression of neurogenesis. In C. elegans, loss-of-function mutations in ref-1, a distant nematode-specific member of this subfamily, were previously shown to cause ectopic neurogenesis from postembryonic lineages. However, while the vast majority of the nervous system in C. elegans is generated embryonically, the role of REF-1 in regulating these neural lineage decisions is unknown. Here, we show that mutations in ref-1 result in the generation of multiple ectopic neuron types derived from an embryonic neuroblast. In wild-type animals, neurons derived from this sublineage are present in a left/right symmetrical manner. However, in ref-1 mutants, while the ectopically generated neurons exhibit gene expression profiles characteristic of neurons on the left, they are present only on the right side. REF-1 functions in a Notch-independent manner to regulate this ectopic lineage decision. We also demonstrate that loss of REF-1 function results in defective differentiation of an embryonically generated serotonergic neuron type. These results indicate that REF-1 functions in both Notch-dependent and independent pathways to regulate multiple developmental decisions in different neuronal sublineages.