SIR2 calls upon the ER

rBmαTX14 Increases the Life Span and Promotes the Locomotion of Caenorhabditis Elegans

The scorpion has been extensively used in various pharmacological profiles or as food supplies. The exploration of scorpion venom has been reported due to the presence of recombinant peptides. rBmαTX14 is an α-neurotoxin extracted from the venom gland of the East Asian scorpion Buthus martensii Karsch and can affect ion channel conductance. Here, we investigated the functions of rBmαTX14 using the Caenorhabditis elegans model. Using western blot analysis, rBmαTX14 was shown to be expressed both in the cytoplasm and inclusion bodies in the E.coli Rosetta (DE3) strain. Circular dichroism spectroscopy analysis demonstrated that purified rBmαTX14 retained its biological structures. Next, feeding nematodes with E.coli Rosetta (DE3) expressing rBmαTX14 caused extension of the life span and promoted the locomotion of the nematodes. In addition, we identified several genes that play various roles in the life span and locomotion of C. elegans through microarray analysis and quantitative real-time PCR. Furthermore, if the amino acid site H₁₅ of rBmαTX14 was mutated, rBmαTX14 no longer promoted the C. elegans life span. In conclusion, the results not only demonstrated the functions and mechanism of rBmαTX14 in C. elegans, but also provided the new sight in the utility of recombinant peptides from scorpion venom.

Brief Communication: SIR-2.1-dependent lifespan extension of Caenorhabditis elegans by oxyresveratrol and resveratrol

Resveratrol (RES) has been studied for its effects on the lifespan extension of Caenorhabditis elegans, but controversy still remains on its mechanism related with SIR-2. In this study, longevity assay was performed to confirm SIR-2-dependent lifespan extension of C. elgeans with RES and oxyresveratrol (OXY), an isomer of hydroxylated RES using loss-of-function mutants of C. elegans including sir-2.1 mutant. The results showed that OXY and RES significantly (P < 0.05) extended the lifespan of C. elegans compared with the control. OXY and RES also significantly (P < 0.05) increased the mRNA expression levels of sir-2.1 and aak-2 in a dose-dependent manner and increased the protein expression levels of SIR-2.1. OXY and RES treatment extended the lifespan in daf-16 loss-of-function mutants, which suggested that lifespan extension was not occurring via the activation of DAF-16. However, OXY and RES failed to extend the lifespan in loss-of-function mutants of sir-2.1 and aak-2 Therefore, OXY and RES extend the lifespan of C. elegans by overexpression of SIR-2.1, which is related to lifespan extension through calorie restriction and the AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) pathway, although this process is independent of the FOXO/DAF-16 pathway.

Regulation of unfolded protein response modulator XBP1s by acetylation and deacetylation

XBP1 (X-box-binding protein 1) is a key modulator of the UPR (unfolded protein response), which is involved in a wide range of pathological and physiological processes. The mRNA encoding the active spliced form of XBP1 (XBP1s) is generated from the unspliced form by IRE1 (inositol-requiring enzyme 1) during the UPR. However, the post-translational modulation of XBP1s remains largely unknown. In the present study, we demonstrate that XBP1s is a target of acetylation and deacetylation mediated by p300 and SIRT1 (sirtuin 1) respectively. p300 increases the acetylation and protein stability of XBP1s, and enhances its transcriptional activity, whereas SIRT1 deacetylates XBP1s and inhibits its transcriptional activity. Deficiency of SIRT1 enhances XBP1s-mediated luciferase reporter activity in HEK (human embryonic kidney)-293 cells and the up-regulation of XBP1s target gene expression under ER (endoplasmic reticulum) stress in MEFs (mouse embryonic fibroblasts). Consistent with XBP1s favouring cell survival under ER stress, Sirt1-/- MEFs display a greater resistance to ER-stress-induced apoptotic cell death compared with Sirt1+/+ MEFs. Taken together, these results suggest that acetylation/deacetylation constitutes an important post-translational mechanism in controlling protein levels, as well as the transcriptional activity, of XBP1s. The present study provides a novel insight into the molecular mechanisms by which SIRT1 regulates UPR signalling.

The short-lived fish Nothobranchius furzeri as a new model system for aging studies

Genetic and pharmacological research on aging is hampered by the lifespan of available vertebrate models. We recently initiated studies on Nothobranchius furzeri, a species with a maximum life expectancy in captivity of just three months which represents the shortest documented captive lifespan for a vertebrate. Further research on N. furzeri has demonstrated that 1. Short lifespan is tied with explosive growth and accelerated sexual maturation. 2. Short lifespan is correlated with expression of age-related behavioral and histological changes. 3. Lifespan and expression of age-related markers can be modulated by water temperature. 4. Resveratrol, a drug characterized for its life-extending action in Caenorhabditis elegans and Drosophila, increases lifespan and retards expression of age-related markers. 5. Aging-related genes can be easily isolated by homology cloning. Finally, different populations or species of Nothobranchius show large-scale differences in captive lifespan. In the last three years, N. furzeri has moved from biological curiosity to a promising model system for drug validation. Furthermore, this species occupies a favorable position in the Teleost's "tree of life". It is very close to the Japanese Medaka, and close to the pufferfishes and stickleback and might represent a very useful model for comparative genomics of aging.