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Poole RJ, Flames N, Cochella L. Neurogenesis in Caenorhabditis elegans. Genetics 2024:iyae116. [PMID: 39167071 DOI: 10.1093/genetics/iyae116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2024] [Accepted: 06/24/2024] [Indexed: 08/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Animals rely on their nervous systems to process sensory inputs, integrate these with internal signals, and produce behavioral outputs. This is enabled by the highly specialized morphologies and functions of neurons. Neuronal cells share multiple structural and physiological features, but they also come in a large diversity of types or classes that give the nervous system its broad range of functions and plasticity. This diversity, first recognized over a century ago, spurred classification efforts based on morphology, function, and molecular criteria. Caenorhabditis elegans, with its precisely mapped nervous system at the anatomical level, an extensive molecular description of most of its neurons, and its genetic amenability, has been a prime model for understanding how neurons develop and diversify at a mechanistic level. Here, we review the gene regulatory mechanisms driving neurogenesis and the diversification of neuron classes and subclasses in C. elegans. We discuss our current understanding of the specification of neuronal progenitors and their differentiation in terms of the transcription factors involved and ensuing changes in gene expression and chromatin landscape. The central theme that has emerged is that the identity of a neuron is defined by modules of gene batteries that are under control of parallel yet interconnected regulatory mechanisms. We focus on how, to achieve these terminal identities, cells integrate information along their developmental lineages. Moreover, we discuss how neurons are diversified postembryonically in a time-, genetic sex-, and activity-dependent manner. Finally, we discuss how the understanding of neuronal development can provide insights into the evolution of neuronal diversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard J Poole
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Nuria Flames
- Developmental Neurobiology Unit, Instituto de Biomedicina de Valencia IBV-CSIC, Valencia 46012, Spain
| | - Luisa Cochella
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
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2
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Haley JA, Chalasani SH. C. elegans foraging as a model for understanding the neuronal basis of decision-making. Cell Mol Life Sci 2024; 81:252. [PMID: 38849591 PMCID: PMC11335288 DOI: 10.1007/s00018-024-05223-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2023] [Revised: 03/27/2024] [Accepted: 03/30/2024] [Indexed: 06/09/2024]
Abstract
Animals have evolved to seek, select, and exploit food sources in their environment. Collectively termed foraging, these ubiquitous behaviors are necessary for animal survival. As a foundation for understanding foraging, behavioral ecologists established early theoretical and mathematical frameworks which have been subsequently refined and supported by field and laboratory studies of foraging animals. These simple models sought to explain how animals decide which strategies to employ when locating food, what food items to consume, and when to explore the environment for new food sources. These foraging decisions involve integration of prior experience with multimodal sensory information about the animal's current environment and internal state. We suggest that the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans is well-suited for a high-resolution analysis of complex goal-oriented behaviors such as foraging. We focus our discussion on behavioral studies highlighting C. elegans foraging on bacteria and summarize what is known about the underlying neuronal and molecular pathways. Broadly, we suggest that this simple model system can provide a mechanistic understanding of decision-making and present additional avenues for advancing our understanding of complex behavioral processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica A Haley
- Neurosciences Graduate Program, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, 92093, USA
- Molecular Neurobiology Laboratory, Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA
| | - Sreekanth H Chalasani
- Molecular Neurobiology Laboratory, Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA.
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Ilík V, Schwarz EM, Nosková E, Pafčo B. Hookworm genomics: dusk or dawn? Trends Parasitol 2024; 40:452-465. [PMID: 38677925 DOI: 10.1016/j.pt.2024.04.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2024] [Revised: 03/28/2024] [Accepted: 04/04/2024] [Indexed: 04/29/2024]
Abstract
Hookworms are parasites, closely related to the model nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, that are a major economic and health burden worldwide. Primarily three hookworm species (Necator americanus, Ancylostoma duodenale, and Ancylostoma ceylanicum) infect humans. Another 100 hookworm species from 19 genera infect primates, ruminants, and carnivores. Genetic data exist for only seven of these species. Genome sequences are available from only four of these species in two genera, leaving 96 others (particularly those parasitizing wildlife) without any genomic data. The most recent hookworm genomes were published 5 years ago, leaving the field in a dusk. However, assembling genomes from single hookworms may bring a new dawn. Here we summarize advances, challenges, and opportunities for studying these neglected but important parasitic nematodes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vladislav Ilík
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic; Department of Botany and Zoology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic.
| | - Erich M Schwarz
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Eva Nosková
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic; Department of Botany and Zoology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Barbora Pafčo
- Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic.
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González R, Félix MA. Caenorhabditis elegans immune responses to microsporidia and viruses. DEVELOPMENTAL AND COMPARATIVE IMMUNOLOGY 2024; 154:105148. [PMID: 38325500 DOI: 10.1016/j.dci.2024.105148] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2023] [Revised: 01/30/2024] [Accepted: 02/03/2024] [Indexed: 02/09/2024]
Abstract
The model organism Caenorhabditis elegans is susceptible to infection by obligate intracellular pathogens, specifically microsporidia and viruses. These intracellular pathogens infect intestinal cells, or, for some microsporidia, epidermal cells. Strikingly, intestinal cell infections by viruses or microsporidia trigger a common transcriptional response, activated in part by the ZIP-1 transcription factor. Among the strongest activated genes in this response are ubiquitin-pathway members and members of the pals family, an intriguing gene family with cross-regulations of different members of genomic clusters. Some of the induced genes participate in host defense against the pathogens, for example through ubiquitin-mediated inhibition. Other mechanisms defend the host specifically against viral infections, including antiviral RNA interference and uridylation. These various immune responses are altered by environmental factors and by intraspecific genetic variation of the host. These pathogens were first isolated 15 years ago and much remains to be discovered using C. elegans genetics; also, other intracellular pathogens of C. elegans may yet to be discovered.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rubén González
- Institut de Biologie de l'École Normale Supérieure, CNRS, INSERM, 75005, Paris, France.
| | - Marie-Anne Félix
- Institut de Biologie de l'École Normale Supérieure, CNRS, INSERM, 75005, Paris, France
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Baran JK, Kosztyła P, Antoł W, Labocha MK, Sychta K, Drobniak SM, Prokop ZM. Reproductive system, temperature, and genetic background effects in experimentally evolving populations of Caenorhabditis elegans. PLoS One 2024; 19:e0300276. [PMID: 38557670 PMCID: PMC10984399 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0300276] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2023] [Accepted: 02/25/2024] [Indexed: 04/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Experimental evolution (EE) is a powerful research framework for gaining insights into many biological questions, including the evolution of reproductive systems. We designed a long-term and highly replicated EE project using the nematode C. elegans, with the main aim of investigating the impact of reproductive system on adaptation and diversification under environmental challenge. From the laboratory-adapted strain N2, we derived isogenic lines and introgressed the fog-2(q71) mutation, which changes the reproductive system from nearly exclusive selfing to obligatory outcrossing, independently into 3 of them. This way, we obtained 3 pairs of isogenic ancestral populations differing in reproductive system; from these, we derived replicate EE populations and let them evolve in either novel (increased temperature) or control conditions for over 100 generations. Subsequently, fitness of both EE and ancestral populations was assayed under the increased temperature conditions. Importantly, each population was assayed in 2-4 independent blocks, allowing us to gain insight into the reproducibility of fitness scores. We expected to find upward fitness divergence, compared to ancestors, in populations which had evolved in this treatment, particularly in the outcrossing ones due to the benefits of genetic shuffling. However, our data did not support these predictions. The first major finding was very strong effect of replicate block on populations' fitness scores. This indicates that despite standardization procedures, some important environmental effects were varying among blocks, and possibly compounded by epigenetic inheritance. Our second key finding was that patterns of EE populations' divergence from ancestors differed among the ancestral isolines, suggesting that research conclusions derived for any particular genetic background should never be generalized without sampling a wider set of backgrounds. Overall, our results support the calls to pay more attention to biological variability when designing studies and interpreting their results, and to avoid over-generalizations of outcomes obtained for specific genetic and/or environmental conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joanna K. Baran
- Faculty of Biology, Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagiellonian University in Krakow, Krakow, Poland
| | - Paulina Kosztyła
- Faculty of Biology, Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagiellonian University in Krakow, Krakow, Poland
| | - Weronika Antoł
- Faculty of Biology, Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagiellonian University in Krakow, Krakow, Poland
- Institute of Systematics and Evolution of Animals, Polish Academy of Sciences, Krakow, Poland
| | - Marta K. Labocha
- Faculty of Biology, Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagiellonian University in Krakow, Krakow, Poland
| | - Karolina Sychta
- Institute of Systematics and Evolution of Animals, Polish Academy of Sciences, Krakow, Poland
| | - Szymon M. Drobniak
- Faculty of Biology, Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagiellonian University in Krakow, Krakow, Poland
- Evolution and Ecology Research Centre, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Zofia M. Prokop
- Faculty of Biology, Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagiellonian University in Krakow, Krakow, Poland
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Wolstenholme AJ, Andersen EC, Choudhary S, Ebner F, Hartmann S, Holden-Dye L, Kashyap SS, Krücken J, Martin RJ, Midha A, Nejsum P, Neveu C, Robertson AP, von Samson-Himmelstjerna G, Walker R, Wang J, Whitehead BJ, Williams PDE. Getting around the roundworms: Identifying knowledge gaps and research priorities for the ascarids. ADVANCES IN PARASITOLOGY 2024; 123:51-123. [PMID: 38448148 PMCID: PMC11143470 DOI: 10.1016/bs.apar.2023.12.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/08/2024]
Abstract
The ascarids are a large group of parasitic nematodes that infect a wide range of animal species. In humans, they cause neglected diseases of poverty; many animal parasites also cause zoonotic infections in people. Control measures include hygiene and anthelmintic treatments, but they are not always appropriate or effective and this creates a continuing need to search for better ways to reduce the human, welfare and economic costs of these infections. To this end, Le Studium Institute of Advanced Studies organized a two-day conference to identify major gaps in our understanding of ascarid parasites with a view to setting research priorities that would allow for improved control. The participants identified several key areas for future focus, comprising of advances in genomic analysis and the use of model organisms, especially Caenorhabditis elegans, a more thorough appreciation of the complexity of host-parasite (and parasite-parasite) communications, a search for novel anthelmintic drugs and the development of effective vaccines. The participants agreed to try and maintain informal links in the future that could form the basis for collaborative projects, and to co-operate to organize future meetings and workshops to promote ascarid research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adrian J Wolstenholme
- Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement (INRAE), Université de Tours, ISP, Nouzilly, France.
| | - Erik C Andersen
- Department of Biology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Shivani Choudhary
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, United States
| | - Friederike Ebner
- Department of Molecular Life Sciences, School of Life Sciences, Technische Universität München, Freising, Germany
| | - Susanne Hartmann
- Institute for Immunology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Lindy Holden-Dye
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom
| | - Sudhanva S Kashyap
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, United States
| | - Jürgen Krücken
- Institute for Parasitology and Tropical Veterinary Medicine, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Richard J Martin
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, United States
| | - Ankur Midha
- Institute for Immunology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Peter Nejsum
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Cedric Neveu
- Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement (INRAE), Université de Tours, ISP, Nouzilly, France
| | - Alan P Robertson
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, United States
| | | | - Robert Walker
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Southampton, Southampton, United Kingdom
| | - Jianbin Wang
- Department of Biochemistry & Cellular and Molecular Biology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, United States
| | | | - Paul D E Williams
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, United States
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Lee HK, Lee TY, Lee JI, Park KS, Yoon KH. Precise sensorimotor control impacts reproductive fitness of C. elegans in 3D environments. Neuroreport 2024; 35:123-128. [PMID: 38109381 PMCID: PMC10766090 DOI: 10.1097/wnr.0000000000001986] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2023] [Accepted: 11/28/2023] [Indexed: 12/20/2023]
Abstract
The ability of animals to sense and navigate towards relevant cues in complex and elaborate habitats is paramount for their survival and reproductive success. The nematode Caenorhabditis elegans uses a simple and elegant sensorimotor program to track odors in its environments. Whether this allows the worm to effectively navigate a complex environment and increase its evolutionary success has not been tested yet. We designed an assay to test whether C. elegans can track odors in a complex 3D environment. We then used a previously established 3D cultivation system to test whether defect in tracking odors to find food in a complex environment affected their brood size. We found that wild-type worms can accurately migrate toward a variety of odors in 3D. However, mutants of the muscarinic acetylcholine receptor GAR-3 which have a sensorimotor integration defect that results in a subtle navigational defect steering towards attractive odors, display decreased chemotaxis to the odor butanone not seen in the traditional 2D assay. We also show that the decreased ability to locate appetitive stimuli in 3D leads to reduced brood size not observed in the standard 2D culture conditions. Our study shows that mutations in genes previously overlooked in 2D conditions can have a significant impact in the natural habitat, and highlights the importance of considering the evolutionary selective pressures that have shaped the behavior, as well as the underlying genes and neural circuits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hee Kyung Lee
- Department of Physiology, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine
- Mitohormesis Research Center, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine
- Department of Global Medical Science, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine
| | - Tong Young Lee
- Division of Biological Science and Technology, College of Science and Technology, Yonsei University, Mirae Campus, Wonju, South Korea
| | - Jin I. Lee
- Division of Biological Science and Technology, College of Science and Technology, Yonsei University, Mirae Campus, Wonju, South Korea
| | - Kyu-Sang Park
- Department of Physiology, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine
- Mitohormesis Research Center, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine
- Department of Global Medical Science, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine
| | - Kyoung-hye Yoon
- Mitohormesis Research Center, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine
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van Eijnatten AL, Sterken MG, Kammenga JE, Nijveen H, Snoek BL. The effect of developmental variation on expression QTLs in a multi parental Caenorhabditis elegans population. G3 (BETHESDA, MD.) 2024; 14:jkad273. [PMID: 38015660 PMCID: PMC10849341 DOI: 10.1093/g3journal/jkad273] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2023] [Revised: 09/21/2023] [Accepted: 10/27/2023] [Indexed: 11/30/2023]
Abstract
Regulation of gene expression plays a crucial role in developmental processes and adaptation to changing environments. expression quantitative trait locus (eQTL) mapping is a technique used to study the genetic regulation of gene expression using the transcriptomes of recombinant inbred lines (RILs). Typically, the age of the inbred lines at the time of RNA sampling is carefully controlled. This is necessary because the developmental process causes changes in gene expression, complicating the interpretation of eQTL mapping experiments. However, due to genetics and variation in ambient micro-environments, organisms can differ in their "developmental age," even if they are of the same chronological age. As a result, eQTL patterns are affected by developmental variation in gene expression. The model organism Caenorhabditis elegans is particularly suited for studying the effect of developmental variation on eQTL mapping patterns. In a span of days, C. elegans transitions from embryo through 4 larval stages to adult while undergoing massive changes to its transcriptome. Here, we use C. elegans to investigate the effect of developmental age variation on eQTL patterns and present a normalization procedure. We used dynamical eQTL mapping, which includes the developmental age as a cofactor, to separate the variation in development from genotypic variation and explain variation in gene expression levels. We compare classical single marker eQTL mapping and dynamical eQTL mapping using RNA-seq data of ∼200 multi-parental RILs of C. elegans. The results show that (1) many eQTLs are caused by developmental variation, (2) most trans-bands are developmental QTLs, and (3) dynamical eQTL mapping detects additional eQTLs not found with classical eQTL mapping. We recommend that correction for variation in developmental age should be strongly considered in eQTL mapping studies given the large impact of processes like development on the transcriptome.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abraham L van Eijnatten
- Theoretical Biology and Bioinformatics, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8,3584 CH Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Mark G Sterken
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University, Droevendaalsesteeg 1, 6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Jan E Kammenga
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University, Droevendaalsesteeg 1, 6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Harm Nijveen
- Laboratory of Bioinformatics, Wageningen University, Droevendaalsesteeg 1, Radix West, Building 107, 6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Basten L Snoek
- Theoretical Biology and Bioinformatics, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8,3584 CH Utrecht, The Netherlands
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Yang Z, Zhao A, Teng M, Li M, Wang H, Wang X, Liu Z, Zeng Q, Hu L, Hu J, Bao Z, Huang X. Signatures of selection in Mulinia lateralis underpinning its rapid adaptation to laboratory conditions. Evol Appl 2024; 17:e13657. [PMID: 38357357 PMCID: PMC10866071 DOI: 10.1111/eva.13657] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2023] [Revised: 01/17/2024] [Accepted: 01/26/2024] [Indexed: 02/16/2024] Open
Abstract
The dwarf surf clam, Mulinia lateralis, is considered as a model species for bivalves because of its rapid growth and short generation time. Recently, successful breeding of this species for multiple generations in our laboratory revealed its acquisition of adaptive advantages during artificial breeding. In this study, 310 individuals from five different generations were genotyped with 22,196 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) with the aim of uncovering the genetic basis of their adaptation to laboratory conditions. Results revealed that M. lateralis consistently maintained high genetic diversity across generations, characterized by high observed heterozygosity (H o: 0.2733-0.2934) and low levels of inbreeding (F is: -0.0244-0.0261). Population analysis indicated low levels of genetic differentiation among generations of M. lateralis during artificial breeding (F st <0.05). In total, 316 genomic regions exhibited divergent selection, with 168 regions under positive selection. Furthermore, 227 candidate genes were identified in the positive selection regions, which have functions including growth, stress resistance, and reproduction. Notably, certain selection signatures with significantly higher F st value were detected in genes associated with male reproduction, such as GAL3ST1, IFT88, and TSSK2, which were significantly upregulated during artificial breeding. This suggests a potential role of sperm-associated genes in the rapid evolutionary response of M. lateralis to selection in laboratory conditions. Overall, our findings highlight the phenotypic and genetic changes, as well as selection signatures, in M. lateralis during artificial breeding. This contributes to understanding their adaptation to laboratory conditions and underscores the potential for using this species to explore the adaptive evolution of bivalves.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zujing Yang
- MOE Key Laboratory of Marine Genetics and Breeding, College of Marine Life SciencesOcean University of ChinaQingdaoChina
| | - Ang Zhao
- MOE Key Laboratory of Marine Genetics and Breeding, College of Marine Life SciencesOcean University of ChinaQingdaoChina
| | - Mingxuan Teng
- MOE Key Laboratory of Marine Genetics and Breeding, College of Marine Life SciencesOcean University of ChinaQingdaoChina
| | - Moli Li
- MOE Key Laboratory of Marine Genetics and Breeding, College of Marine Life SciencesOcean University of ChinaQingdaoChina
| | - Hao Wang
- MOE Key Laboratory of Marine Genetics and Breeding, College of Marine Life SciencesOcean University of ChinaQingdaoChina
| | - Xuefeng Wang
- MOE Key Laboratory of Marine Genetics and Breeding, College of Marine Life SciencesOcean University of ChinaQingdaoChina
| | - Zhi Liu
- MOE Key Laboratory of Marine Genetics and Breeding, College of Marine Life SciencesOcean University of ChinaQingdaoChina
| | - Qifan Zeng
- MOE Key Laboratory of Marine Genetics and Breeding, College of Marine Life SciencesOcean University of ChinaQingdaoChina
- Laboratory of Tropical Marine Germplasm Resources and Breeding EngineeringSanya Oceanographic Institution, Ocean University of ChinaSanyaChina
| | - Liping Hu
- MOE Key Laboratory of Marine Genetics and Breeding, College of Marine Life SciencesOcean University of ChinaQingdaoChina
- Yantai Marine Economic Research InstituteYantaiChina
| | - Jingjie Hu
- MOE Key Laboratory of Marine Genetics and Breeding, College of Marine Life SciencesOcean University of ChinaQingdaoChina
- Laboratory of Tropical Marine Germplasm Resources and Breeding EngineeringSanya Oceanographic Institution, Ocean University of ChinaSanyaChina
| | - Zhenmin Bao
- MOE Key Laboratory of Marine Genetics and Breeding, College of Marine Life SciencesOcean University of ChinaQingdaoChina
- Laboratory of Tropical Marine Germplasm Resources and Breeding EngineeringSanya Oceanographic Institution, Ocean University of ChinaSanyaChina
- Laboratory for Marine Fisheries Science and Food Production Processes, Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and TechnologyQingdaoChina
| | - Xiaoting Huang
- MOE Key Laboratory of Marine Genetics and Breeding, College of Marine Life SciencesOcean University of ChinaQingdaoChina
- Laboratory for Marine Fisheries Science and Food Production Processes, Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and TechnologyQingdaoChina
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Soni P, Edwards H, Anupom T, Rahman M, Lesanpezeshki L, Blawzdziewicz J, Cope H, Gharahdaghi N, Scott D, Toh LS, Williams PM, Etheridge T, Szewczyk N, Willis CRG, Vanapalli SA. Spaceflight Induces Strength Decline in Caenorhabditis elegans. Cells 2023; 12:2470. [PMID: 37887314 PMCID: PMC10605753 DOI: 10.3390/cells12202470] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2023] [Revised: 10/14/2023] [Accepted: 10/15/2023] [Indexed: 10/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Background: Understanding and countering the well-established negative health consequences of spaceflight remains a primary challenge preventing safe deep space exploration. Targeted/personalized therapeutics are at the forefront of space medicine strategies, and cross-species molecular signatures now define the 'typical' spaceflight response. However, a lack of direct genotype-phenotype associations currently limits the robustness and, therefore, the therapeutic utility of putative mechanisms underpinning pathological changes in flight. Methods: We employed the worm Caenorhabditis elegans as a validated model of space biology, combined with 'NemaFlex-S' microfluidic devices for assessing animal strength production as one of the most reproducible physiological responses to spaceflight. Wild-type and dys-1 (BZ33) strains (a Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) model for comparing predisposed muscle weak animals) were cultured on the International Space Station in chemically defined media before loading second-generation gravid adults into NemaFlex-S devices to assess individual animal strength. These same cultures were then frozen on orbit before returning to Earth for next-generation sequencing transcriptomic analysis. Results: Neuromuscular strength was lower in flight versus ground controls (16.6% decline, p < 0.05), with dys-1 significantly more (23% less strength, p < 0.01) affected than wild types. The transcriptional gene ontology signatures characterizing both strains of weaker animals in flight strongly corroborate previous results across species, enriched for upregulated stress response pathways and downregulated mitochondrial and cytoskeletal processes. Functional gene cluster analysis extended this to implicate decreased neuronal function, including abnormal calcium handling and acetylcholine signaling, in space-induced strength declines under the predicted control of UNC-89 and DAF-19 transcription factors. Finally, gene modules specifically altered in dys-1 animals in flight again cluster to neuronal/neuromuscular pathways, suggesting strength loss in DMD comprises a strong neuronal component that predisposes these animals to exacerbated strength loss in space. Conclusions: Highly reproducible gene signatures are strongly associated with space-induced neuromuscular strength loss across species and neuronal changes in calcium/acetylcholine signaling require further study. These results promote targeted medical efforts towards and provide an in vivo model for safely sending animals and people into deep space in the near future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Purushottam Soni
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX 79409, USA; (P.S.); (M.R.); (L.L.)
| | - Hunter Edwards
- Department of Biological Sciences, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX 79409, USA;
| | - Taslim Anupom
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX 79409, USA;
| | - Mizanur Rahman
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX 79409, USA; (P.S.); (M.R.); (L.L.)
| | - Leila Lesanpezeshki
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX 79409, USA; (P.S.); (M.R.); (L.L.)
| | - Jerzy Blawzdziewicz
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX 79409, USA;
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX 79409, USA
| | - Henry Cope
- School of Medicine, University of Nottingham, Derby DE22 3DT, UK; (H.C.); (N.G.)
| | - Nima Gharahdaghi
- School of Medicine, University of Nottingham, Derby DE22 3DT, UK; (H.C.); (N.G.)
| | - Daniel Scott
- School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, Nottingham NG7 2UH, UK;
| | - Li Shean Toh
- School of Pharmacy, University of Nottingham, Nottingham NG7 2RD, UK; (L.S.T.); (P.M.W.)
| | - Philip M. Williams
- School of Pharmacy, University of Nottingham, Nottingham NG7 2RD, UK; (L.S.T.); (P.M.W.)
| | - Timothy Etheridge
- Department of Sport and Health Sciences, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter EX1 2LU, UK;
| | - Nathaniel Szewczyk
- School of Medicine, University of Nottingham, Derby DE22 3DT, UK; (H.C.); (N.G.)
- Ohio Musculoskeletal and Neurological Institute, Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine, Ohio University, Athens, OH 45701, USA
| | - Craig R. G. Willis
- School of Chemistry and Biosciences, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Bradford, Bradford BD7 1DP, UK;
| | - Siva A. Vanapalli
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX 79409, USA; (P.S.); (M.R.); (L.L.)
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11
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Sepulveda NB, Chen D, Petrella LN. Moderate heat stress-induced sterility is due to motility defects and reduced mating drive in Caenorhabditis elegans males. J Exp Biol 2023; 226:jeb245546. [PMID: 37724024 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.245546] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2023] [Accepted: 09/11/2023] [Indexed: 09/20/2023]
Abstract
Moderate heat stress negatively impacts fertility in sexually reproducing organisms at sublethal temperatures. These moderate heat stress effects are typically more pronounced in males. In some species, sperm production, quality and motility are the primary cause of male infertility during moderate heat stress. However, this is not the case in the model nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, where changes in mating behavior are the primary cause of fertility loss. We report that heat-stressed C. elegans males are more motivated to locate and remain on food and less motivated to leave food to find and mate with hermaphrodites than their unstressed counterparts. Heat-stressed males also demonstrate a reduction in motility that likely limits their ability to mate. Collectively these changes result in a dramatic reduction in reproductive success. The reduction in mate-searching behavior may be partially due to increased expression of the chemoreceptor odr-10 in the AWA sensory neurons, which is a marker for starvation in males. These results demonstrate that moderate heat stress may have profound and previously underappreciated effects on reproductive behaviors. As climate change continues to raise global temperatures, it will be imperative to understand how moderate heat stress affects behavioral and motility elements critical to reproduction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas B Sepulveda
- Department of Biological Sciences, Marquette University, 1428 W Clybourn St., Milwaukee, WI 53217, USA
| | - Donald Chen
- Department of Biological Sciences, Marquette University, 1428 W Clybourn St., Milwaukee, WI 53217, USA
| | - Lisa N Petrella
- Department of Biological Sciences, Marquette University, 1428 W Clybourn St., Milwaukee, WI 53217, USA
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12
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Yeon J, Porwal C, McGrath PT, Sengupta P. Identification of a spontaneously arising variant affecting thermotaxis behavior in a recombinant inbred Caenorhabditis elegans line. G3 (BETHESDA, MD.) 2023; 13:jkad186. [PMID: 37572357 PMCID: PMC10542565 DOI: 10.1093/g3journal/jkad186] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2023] [Revised: 06/26/2023] [Accepted: 08/02/2023] [Indexed: 08/14/2023]
Abstract
Analyses of the contributions of genetic variants in wild strains to phenotypic differences have led to a more complete description of the pathways underlying cellular functions. Causal loci are typically identified via interbreeding of strains with distinct phenotypes in order to establish recombinant inbred lines (RILs). Since the generation of RILs requires growth for multiple generations, their genomes may contain not only different combinations of parental alleles but also genetic changes that arose de novo during the establishment of these lines. Here, we report that in the course of generating RILs between Caenorhabditis elegans strains that exhibit distinct thermotaxis behavioral phenotypes, we identified spontaneously arising variants in the ttx-1 locus. ttx-1 encodes the terminal selector factor for the AFD thermosensory neurons, and loss-of-function mutations in ttx-1 abolish thermotaxis behaviors. The identified genetic changes in ttx-1 in the RIL are predicted to decrease ttx-1 function in part via specifically affecting a subset of AFD-expressed ttx-1 isoforms. Introduction of the relevant missense mutation in the laboratory C. elegans strain via gene editing recapitulates the thermotaxis behavioral defects of the RIL. Our results suggest that spontaneously occurring genomic changes in RILs may complicate identification of loci contributing to phenotypic variation, but that these mutations may nevertheless lead to the identification of important causal molecules and mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jihye Yeon
- Department of Biology, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA 02454, USA
| | - Charmi Porwal
- Department of Biology, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA 02454, USA
| | - Patrick T McGrath
- School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA
| | - Piali Sengupta
- Department of Biology, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA 02454, USA
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13
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Hwang HY, Wang J. Effect of recombination on genetic diversity of Caenorhabditis elegans. Sci Rep 2023; 13:16425. [PMID: 37777524 PMCID: PMC10542817 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-42600-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2022] [Accepted: 09/12/2023] [Indexed: 10/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Greater molecular divergence and genetic diversity are present in regions of high recombination in many species. Studies describing the correlation between variant abundance and recombination rate have long focused on recombination in the context of linked selection models, whereby interference between linked sites under positive or negative selection reduces genetic diversity in regions of low recombination. Here, we show that indels, especially those of intermediate sizes, are enriched relative to single nucleotide polymorphisms in regions of high recombination in C. elegans. To explain this phenomenon, we reintroduce an alternative model that emphasizes the mutagenic effect of recombination. To extend the analysis, we examine the variants with a phylogenetic context and discuss how different models could be examined together. The number of variants generated by recombination in natural populations could be substantial including possibly the majority of some indel subtypes. Our work highlights the potential importance of a mutagenic effect of recombination, which could have a significant role in the shaping of natural genetic diversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ho-Yon Hwang
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Department of Neuroscience, School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21205, USA.
| | - Jiou Wang
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Department of Neuroscience, School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21205, USA.
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14
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Palka JK, Dyba A, Brzozowska J, Antoł W, Sychta K, Prokop ZM. Evolution of fertilization ability in obligatorily outcrossing populations of Caenorhabditis elegans. PeerJ 2023; 11:e15825. [PMID: 37701823 PMCID: PMC10494835 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.15825] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2023] [Accepted: 07/10/2023] [Indexed: 09/14/2023] Open
Abstract
In species reproducing by selfing, the traits connected with outcrossing typically undergo degeneration, a phenomenon called selfing syndrome. In Caenorhabditis elegans nematodes, selfing syndrome affects many traits involved in mating, rendering cross-fertilization highly inefficient. In this study, we investigated the evolution of cross-fertilization efficiency in populations genetically modified to reproduce by obligatory outcrossing. Following the genetic modification, replicate obligatorily outcrossing were maintained for over 100 generations, at either optimal (20 °C) or elevated (24 °C) temperatures, as a part of a broader experimental evolution program. Subsequently, fertilization rates were assayed in the evolving populations, as well as their ancestors who had the obligatory outcrossing introduced but did not go through experimental evolution. Fertilization effectivity was measured by tracking the fractions of fertilized females in age-synchronized populations, through 8 h since reaching adulthood. In order to check the robustness of our measurements, each evolving population was assayed in two or three independent replicate blocks. Indeed, we found high levels of among-block variability in the fertilization trajectories, and in the estimates of divergence between evolving populations and their ancestors. We also identified five populations which appear to have evolved increased fertilization efficiency, relative to their ancestors. However, due to the abovementioned high variability, this set of populations should be treated as candidate, with further replications needed to either confirm or disprove their divergence from ancestors. Furthermore, we also discuss additional observations we have made concerning fertilization trajectories.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joanna K. Palka
- Institute of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Jagiellonian University in Cracow, Cracow, Poland
| | - Alicja Dyba
- Institute of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Jagiellonian University in Cracow, Cracow, Poland
| | - Julia Brzozowska
- Institute of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Jagiellonian University in Cracow, Cracow, Poland
| | - Weronika Antoł
- Institute of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Jagiellonian University in Cracow, Cracow, Poland
| | - Karolina Sychta
- Institute of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Jagiellonian University in Cracow, Cracow, Poland
| | - Zofia M. Prokop
- Institute of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Jagiellonian University in Cracow, Cracow, Poland
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15
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Moya ND, Stevens L, Miller IR, Sokol CE, Galindo JL, Bardas AD, Koh ESH, Rozenich J, Yeo C, Xu M, Andersen EC. Novel and improved Caenorhabditis briggsae gene models generated by community curation. BMC Genomics 2023; 24:486. [PMID: 37626289 PMCID: PMC10463891 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-023-09582-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2023] [Accepted: 08/12/2023] [Indexed: 08/27/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The nematode Caenorhabditis briggsae has been used as a model in comparative genomics studies with Caenorhabditis elegans because of their striking morphological and behavioral similarities. However, the potential of C. briggsae for comparative studies is limited by the quality of its genome resources. The genome resources for the C. briggsae laboratory strain AF16 have not been developed to the same extent as C. elegans. The recent publication of a new chromosome-level reference genome for QX1410, a C. briggsae wild strain closely related to AF16, has provided the first step to bridge the gap between C. elegans and C. briggsae genome resources. Currently, the QX1410 gene models consist of software-derived gene predictions that contain numerous errors in their structure and coding sequences. In this study, a team of researchers manually inspected over 21,000 gene models and underlying transcriptomic data to repair software-derived errors. RESULTS We designed a detailed workflow to train a team of nine students to manually curate gene models using RNA read alignments. We manually inspected the gene models, proposed corrections to the coding sequences of over 8,000 genes, and modeled thousands of putative isoforms and untranslated regions. We exploited the conservation of protein sequence length between C. briggsae and C. elegans to quantify the improvement in protein-coding gene model quality and showed that manual curation led to substantial improvements in the protein sequence length accuracy of QX1410 genes. Additionally, collinear alignment analysis between the QX1410 and AF16 genomes revealed over 1,800 genes affected by spurious duplications and inversions in the AF16 genome that are now resolved in the QX1410 genome. CONCLUSIONS Community-based, manual curation using transcriptome data is an effective approach to improve the quality of software-derived protein-coding genes. The detailed protocols provided in this work can be useful for future large-scale manual curation projects in other species. Our manual curation efforts have brought the QX1410 gene models to a comparable level of quality as the extensively curated AF16 gene models. The improved genome resources for C. briggsae provide reliable tools for the study of Caenorhabditis biology and other related nematodes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicolas D Moya
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, 4619 Silverman Hall 2205 Tech Drive, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA
- Interdisciplinary Biological Sciences Program, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA
| | - Lewis Stevens
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, 4619 Silverman Hall 2205 Tech Drive, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA
- Tree of Life, Wellcome Sanger Institute, Cambridge, UK
| | - Isabella R Miller
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, 4619 Silverman Hall 2205 Tech Drive, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA
| | - Chloe E Sokol
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, 4619 Silverman Hall 2205 Tech Drive, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA
| | - Joseph L Galindo
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, 4619 Silverman Hall 2205 Tech Drive, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA
| | - Alexandra D Bardas
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, 4619 Silverman Hall 2205 Tech Drive, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA
| | - Edward S H Koh
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, 4619 Silverman Hall 2205 Tech Drive, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA
| | - Justine Rozenich
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, 4619 Silverman Hall 2205 Tech Drive, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA
| | - Cassia Yeo
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, 4619 Silverman Hall 2205 Tech Drive, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA
| | - Maryanne Xu
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, 4619 Silverman Hall 2205 Tech Drive, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA
| | - Erik C Andersen
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, 4619 Silverman Hall 2205 Tech Drive, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA.
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16
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Craig RJ, Gallaher SD, Shu S, Salomé PA, Jenkins JW, Blaby-Haas CE, Purvine SO, O’Donnell S, Barry K, Grimwood J, Strenkert D, Kropat J, Daum C, Yoshinaga Y, Goodstein DM, Vallon O, Schmutz J, Merchant SS. The Chlamydomonas Genome Project, version 6: Reference assemblies for mating-type plus and minus strains reveal extensive structural mutation in the laboratory. THE PLANT CELL 2023; 35:644-672. [PMID: 36562730 PMCID: PMC9940879 DOI: 10.1093/plcell/koac347] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 27.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2022] [Revised: 10/12/2022] [Accepted: 12/16/2022] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
Five versions of the Chlamydomonas reinhardtii reference genome have been produced over the last two decades. Here we present version 6, bringing significant advances in assembly quality and structural annotations. PacBio-based chromosome-level assemblies for two laboratory strains, CC-503 and CC-4532, provide resources for the plus and minus mating-type alleles. We corrected major misassemblies in previous versions and validated our assemblies via linkage analyses. Contiguity increased over ten-fold and >80% of filled gaps are within genes. We used Iso-Seq and deep RNA-seq datasets to improve structural annotations, and updated gene symbols and textual annotation of functionally characterized genes via extensive manual curation. We discovered that the cell wall-less classical reference strain CC-503 exhibits genomic instability potentially caused by deletion of the helicase RECQ3, with major structural mutations identified that affect >100 genes. We therefore present the CC-4532 assembly as the primary reference, although this strain also carries unique structural mutations and is experiencing rapid proliferation of a Gypsy retrotransposon. We expect all laboratory strains to harbor gene-disrupting mutations, which should be considered when interpreting and comparing experimental results. Collectively, the resources presented here herald a new era of Chlamydomonas genomics and will provide the foundation for continued research in this important reference organism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rory J Craig
- California Institute for Quantitative Biosciences, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, USA
- Institute of Ecology and Evolution, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 3FL, UK
| | - Sean D Gallaher
- California Institute for Quantitative Biosciences, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, USA
| | - Shengqiang Shu
- United States Department of Energy, Joint Genome Institute, Berkeley, California 94720, USA
| | - Patrice A Salomé
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095, USA
- Institute for Genomics and Proteomics, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095, USA
| | - Jerry W Jenkins
- HudsonAlpha Genome Sequencing Center, HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology, Huntsville, Alabama 35806, USA
| | - Crysten E Blaby-Haas
- The Molecular Foundry, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, USA
| | - Samuel O Purvine
- Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, Washington 99354, USA
| | - Samuel O’Donnell
- Laboratory of Computational and Quantitative Biology, UMR 7238, CNRS, Institut de Biologie Paris-Seine, Sorbonne Université, Paris 75005, France
| | - Kerrie Barry
- United States Department of Energy, Joint Genome Institute, Berkeley, California 94720, USA
| | - Jane Grimwood
- HudsonAlpha Genome Sequencing Center, HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology, Huntsville, Alabama 35806, USA
| | - Daniela Strenkert
- California Institute for Quantitative Biosciences, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, USA
| | - Janette Kropat
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095, USA
| | - Chris Daum
- United States Department of Energy, Joint Genome Institute, Berkeley, California 94720, USA
| | - Yuko Yoshinaga
- United States Department of Energy, Joint Genome Institute, Berkeley, California 94720, USA
| | - David M Goodstein
- United States Department of Energy, Joint Genome Institute, Berkeley, California 94720, USA
| | - Olivier Vallon
- Unité Mixte de Recherche 7141, CNRS, Institut de Biologie Physico-Chimique, Sorbonne Université, Paris 75005, France
| | - Jeremy Schmutz
- United States Department of Energy, Joint Genome Institute, Berkeley, California 94720, USA
- HudsonAlpha Genome Sequencing Center, HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology, Huntsville, Alabama 35806, USA
| | - Sabeeha S Merchant
- California Institute for Quantitative Biosciences, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, USA
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, USA
- Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720, USA
- Division of Environmental Genomics and Systems Biology, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, USA
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17
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Mallard F, Noble L, Baer CF, Teotónio H. Variation in mutational (co)variances. G3 (BETHESDA, MD.) 2023; 13:jkac335. [PMID: 36548954 PMCID: PMC9911065 DOI: 10.1093/g3journal/jkac335] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2022] [Revised: 06/10/2022] [Accepted: 12/06/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Because of pleiotropy, mutations affect the expression and inheritance of multiple traits and, together with selection, are expected to shape standing genetic covariances between traits and eventual phenotypic divergence between populations. It is therefore important to find if the M matrix, describing mutational variances of each trait and covariances between traits, varies between genotypes. We here estimate the M matrix for six locomotion behavior traits in lines of two genotypes of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans that accumulated mutations in a nearly neutral manner for 250 generations. We find significant mutational variance along at least one phenotypic dimension of the M matrices, but neither their size nor their orientation had detectable differences between genotypes. The number of generations of mutation accumulation, or the number of MA lines measured, was likely insufficient to sample enough mutations and detect potentially small differences between the two M matrices. We then tested if the M matrices were similar to one G matrix describing the standing genetic (co)variances of a population derived by the hybridization of several genotypes, including the two measured for M, and domesticated to a lab-defined environment for 140 generations. We found that the M and G were different because the genetic covariances caused by mutational pleiotropy in the two genotypes are smaller than those caused by linkage disequilibrium in the lab population. We further show that M matrices differed in their alignment with the lab population G matrix. If generalized to other founder genotypes of the lab population, these observations indicate that selection does not shape the evolution of the M matrix for locomotion behavior in the short-term of a few tens to hundreds of generations and suggests that the hybridization of C. elegans genotypes allows selection on new phenotypic dimensions of locomotion behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- François Mallard
- Institut de Biologie de l’École Normale Supérieure, PSL Research University, CNRS UMR 8197, Inserm U1024, F-75005 Paris, France
| | - Luke Noble
- Institut de Biologie de l’École Normale Supérieure, PSL Research University, CNRS UMR 8197, Inserm U1024, F-75005 Paris, France
| | - Charles F Baer
- Department of Biology, University of Florida Genetics Institute, University of Florida, Gainsville, FL 32611, USA
| | - Henrique Teotónio
- Institut de Biologie de l’École Normale Supérieure, PSL Research University, CNRS UMR 8197, Inserm U1024, F-75005 Paris, France
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18
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Li Y, Li P, Zhang W, Zheng X, Gu Q. New Wine in Old Bottle: Caenorhabditis Elegans in Food Science. FOOD REVIEWS INTERNATIONAL 2023. [DOI: 10.1080/87559129.2023.2172429] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/10/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Yonglu Li
- School of Food Science and Biotechnology, Zhejiang Gongshang University, Hangzhou, People’s Republic of China
| | - Ping Li
- School of Food Science and Biotechnology, Zhejiang Gongshang University, Hangzhou, People’s Republic of China
| | - Weixi Zhang
- Department of Food Science and Nutrition; Zhejiang Key Laboratory for Agro-food Processing; Fuli Institute of Food Science; National Engineering Laboratory of Intelligent Food Technology and Equipment, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, People’s Republic of China
| | - Xiaodong Zheng
- Department of Food Science and Nutrition; Zhejiang Key Laboratory for Agro-food Processing; Fuli Institute of Food Science; National Engineering Laboratory of Intelligent Food Technology and Equipment, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, People’s Republic of China
| | - Qing Gu
- School of Food Science and Biotechnology, Zhejiang Gongshang University, Hangzhou, People’s Republic of China
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19
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Antoł W, Byszko J, Dyba A, Palka J, Babik W, Prokop Z. No detectable changes in reproductive behaviour of Caenorhabditis elegans males after 97 generations under obligatory outcrossing. PeerJ 2023; 11:e14572. [PMID: 36643640 PMCID: PMC9838211 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.14572] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2022] [Accepted: 11/28/2022] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
In Caenorhabditis elegans, a species reproducing mostly via self-fertilization, numerous signatures of selfing syndrome are observed, including differences in reproductive behaviour compared to related obligatory outcrossing species. In this study we investigated the effect of nearly 100 generations of obligatory outcrossing on several characteristics of male reproductive behaviour. A genetically uniform ancestral population carrying a mutation changing the reproductive system to obligatory outcrossing was split into four independent populations. We predicted that the transition from the natural reproductive system, where males were extremely rare, to obligatory outcrossing, where males comprise 50% of the population and are necessary for reproduction, will increase the selection pressure on higher effectiveness of mating behaviour. Several characteristics of male mating behaviour during a 15 min interaction as well as copulation success were compared between the ancestral and evolved populations. No significant differences in male mating behaviour or fertilization success were detected between generations 1 and 97 of obligatory outcrossing populations. We found, however, that longer contact with females increased chances of successful copulation, although this effect did not differ between populations. We conclude that either selection acting on male mating behaviour has not been strong enough, or mutational input of new adaptive variants has not been sufficient to cause noticeable behavioural differences after 97 generations of evolution starting from genetically uniform population.
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20
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Ceron-Noriega A, Almeida MV, Levin M, Butter F. Nematode gene annotation by machine-learning-assisted proteotranscriptomics enables proteome-wide evolutionary analysis. Genome Res 2023; 33:112-128. [PMID: 36653121 PMCID: PMC9977148 DOI: 10.1101/gr.277070.122] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2022] [Accepted: 11/18/2022] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
Nematodes encompass more than 24,000 described species, which were discovered in almost every ecological habitat, and make up >80% of metazoan taxonomic diversity in soils. The last common ancestor of nematodes is believed to date back to ∼650-750 million years, generating a large and phylogenetically diverse group to be explored. However, for most species high-quality gene annotations are incomprehensive or missing. Combining short-read RNA sequencing with mass spectrometry-based proteomics and machine-learning quality control in an approach called proteotranscriptomics, we improve gene annotations for nine genome-sequenced nematode species and provide new gene annotations for three additional species without genome assemblies. Emphasizing the sensitivity of our methodology, we provide evidence for two hitherto undescribed genes in the model organism Caenorhabditis elegans Extensive phylogenetic systems analysis using this comprehensive proteome annotation provides new insights into evolutionary processes of this metazoan group.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Michal Levin
- Institute of Molecular Biology (IMB), 55128 Mainz, Germany
| | - Falk Butter
- Institute of Molecular Biology (IMB), 55128 Mainz, Germany
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21
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Pantazis CB, Yang A, Lara E, McDonough JA, Blauwendraat C, Peng L, Oguro H, Kanaujiya J, Zou J, Sebesta D, Pratt G, Cross E, Blockwick J, Buxton P, Kinner-Bibeau L, Medura C, Tompkins C, Hughes S, Santiana M, Faghri F, Nalls MA, Vitale D, Ballard S, Qi YA, Ramos DM, Anderson KM, Stadler J, Narayan P, Papademetriou J, Reilly L, Nelson MP, Aggarwal S, Rosen LU, Kirwan P, Pisupati V, Coon SL, Scholz SW, Priebe T, Öttl M, Dong J, Meijer M, Janssen LJM, Lourenco VS, van der Kant R, Crusius D, Paquet D, Raulin AC, Bu G, Held A, Wainger BJ, Gabriele RMC, Casey JM, Wray S, Abu-Bonsrah D, Parish CL, Beccari MS, Cleveland DW, Li E, Rose IVL, Kampmann M, Calatayud Aristoy C, Verstreken P, Heinrich L, Chen MY, Schüle B, Dou D, Holzbaur ELF, Zanellati MC, Basundra R, Deshmukh M, Cohen S, Khanna R, Raman M, Nevin ZS, Matia M, Van Lent J, Timmerman V, Conklin BR, Johnson Chase K, Zhang K, Funes S, Bosco DA, Erlebach L, Welzer M, Kronenberg-Versteeg D, Lyu G, Arenas E, Coccia E, Sarrafha L, Ahfeldt T, Marioni JC, Skarnes WC, Cookson MR, Ward ME, Merkle FT. A reference human induced pluripotent stem cell line for large-scale collaborative studies. Cell Stem Cell 2022; 29:1685-1702.e22. [PMID: 36459969 PMCID: PMC9782786 DOI: 10.1016/j.stem.2022.11.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 32.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2021] [Revised: 10/07/2022] [Accepted: 11/07/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
Abstract
Human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) lines are a powerful tool for studying development and disease, but the considerable phenotypic variation between lines makes it challenging to replicate key findings and integrate data across research groups. To address this issue, we sub-cloned candidate human iPSC lines and deeply characterized their genetic properties using whole genome sequencing, their genomic stability upon CRISPR-Cas9-based gene editing, and their phenotypic properties including differentiation to commonly used cell types. These studies identified KOLF2.1J as an all-around well-performing iPSC line. We then shared KOLF2.1J with groups around the world who tested its performance in head-to-head comparisons with their own preferred iPSC lines across a diverse range of differentiation protocols and functional assays. On the strength of these findings, we have made KOLF2.1J and its gene-edited derivative clones readily accessible to promote the standardization required for large-scale collaborative science in the stem cell field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caroline B Pantazis
- Center for Alzheimer's and Related Dementias (CARD), National Institute on Aging and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Andrian Yang
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory, European Bioinformatics Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SD, UK; Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK; Wellcome Trust - Medical Research Council Institute of Metabolic Science, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 0QQ, UK; Wellcome Trust - Medical Research Council Cambridge Stem Cell Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 0AW, UK
| | - Erika Lara
- Center for Alzheimer's and Related Dementias (CARD), National Institute on Aging and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | | | - Cornelis Blauwendraat
- Center for Alzheimer's and Related Dementias (CARD), National Institute on Aging and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA; Laboratory of Neurogenetics, National Institute on Aging, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Lirong Peng
- Center for Alzheimer's and Related Dementias (CARD), National Institute on Aging and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA; Data Tecnica International LLC, Washington, DC, USA; Integrated Research Facility, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Frederick, MD, USA
| | - Hideyuki Oguro
- The Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine, Farmington, CT, USA; Department of Cell Biology, University of Connecticut Health Center, Farmington, CT, USA
| | - Jitendra Kanaujiya
- The Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine, Farmington, CT, USA; Department of Cell Biology, University of Connecticut Health Center, Farmington, CT, USA
| | - Jizhong Zou
- iPS Cell Core Facility, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Marianita Santiana
- Center for Alzheimer's and Related Dementias (CARD), National Institute on Aging and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Faraz Faghri
- Center for Alzheimer's and Related Dementias (CARD), National Institute on Aging and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA; Laboratory of Neurogenetics, National Institute on Aging, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA; Data Tecnica International LLC, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Mike A Nalls
- Center for Alzheimer's and Related Dementias (CARD), National Institute on Aging and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA; Laboratory of Neurogenetics, National Institute on Aging, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA; Data Tecnica International LLC, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Daniel Vitale
- Center for Alzheimer's and Related Dementias (CARD), National Institute on Aging and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA; Laboratory of Neurogenetics, National Institute on Aging, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA; Data Tecnica International LLC, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Shannon Ballard
- Center for Alzheimer's and Related Dementias (CARD), National Institute on Aging and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA; Laboratory of Neurogenetics, National Institute on Aging, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA; Data Tecnica International LLC, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Yue A Qi
- Center for Alzheimer's and Related Dementias (CARD), National Institute on Aging and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Daniel M Ramos
- Center for Alzheimer's and Related Dementias (CARD), National Institute on Aging and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Kailyn M Anderson
- Center for Alzheimer's and Related Dementias (CARD), National Institute on Aging and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Julia Stadler
- Center for Alzheimer's and Related Dementias (CARD), National Institute on Aging and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Priyanka Narayan
- Center for Alzheimer's and Related Dementias (CARD), National Institute on Aging and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA; Genetics and Biochemistry Branch, NIDDK, NINDS, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20814, USA
| | - Jason Papademetriou
- Center for Alzheimer's and Related Dementias (CARD), National Institute on Aging and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Luke Reilly
- Center for Alzheimer's and Related Dementias (CARD), National Institute on Aging and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Matthew P Nelson
- Center for Alzheimer's and Related Dementias (CARD), National Institute on Aging and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Sanya Aggarwal
- Wellcome Trust - Medical Research Council Institute of Metabolic Science, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 0QQ, UK; Wellcome Trust - Medical Research Council Cambridge Stem Cell Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 0AW, UK
| | - Leah U Rosen
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory, European Bioinformatics Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SD, UK
| | - Peter Kirwan
- Wellcome Trust - Medical Research Council Institute of Metabolic Science, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 0QQ, UK; Wellcome Trust - Medical Research Council Cambridge Stem Cell Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 0AW, UK
| | - Venkat Pisupati
- Wellcome Trust - Medical Research Council Cambridge Stem Cell Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 0AW, UK; John van Geest Centre for Brain Repair, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 0PY, UK
| | - Steven L Coon
- Molecular Genomics Core, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Sonja W Scholz
- Neurodegenerative Diseases Research Unit, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, Bethesda, MD, USA; Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21287, USA
| | - Theresa Priebe
- Department of Functional Genomics, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Amsterdam Neuroscience, VU University Amsterdam de Boelelaan 1087, 1081 HV Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Miriam Öttl
- Department of Functional Genomics, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Amsterdam Neuroscience, VU University Amsterdam de Boelelaan 1087, 1081 HV Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Jian Dong
- Department of Functional Genomics, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Amsterdam Neuroscience, VU University Amsterdam de Boelelaan 1087, 1081 HV Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Marieke Meijer
- Department of Functional Genomics, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Amsterdam Neuroscience, VU University Amsterdam de Boelelaan 1087, 1081 HV Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Lara J M Janssen
- Department of Functional Genomics, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Amsterdam Neuroscience, VU University Amsterdam de Boelelaan 1087, 1081 HV Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Vanessa S Lourenco
- Department of Functional Genomics, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Amsterdam Neuroscience, VU University Amsterdam de Boelelaan 1087, 1081 HV Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Rik van der Kant
- Department of Functional Genomics, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Amsterdam Neuroscience, VU University Amsterdam de Boelelaan 1087, 1081 HV Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Alzheimer Center Amsterdam, Department of Neurology, Amsterdam Neuroscience, Amsterdam UMC, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Dennis Crusius
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany
| | - Dominik Paquet
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research, University Hospital, LMU Munich, 81377 Munich, Germany; Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology (SyNergy), 81377 Munich, Germany
| | | | - Guojun Bu
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL, USA
| | - Aaron Held
- Department of Neurology, Sean M. Healey & AMG Center for ALS, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Brian J Wainger
- Department of Neurology, Sean M. Healey & AMG Center for ALS, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Anesthesiology, Critical Care and Pain Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA; Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Cambridge, MA, USA; Broad Institute of Harvard University and MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Rebecca M C Gabriele
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, London WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Jackie M Casey
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, London WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Selina Wray
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, London WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Dad Abu-Bonsrah
- The Florey Institute of Neuroscience & Mental Health, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3052, Australia; Department of Pediatrics, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3052, Australia
| | - Clare L Parish
- The Florey Institute of Neuroscience & Mental Health, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3052, Australia
| | - Melinda S Beccari
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine and Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, University of California at San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Don W Cleveland
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine and Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, University of California at San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Emmy Li
- Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases and Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA; Chan Zuckerberg Biohub, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Indigo V L Rose
- Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases and Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA; Chan Zuckerberg Biohub, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Martin Kampmann
- Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases and Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA; Chan Zuckerberg Biohub, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Carles Calatayud Aristoy
- VIB-KU Leuven Center for Brain & Disease Research, 3000 Leuven, Belgium; KU Leuven, Department of Neurosciences, Leuven Brain Institute, Mission Lucidity, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Patrik Verstreken
- VIB-KU Leuven Center for Brain & Disease Research, 3000 Leuven, Belgium; KU Leuven, Department of Neurosciences, Leuven Brain Institute, Mission Lucidity, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Laurin Heinrich
- Department of Pathology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Max Y Chen
- Department of Pathology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Birgitt Schüle
- Department of Pathology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Dan Dou
- Department of Physiology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Erika L F Holzbaur
- Department of Physiology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Maria Clara Zanellati
- Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Richa Basundra
- Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Mohanish Deshmukh
- Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Sarah Cohen
- Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Richa Khanna
- Department of Developmental Molecular and Chemical Biology, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Malavika Raman
- Department of Developmental Molecular and Chemical Biology, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
| | | | | | - Jonas Van Lent
- Peripheral Neuropathy Research Group, Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Antwerp, Antwerp 2610, Belgium
| | - Vincent Timmerman
- Peripheral Neuropathy Research Group, Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Antwerp, Antwerp 2610, Belgium
| | | | | | - Ke Zhang
- Department of Neuroscience, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL, USA
| | - Salome Funes
- Department of Neurology, UMass Chan Medical School, Worcester, MA, USA
| | - Daryl A Bosco
- Department of Neurology, UMass Chan Medical School, Worcester, MA, USA
| | - Lena Erlebach
- Department of Cellular Neurology, Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany; German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Tübingen, Germany
| | - Marc Welzer
- Department of Cellular Neurology, Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany; German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Tübingen, Germany
| | - Deborah Kronenberg-Versteeg
- Department of Cellular Neurology, Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany; German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Tübingen, Germany
| | - Guochang Lyu
- Division of Molecular Neurobiology, Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Ernest Arenas
- Division of Molecular Neurobiology, Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Elena Coccia
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience; Departments of Neurology and Cell, Developmental and Regenerative Biology; Ronald M. Loeb Center for Alzheimer's Disease; Friedman Brain Institute; Black Family Stem Cell Institute at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Lily Sarrafha
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience; Departments of Neurology and Cell, Developmental and Regenerative Biology; Ronald M. Loeb Center for Alzheimer's Disease; Friedman Brain Institute; Black Family Stem Cell Institute at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Tim Ahfeldt
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience; Departments of Neurology and Cell, Developmental and Regenerative Biology; Ronald M. Loeb Center for Alzheimer's Disease; Friedman Brain Institute; Black Family Stem Cell Institute at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - John C Marioni
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory, European Bioinformatics Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SD, UK; Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK; Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, UK
| | | | - Mark R Cookson
- Center for Alzheimer's and Related Dementias (CARD), National Institute on Aging and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA; Laboratory of Neurogenetics, National Institute on Aging, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
| | - Michael E Ward
- Center for Alzheimer's and Related Dementias (CARD), National Institute on Aging and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
| | - Florian T Merkle
- Wellcome Trust - Medical Research Council Institute of Metabolic Science, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 0QQ, UK; Wellcome Trust - Medical Research Council Cambridge Stem Cell Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 0AW, UK.
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22
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Nyaanga J, Andersen EC. Linkage mapping reveals loci that underlie differences in Caenorhabditis elegans growth. G3 GENES|GENOMES|GENETICS 2022; 12:6663991. [PMID: 35961034 PMCID: PMC9526057 DOI: 10.1093/g3journal/jkac207] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2022] [Accepted: 08/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Growth rate and body size are complex traits that contribute to the fitness of organisms. The identification of loci that underlie differences in these traits provides insights into the genetic contributions to development. Leveraging Caenorhabditis elegans as a tractable metazoan model for quantitative genetics, we can identify genomic regions that underlie differences in growth. We measured postembryonic growth of the laboratory-adapted wild-type strain (N2) and a wild strain from Hawaii (CB4856) and found differences in body size. Using linkage mapping, we identified three distinct quantitative trait loci (QTL) on chromosomes IV, V, and X that are associated with variation in body growth. We further examined these growth-associated quantitative trait loci using chromosome substitution strains and near-isogenic lines and validated the chromosome X quantitative trait loci. In addition, we generated a list of candidate genes for the chromosome X quantitative trait loci. These genes could potentially contribute to differences in animal growth and should be evaluated in subsequent studies. Our work reveals the genetic architecture underlying animal growth variation and highlights the genetic complexity of growth in Caenorhabditis elegans natural populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joy Nyaanga
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University , Evanston, IL 60208, USA
- Interdisciplinary Biological Sciences Program, Northwestern University , Evanston, IL 60208, USA
| | - Erik C Andersen
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University , Evanston, IL 60208, USA
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23
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Widmayer SJ, Evans KS, Zdraljevic S, Andersen EC. Evaluating the power and limitations of genome-wide association studies in Caenorhabditis elegans. G3 (BETHESDA, MD.) 2022; 12:jkac114. [PMID: 35536194 PMCID: PMC9258552 DOI: 10.1093/g3journal/jkac114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2022] [Accepted: 05/02/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Quantitative genetics in Caenorhabditis elegans seeks to identify naturally segregating genetic variants that underlie complex traits. Genome-wide association studies scan the genome for individual genetic variants that are significantly correlated with phenotypic variation in a population, or quantitative trait loci. Genome-wide association studies are a popular choice for quantitative genetic analyses because the quantitative trait loci that are discovered segregate in natural populations. Despite numerous successful mapping experiments, the empirical performance of genome-wide association study has not, to date, been formally evaluated in C. elegans. We developed an open-source genome-wide association study pipeline called NemaScan and used a simulation-based approach to provide benchmarks of mapping performance in collections of wild C. elegans strains. Simulated trait heritability and complexity determined the spectrum of quantitative trait loci detected by genome-wide association studies. Power to detect smaller-effect quantitative trait loci increased with the number of strains sampled from the C. elegans Natural Diversity Resource. Population structure was a major driver of variation in mapping performance, with populations shaped by recent selection exhibiting significantly lower false discovery rates than populations composed of more divergent strains. We also recapitulated previous genome-wide association studies of experimentally validated quantitative trait variants. Our simulation-based evaluation of performance provides the community with critical context to pursue quantitative genetic studies using the C. elegans Natural Diversity Resource to elucidate the genetic basis of complex traits in C. elegans natural populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samuel J Widmayer
- Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA
| | - Kathryn S Evans
- Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA
| | - Stefan Zdraljevic
- Department of Biological Chemistry, University of California—Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Erik C Andersen
- Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA
- Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL 60611, USA
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24
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Antoł W, Palka JK, Błażejowska A, Sychta K, Kosztyła P, Labocha MK, Prokop ZM. Evolution of Reproductive Efficiency in Caenorhabditis elegans Under Obligatory Outcrossing. Evol Biol 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s11692-022-09572-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
AbstractRadical shifts in reproductive systems result in radical changes in selective pressures acting on reproductive traits. Nematode Caenorhabditis elegans constitutes one of rare model systems where such shifts can be experimentally induced, providing an opportunity for studying the evolution of reproductive phenotypes in real time. Evolutionary history of predominantly selfing reproduction in has led to degeneration of traits involved outcrossing, making it inefficient. Here, we introduced obligatory outcrossing into isogenic lines of C. elegans and allowed replicate populations to evolve under the new reproductive system. We predicted that they should evolve higher outcrossing efficiency, leading to increased fitness relative to unevolved ancestors. To test this prediction, we assayed fitness of both ancestral and evolved outcrossing populations. To control for the potentially confounding effect of adaptation to laboratory conditions, we also assayed populations with wild-type (selfing) reproductive system. In five experimental blocks, we measured competitive fitness of 12 evolved populations (6 outcrossing, 6 selfing) after ca. 95 generations of evolution, along with their respective ancestors. On average, we found that fitness increased by 0.72 SD (± 0.3 CI) in outcrossing and by 0.52 (± 0.35 CI) in selfing populations, suggesting further adaptation to laboratory conditions in both types. Contrary to predictions, fitness increase was not significantly higher in outcrossing populations, suggesting no detectable adaptation to the changed reproductive system. Importantly, the results for individual populations varied strongly between experimental blocks, in some cases even differing in effect direction. This emphasises the importance of experimental replication in avoiding reporting false findings.
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25
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The impact of species-wide gene expression variation on Caenorhabditis elegans complex traits. Nat Commun 2022; 13:3462. [PMID: 35710766 PMCID: PMC9203580 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-31208-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2022] [Accepted: 06/08/2022] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Phenotypic variation in organism-level traits has been studied in Caenorhabditis elegans wild strains, but the impacts of differences in gene expression and the underlying regulatory mechanisms are largely unknown. Here, we use natural variation in gene expression to connect genetic variants to differences in organismal-level traits, including drug and toxicant responses. We perform transcriptomic analyses on 207 genetically distinct C. elegans wild strains to study natural regulatory variation of gene expression. Using this massive dataset, we perform genome-wide association mappings to investigate the genetic basis underlying gene expression variation and reveal complex genetic architectures. We find a large collection of hotspots enriched for expression quantitative trait loci across the genome. We further use mediation analysis to understand how gene expression variation could underlie organism-level phenotypic variation for a variety of complex traits. These results reveal the natural diversity in gene expression and possible regulatory mechanisms in this keystone model organism, highlighting the promise of using gene expression variation to understand how phenotypic diversity is generated.
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26
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Ordovás-Montañés M, Preston GM, Hoang KL, Rafaluk-Mohr C, King KC. Trade-offs in defence to pathogen species revealed in expanding nematode populations. J Evol Biol 2022; 35:1002-1011. [PMID: 35647763 DOI: 10.1111/jeb.14023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2021] [Accepted: 05/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Many host organisms live in polymicrobial environments and must respond to a diversity of pathogens. The degree to which host defences towards one pathogen species affect susceptibility to others is unclear. We used a panel of Caenorhabditis elegans nematode isolates to test for natural genetic variation in fitness costs of immune upregulation and pathogen damage, as well as for trade-offs in defence against two pathogen species, Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. We examined the fitness impacts of transient pathogen exposure (pathogen damage and immune upregulation) or exposure to heat-killed culture (immune upregulation only) by measuring host population sizes, which allowed us to simultaneously capture changes in reproductive output, developmental time and survival. We found significant decreases in population sizes for hosts exposed to live versus heat-killed S. aureus and found increased reproductive output after live P. aeruginosa exposure, compared with the corresponding heat-killed challenge. Nematode isolates with relatively higher population sizes after live P. aeruginosa infection produced fewer offspring after live S. aureus challenge. These findings reveal that wild C. elegans genotypes display a trade-off in defences against two distinct pathogen species that are evident in subsequent generations.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Gail M Preston
- Department of Plant Sciences, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Kim L Hoang
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Charlotte Rafaluk-Mohr
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.,Institute of Biology, Freie Universitat Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Kayla C King
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
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27
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Maulana MI, Riksen JAG, Snoek BL, Kammenga JE, Sterken MG. The genetic architecture underlying body-size traits plasticity over different temperatures and developmental stages in Caenorhabditis elegans. Heredity (Edinb) 2022; 128:313-324. [PMID: 35383317 PMCID: PMC9076863 DOI: 10.1038/s41437-022-00528-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2021] [Revised: 03/15/2022] [Accepted: 03/17/2022] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Most ectotherms obey the temperature-size rule, meaning they grow larger in a colder environment. This raises the question of how the interplay between genes and temperature affects the body size of ectotherms. Despite the growing body of literature on the physiological life-history and molecular genetic mechanism underlying the temperature-size rule, the overall genetic architecture orchestrating this complex phenotype is not yet fully understood. One approach to identify genetic regulators of complex phenotypes is quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping. Here, we explore the genetic architecture of body-size phenotypes, and plasticity of body-size phenotypes at different temperatures using Caenorhabditis elegans as a model ectotherm. We used 40 recombinant inbred lines (RILs) derived from N2 and CB4856, which were reared at four different temperatures (16, 20, 24, and 26 °C) and measured at two developmental stages (L4 and adult). The animals were measured for body length, width at vulva, body volume, length/width ratio, and seven other body-size traits. The genetically diverse RILs varied in their body-size phenotypes with heritabilities ranging from 0.0 to 0.99. We detected 18 QTL underlying the body-size traits across all treatment combinations, with the majority clustering on Chromosome X. We hypothesize that the Chromosome X QTL could result from a known pleiotropic regulator-npr-1-known to affect the body size of C. elegans through behavioral changes. We also found five plasticity QTL of body-size traits where three colocalized with body-size QTL. In conclusion, our findings shed more light on multiple loci affecting body-size plasticity and the possibility of co-regulation of traits and traits plasticity by the same loci under different environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Muhammad I Maulana
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University, Droevendaalsesteeg 1, 6708 PB, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Joost A G Riksen
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University, Droevendaalsesteeg 1, 6708 PB, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Basten L Snoek
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University, Droevendaalsesteeg 1, 6708 PB, Wageningen, The Netherlands
- Theoretical Biology and Bioinformatics, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Jan E Kammenga
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University, Droevendaalsesteeg 1, 6708 PB, Wageningen, The Netherlands.
| | - Mark G Sterken
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University, Droevendaalsesteeg 1, 6708 PB, Wageningen, The Netherlands.
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28
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Bever BW, Dietz ZP, Sullins JA, Montoya AM, Bergthorsson U, Katju V, Estes S. Mitonuclear Mismatch is Associated With Increased Male Frequency, Outcrossing, and Male Sperm Size in Experimentally-Evolved C. elegans. Front Genet 2022; 13:742272. [PMID: 35360860 PMCID: PMC8961728 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2022.742272] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2021] [Accepted: 01/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
We provide a partial test of the mitonuclear sex hypothesis with the first controlled study of how male frequencies and rates of outcrossing evolve in response to mitonuclear mismatch by allowing replicate lineages of C. elegans nematodes containing either mitochondrial or nuclear mutations of electron transport chain (ETC) genes to evolve under three sexual systems: facultatively outcrossing (wildtype), obligately selfing, and obligately outcrossing. Among facultatively outcrossing lines, we found evolution of increased male frequency in at least one replicate line of all four ETC mutant backgrounds tested—nuclear isp-1, mitochondrial cox-1 and ctb-1, and an isp-1 IV; ctb-1M mitonuclear double mutant—and confirmed for a single line set (cox-1) that increased male frequency also resulted in successful outcrossing. We previously found the same result for lines evolved from another nuclear ETC mutant, gas-1. For several lines in the current experiment, however, male frequency declined to wildtype levels (near 0%) in later generations. Male frequency did not change in lines evolved from a wildtype control strain. Additional phenotypic assays of lines evolved from the mitochondrial cox-1 mutant indicated that evolution of high male frequency was accompanied by evolution of increased male sperm size and mating success with tester females, but that it did not translate into increased mating success with coevolved hermaphrodites. Rather, hermaphrodites’ self-crossed reproductive fitness increased, consistent with sexually antagonistic coevolution. In accordance with evolutionary theory, males and sexual outcrossing may be most beneficial to populations evolving from a state of low ancestral fitness (gas-1, as previously reported) and less beneficial or deleterious to those evolving from a state of higher ancestral fitness (cox-1). In support of this idea, the obligately outcrossing fog-2 V; cox-1 M lines exhibited no fitness evolution compared to their ancestor, while facultatively outcrossing lines showed slight upward evolution of fitness, and all but one of the obligately selfing xol-1 X; cox-1 M lines evolved substantially increased fitness—even beyond wildtype levels. This work provides a foundation to directly test the effect of reproductive mode on the evolutionary dynamics of mitonuclear genomes, as well as whether compensatory mutations (nuclear or mitochondrial) can rescue populations from mitochondrial dysfunction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brent W. Bever
- Department of Biology, Portland State University, Portland, OR, United States
| | - Zachary P. Dietz
- Department of Biology, Portland State University, Portland, OR, United States
| | - Jennifer A. Sullins
- Department of Biology, Portland State University, Portland, OR, United States
| | - Ariana M. Montoya
- Department of Biology, Portland State University, Portland, OR, United States
| | - Ulfar Bergthorsson
- Department of Veterinary Integrative Biosciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, United States
| | - Vaishali Katju
- Department of Veterinary Integrative Biosciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, United States
| | - Suzanne Estes
- Department of Biology, Portland State University, Portland, OR, United States
- *Correspondence: Suzanne Estes,
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29
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Ordovás‐Montañés M, Preston GM, Drew GC, Rafaluk‐Mohr C, King KC. Reproductive consequences of transient pathogen exposure across host genotypes and generations. Ecol Evol 2022; 12:e8720. [PMID: 35356553 PMCID: PMC8938310 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.8720] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2021] [Revised: 01/21/2022] [Accepted: 01/24/2022] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
Abstract
To maximize fitness upon pathogenic infection, host organisms might reallocate energy and resources among life-history traits, such as reproduction and defense. The fitness costs of infection can result from both immune upregulation and direct pathogen exploitation. The extent to which these costs, separately and together, vary by host genotype and across generations is unknown. We attempted to disentangle these costs by transiently exposing wild isolates and a lab-domesticated strain of Caenorhabditis elegans nematodes to the pathogen Staphylococcus aureus, using exposure to heat-killed pathogens to distinguish costs due to immune upregulation and pathogen exploitation. We found that host nematodes exhibit a short-term delay in offspring production when exposed to live and heat-killed pathogen, but their lifetime fecundity (total offspring produced) recovered to control levels. We also found genetic variation between host isolates for both cumulative offspring production and magnitude of fitness costs. We further investigated whether there were maternal pathogen exposure costs (or benefits) to offspring and revealed a positive correlation between the magnitude of the pathogen-induced delay in the parent's first day of reproduction and the cost to offspring population growth. Our findings highlight the capacity for hosts to recover fecundity after transient exposure to a pathogen.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Charlotte Rafaluk‐Mohr
- Department of ZoologyUniversity of OxfordOxfordUK
- Institute of BiologyFreie Universitat BerlinBerlinGermany
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30
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Andersen EC, Rockman MV. Natural genetic variation as a tool for discovery in Caenorhabditis nematodes. Genetics 2022; 220:iyab156. [PMID: 35134197 PMCID: PMC8733454 DOI: 10.1093/genetics/iyab156] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2021] [Accepted: 09/11/2021] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Over the last 20 years, studies of Caenorhabditis elegans natural diversity have demonstrated the power of quantitative genetic approaches to reveal the evolutionary, ecological, and genetic factors that shape traits. These studies complement the use of the laboratory-adapted strain N2 and enable additional discoveries not possible using only one genetic background. In this chapter, we describe how to perform quantitative genetic studies in Caenorhabditis, with an emphasis on C. elegans. These approaches use correlations between genotype and phenotype across populations of genetically diverse individuals to discover the genetic causes of phenotypic variation. We present methods that use linkage, near-isogenic lines, association, and bulk-segregant mapping, and we describe the advantages and disadvantages of each approach. The power of C. elegans quantitative genetic mapping is best shown in the ability to connect phenotypic differences to specific genes and variants. We will present methods to narrow genomic regions to candidate genes and then tests to identify the gene or variant involved in a quantitative trait. The same features that make C. elegans a preeminent experimental model animal contribute to its exceptional value as a tool to understand natural phenotypic variation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erik C Andersen
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60201, USA
| | - Matthew V Rockman
- Department of Biology and Center for Genomics & Systems Biology, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA
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31
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Abstract
Wild populations of the model organism C. elegans represent a valuable resource, allowing for genetic characterization underlying natural phenotypic variation. Here we provide a simple protocol on how to sample and rapidly identify C. elegans wild isolates. We outline how to find suitable habitats and organic substrates, followed by describing isolation and identification of C. elegans live cultures based on easily recognizable morphological characteristics, molecular barcodes, and mating tests. This protocol uses standard laboratory equipment and requires little prior knowledge of C. elegans biology.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Nausicaa Poullet
- Université Côte d'Azur, CNRS, Inserm, IBV, Nice, France
- URZ, INRAE, Petit-Bourg (Guadeloupe), France
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32
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Heaton A, Milligan E, Faulconer E, Allen A, Nguyen T, Weir SM, Glaberman S. Variation in copper sensitivity between laboratory and wild strains of Caenorhabditis elegans. CHEMOSPHERE 2022; 287:131883. [PMID: 34818820 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2021.131883] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2021] [Revised: 08/09/2021] [Accepted: 08/11/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Ecological risk assessments of chemicals are frequently based on laboratory toxicity data from a small number of model species that may be reared in labs for years or decades. These populations can undergo many processes in the lab including artificial selection, founder effect, and genetic drift, and may not adequately represent their wild counterparts, potentially undermining the goal of protecting natural populations. Here we measure variation in lethality to copper chloride among strains of an emerging model species in toxicology, Caenorhabditis elegans. We tested four wild strains from Chile, Germany, Kenya, and Madeira (Portugal) against several versions of the standard laboratory N2 strain from Bristol, UK used in molecular biology. The four wild strains were more sensitive than any of the N2 strains tested with copper. We also found that the standard N2 strain cultured in the laboratory for >1 year was less sensitive than a recently cultured N2 strain as well as a cataloged ancestral version of the N2 strain. These results suggest that toxicologists should be cognizant of performing toxicity testing with long-held animal cultures, and should perhaps use multiple strains as well as renew cultures periodically in the laboratory. This study also shows that multi-strain toxicity testing with nematodes is highly achievable and useful for understanding variation in intra- and interspecific chemical sensitivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew Heaton
- Department of Biology, University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL, USA; Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, Moss Point, MS, USA
| | - Emma Milligan
- Department of Biology, University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL, USA
| | | | - Andrew Allen
- Department of Biology, University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL, USA
| | - Timothy Nguyen
- Department of Biology, University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL, USA
| | - Scott M Weir
- Department of Biology, Queens University of Charlotte, Charlotte, NC, USA
| | - Scott Glaberman
- Department of Biology, University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL, USA; Department of Environmental Science & Policy, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA, USA.
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33
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Dyshlyuk LS, Dmitrieva AI, Drozdova MY, Milentyeva IS, Prosekov AY. Relevance of bioassay of biologically active substances (BAS) with geroprotective properties in the model of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans in experiments in vivo. Curr Aging Sci 2021; 15:121-134. [PMID: 34856917 DOI: 10.2174/1874609814666211202144911] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2021] [Revised: 09/25/2021] [Accepted: 10/14/2021] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Aging is a process global in nature. The age of living organisms contributes to the appearance of chronic diseases, which not only reduce the quality of life, but also significantly damage it. Modern medicines can successfully fight multiple diseases and prolong life. At the same time, medications have a large number of side effects. New research indicates that bioactive phytochemicals have great potential for treating even the most severe diseases and can become an alternative to medicines. Despite many studies in this area, the effects of many plant ingredients on living organisms are poorly understood. Analysis of the mechanisms through which herbal preparations influence the aging process helps to select the right active substances, determine the optimal doses to obtain the maximum positive effect. It is preferable to check the effectiveness of plant extracts and biologically active components with geroprotective properties in vivo. For these purposes, live model systems such as Rattus rattus, Mus musculus, Drosophila melanogaster, and Caenorhabditis elegans are used. These models help to comprehensively study the impact of the developed new drugs on the aging process. The model organism C. elegans is gaining increasing popularity in these studies because of its many advantages. This review article discusses the advantages of the nematode C. elegans as a model organism for studying the processes associated with aging. The influence of various BAS and plant extracts on the increase in the life span of the nematode, on the increase in its stress resistance and on other markers of aging is also considered. The review showed that the nematode C. elegans has a number of advantages over other organisms and is a promising model system for studying the geroprotective properties of BAS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lyubov S Dyshlyuk
- Natural Nutraceutical Bioassay Laboratory. Kemerovo State University,6 Krasnaya str., Kemerovo, 650043. Russian Federation
| | - Anastasiya I Dmitrieva
- Natural Nutraceutical Bioassay Laboratory. Kemerovo State University,6 Krasnaya str., Kemerovo, 650043. Russian Federation
| | - Margarita Yu Drozdova
- Natural Nutraceutical Bioassay Laboratory. Kemerovo State University,6 Krasnaya str., Kemerovo, 650043. Russian Federation
| | - Irina S Milentyeva
- Natural Nutraceutical Bioassay Laboratory. Kemerovo State University,6 Krasnaya str., Kemerovo, 650043. Russian Federation
| | - Alexander Yu Prosekov
- Natural Nutraceutical Bioassay Laboratory. Kemerovo State University,6 Krasnaya str., Kemerovo, 650043. Russian Federation
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34
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Urban ND, Cavataio JP, Berry Y, Vang B, Maddali A, Sukpraphrute RJ, Schnell S, Truttmann MC. Explaining inter-lab variance in C. elegans N2 lifespan: Making a case for standardized reporting to enhance reproducibility. Exp Gerontol 2021; 156:111622. [PMID: 34793939 PMCID: PMC8938996 DOI: 10.1016/j.exger.2021.111622] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2021] [Revised: 11/02/2021] [Accepted: 11/04/2021] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
Abstract
The nematode Caenorhabditis elegans is a powerful model organism for studying cell development, apoptosis, neuronal circuits, and aging. The isolate N2 is recognized by the C. elegans community as the reference wild-type strain. Interestingly, the lifespan of presumably isogenic C. elegans N2 worms-even when grown under comparable conditions-varies significantly amongst distinct laboratories. This hinders the inter-laboratory comparability of C. elegans lifespan data and raises questions regarding data interpretation and reproducibility. Here, we hypothesized slight alterations in experimental design and worm handling could explain the observed discrepancies. To test this hypothesis, we collected and assessed data from over 1000 published C. elegans N2 lifespan assays as well as corresponding methodological meta-data. We find that mean N2 lifespans range from approximately 7 days to upwards of 35 days, despite laboratories disclosing seemingly comparable experimental conditions. We further demonstrate that, in addition to temperature, the use of the chemical sterilizer 5-fluoro-2'-deoxyuridine (FUDR) may change N2 lifespan. Additionally, we observed differences in average N2 lifespan from experiments originating from distinct geographic locations, indicating a potential effect of location-specific factors on experimental outcomes. Taken as a whole, our work indicates the sum of many small, rather than a few critical, differences in experimental conditions may account for the observed variance in N2 lifespan. We also find that the absence of standardized experimental methods and the insufficient disclosure of experiment details in the peer-reviewed literature limits the inter-lab comparability of published results. We thus propose the establishment of a succinct reporting standard for C. elegans lifespan experiments to increase the reliability and reproducibility, and thus scientific value, of these studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas D. Urban
- Department of Molecular & Integrative Physiology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Joseph P. Cavataio
- Department of Molecular & Integrative Physiology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Yasmeen Berry
- Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Brandon Vang
- Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Anirudh Maddali
- Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Richard J. Sukpraphrute
- Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Santiago Schnell
- Department of Molecular & Integrative Physiology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA,Department of Biological Sciences and Department of Applied and Computational Mathematics and Statistics, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556
| | - Matthias C. Truttmann
- Department of Molecular & Integrative Physiology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA,Geriatrics Center, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA,Corresponding author at: BSRB, 109 Zina Pitcher Place, Ann Arbor 48109, MI, USA., (M.C. Truttmann)
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35
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Pujol N, Ewbank JJ. C. elegans: out on an evolutionary limb. Immunogenetics 2021; 74:63-73. [PMID: 34761293 DOI: 10.1007/s00251-021-01231-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2021] [Accepted: 10/22/2021] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
The natural environment of the free-living nematode Caenorhabditis elegans is rich in pathogenic microbes. There is now ample evidence to indicate that these pathogens exert a strong selection pressure on C. elegans, and have shaped its genome, physiology, and behaviour. In this short review, we concentrate on how C. elegans stands out from other animals in terms of its immune repertoire and innate immune signalling pathways. We discuss how C. elegans often detects pathogens because of their effects on essential cellular processes, or organelle integrity, in addition to direct microbial recognition. We illustrate the extensive molecular plasticity that is characteristic of immune defences in C. elegans and highlight some remarkable instances of lineage-specific innovation in innate immune mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nathalie Pujol
- Aix Marseille Univ, CNRS, INSERM, CIML, Turing Centre for Living Systems, Marseille, France.
| | - Jonathan J Ewbank
- Aix Marseille Univ, CNRS, INSERM, CIML, Turing Centre for Living Systems, Marseille, France
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36
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Snoek BL, Sterken MG, Nijveen H, Volkers RJM, Riksen J, Rosenstiel PC, Schulenburg H, Kammenga JE. The genetics of gene expression in a Caenorhabditis elegans multiparental recombinant inbred line population. G3 (BETHESDA, MD.) 2021; 11:jkab258. [PMID: 34568931 PMCID: PMC8496280 DOI: 10.1093/g3journal/jkab258] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2021] [Accepted: 07/17/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Studying genetic variation of gene expression provides a powerful way to unravel the molecular components underlying complex traits. Expression quantitative trait locus (eQTL) studies have been performed in several different model species, yet most of these linkage studies have been based on the genetic segregation of two parental alleles. Recently, we developed a multiparental segregating population of 200 recombinant inbred lines (mpRILs) derived from four wild isolates (JU1511, JU1926, JU1931, and JU1941) in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. We used RNA-seq to investigate how multiple alleles affect gene expression in these mpRILs. We found 1789 genes differentially expressed between the parental lines. Transgression, expression beyond any of the parental lines in the mpRILs, was found for 7896 genes. For expression QTL mapping almost 9000 SNPs were available. By combining these SNPs and the RNA-seq profiles of the mpRILs, we detected almost 6800 eQTLs. Most trans-eQTLs (63%) co-locate in six newly identified trans-bands. The trans-eQTLs found in previous two-parental allele eQTL experiments and this study showed some overlap (17.5-46.8%), highlighting on the one hand that a large group of genes is affected by polymorphic regulators across populations and conditions, on the other hand, it shows that the mpRIL population allows identification of novel gene expression regulatory loci. Taken together, the analysis of our mpRIL population provides a more refined insight into C. elegans complex trait genetics and eQTLs in general, as well as a starting point to further test and develop advanced statistical models for detection of multiallelic eQTLs and systems genetics studying the genotype-phenotype relationship.
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Affiliation(s)
- Basten L Snoek
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University, NL-6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands
- Theoretical Biology and Bioinformatics, Utrecht University, 3584 CH Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Mark G Sterken
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University, NL-6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Harm Nijveen
- Bioinformatics Group, Wageningen University, NL-6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Rita J M Volkers
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University, NL-6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Joost Riksen
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University, NL-6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Philip C Rosenstiel
- Institute for Clinical Molecular Biology, University of Kiel, 24098 Kiel, Germany
- Competence Centre for Genomic Analysis (CCGA) Kiel, University of Kiel, 24098 Kiel, Germany
| | - Hinrich Schulenburg
- Zoological Institute, University of Kiel, 24098 Kiel, Germany
- Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, 24306 Ploen, Germany
| | - Jan E Kammenga
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University, NL-6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands
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37
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Wang W, Flury AG, Garrison JL, Brem RB. Cold Survival and Its Molecular Mechanisms in a Locally Adapted Nematode Population. Genome Biol Evol 2021; 13:evab188. [PMID: 34383891 PMCID: PMC8449824 DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evab188] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Since Darwin, evolutionary biologists have sought to understand the drivers and mechanisms of natural trait diversity. The field advances toward this goal with the discovery of phenotypes that vary in the wild, their relationship to ecology, and their underlying genes. Here, we established resistance to extreme low temperature in the free-living nematode Caenorhabditis briggsae as an ecological and evolutionary model system. We found that C. briggsae strains of temperate origin were strikingly more cold-resistant than those isolated from tropical localities. Transcriptional profiling revealed expression patterns unique to the resistant temperate ecotype, including dozens of genes expressed at high levels even after multiple days of cold-induced physiological slowdown. Mutational analysis validated a role in cold resistance for seven such genes. These findings highlight a candidate case of robust, genetically complex adaptation in an emerging model nematode, and shed light on the mechanisms at play.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenke Wang
- Buck Institute for Research on Aging, Novato, California, USA
- Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, UC Berkeley, USA
| | - Anna G Flury
- Buck Institute for Research on Aging, Novato, California, USA
- Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, UC Berkeley, USA
| | - Jennifer L Garrison
- Buck Institute for Research on Aging, Novato, California, USA
- Leonard Davis School of Gerontology, University of Southern California, USA
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Pharmacology, UC San Francisco, USA
- Global Consortium for Reproductive Longevity & Equality, Novato, California, USA
| | - Rachel B Brem
- Buck Institute for Research on Aging, Novato, California, USA
- Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, UC Berkeley, USA
- Leonard Davis School of Gerontology, University of Southern California, USA
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38
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Rajaei M, Saxena AS, Johnson LM, Snyder MC, Crombie TA, Tanny RE, Andersen EC, Joyner-Matos J, Baer CF. Mutability of mononucleotide repeats, not oxidative stress, explains the discrepancy between laboratory-accumulated mutations and the natural allele-frequency spectrum in C. elegans. Genome Res 2021; 31:1602-1613. [PMID: 34404692 PMCID: PMC8415377 DOI: 10.1101/gr.275372.121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2021] [Accepted: 07/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Important clues about natural selection can be gleaned from discrepancies between the properties of segregating genetic variants and of mutations accumulated experimentally under minimal selection, provided the mutational process is the same in the laboratory as in nature. The base-substitution spectrum differs between C. elegans laboratory mutation accumulation (MA) experiments and the standing site-frequency spectrum, which has been argued to be in part owing to increased oxidative stress in the laboratory environment. Using genome sequence data from C. elegans MA lines carrying a mutation (mev-1) that increases the cellular titer of reactive oxygen species (ROS), leading to increased oxidative stress, we find the base-substitution spectrum is similar between mev-1, its wild-type progenitor (N2), and another set of MA lines derived from a different wild strain (PB306). Conversely, the rate of short insertions is greater in mev-1, consistent with studies in other organisms in which environmental stress increased the rate of insertion–deletion mutations. Further, the mutational properties of mononucleotide repeats in all strains are different from those of nonmononucleotide sequence, both for indels and base-substitutions, and whereas the nonmononucleotide spectra are fairly similar between MA lines and wild isolates, the mononucleotide spectra are very different, with a greater frequency of A:T → T:A transversions and an increased proportion of ±1-bp indels. The discrepancy in mutational spectra between laboratory MA experiments and natural variation is likely owing to a consistent (but unknown) effect of the laboratory environment that manifests itself via different modes of mutability and/or repair at mononucleotide loci.
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Affiliation(s)
- Moein Rajaei
- Department of Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611, USA
| | | | - Lindsay M Johnson
- Department of Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611, USA
| | - Michael C Snyder
- Department of Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611, USA
| | - Timothy A Crombie
- Department of Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611, USA.,Department of Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, USA
| | - Robyn E Tanny
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, USA
| | - Erik C Andersen
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, USA
| | - Joanna Joyner-Matos
- Department of Biology, Eastern Washington University, Cheney, Washington 99004, USA
| | - Charles F Baer
- Department of Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611, USA.,University of Florida Genetics Institute, Gainesville, Florida 32608, USA
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39
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Wit J, Rodriguez BC, Andersen EC. Natural variation in Caenorhabditis elegans responses to the anthelmintic emodepside. Int J Parasitol Drugs Drug Resist 2021; 16:1-8. [PMID: 33878514 PMCID: PMC8079822 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpddr.2021.04.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2021] [Revised: 04/01/2021] [Accepted: 04/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Treatment of parasitic nematode infections depends primarily on the use of anthelmintics. However, this drug arsenal is limited, and resistance against most anthelmintics is widespread. Emodepside is a new anthelmintic drug effective against gastrointestinal and filarial nematodes. Nematodes that are resistant to other anthelmintic drug classes are susceptible to emodepside, indicating that the emodepside mode of action is distinct from previous anthelmintics. The laboratory-adapted Caenorhabditis elegans strain N2 is sensitive to emodepside, and genetic selection and in vitro experiments implicated slo-1, a large K+ conductance (BK) channel gene, in emodepside mode of action. In an effort to understand how natural populations will respond to emodepside, we measured brood sizes and developmental rates of wild C. elegans strains after exposure to the drug and found natural variation across the species. Some of the observed variation in C. elegans emodepside responses correlates with amino acid substitutions in slo-1, but genetic mechanisms other than slo-1 coding variants likely underlie emodepside resistance in wild C. elegans strains. Additionally, the assayed strains have higher offspring production in low concentrations of emodepside (a hormetic effect). We find that natural variation affects emodepside sensitivity, supporting the suitability of C. elegans as a model system to study emodepside responses across natural nematode populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janneke Wit
- Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA
| | - Briana C Rodriguez
- Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA
| | - Erik C Andersen
- Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA.
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40
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Han R, Wang Y, Deng Y, Zhang Y, Zhang L, Niu Q. Stenotrophomonas strain CPCC 101271, an intestinal lifespan-prolonging bacterium for Caenorhabditis elegans that assists in host resistance to "Bacillus nematocida" colonization. Arch Microbiol 2021; 203:4951-4960. [PMID: 34258643 PMCID: PMC8502144 DOI: 10.1007/s00203-021-02467-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2021] [Revised: 06/24/2021] [Accepted: 06/25/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
The soil-dwelling, opportunistic pathogenic bacterium "Bacillus nematocida" B16 exhibits strong killing activities against a variety of pathogenic nematodes via a “Trojan horse” mechanism that can kill worm species like Caenorhabditis elegans. The bacterial strain CPCC 101271 was previously isolated from the intestines of C. elegans that were recovered from natural habitats and can serve as a probiotic for C. elegans, while also assisting in resistance to infection by the pathogenic strain B16. In this study, the lifespan of C. elegans fed with strain CPCC 101271 cells was extended by approximately 40% compared with that of worms fed with Escherichia coli OP50 cells. In addition, the colonization of C. elegans by the pathogenic bacterium "B. nematocida" B16 was inhibited when pre-fed with strain CPCC 101271. Metagenomic sequence analysis of intestinal microbiota of C. elegans fed with strain CPCC 101271 and infected with B16 revealed that pre-feeding worms with CPCC 101271 improved the diversity of the intestinal bacteria. Moreover, community structure significantly varied in coordination with Stenotrophomonas spp. and Bacillus spp. abundances when competition between strains CPCC 101271 and B16 was evaluated. In conclusion, the nematode microbiota strain CPCC 101271 assisted in its host resistance to colonization by the pathogen "Bacillus nematocida" and can also promote life span-prolongation in C. elegans. These results underscore that understanding the interactions between C. elegans microbiota and pathogens can provide new insights into achieving effective biological control of agricultural pests.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rui Han
- College of Life Science and Agricultural Engineering, Nanyang Normal University, 1638 Wolong Road, Nanyang, 473061, Henan, China
| | - Yu Wang
- College of Life Science and Agricultural Engineering, Nanyang Normal University, 1638 Wolong Road, Nanyang, 473061, Henan, China
| | - Yang Deng
- Institute of Medicinal Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100050, China
| | - Yuqin Zhang
- Institute of Medicinal Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100050, China
| | - Lin Zhang
- College of Life Science and Agricultural Engineering, Nanyang Normal University, 1638 Wolong Road, Nanyang, 473061, Henan, China.
| | - Qiuhong Niu
- College of Life Science and Agricultural Engineering, Nanyang Normal University, 1638 Wolong Road, Nanyang, 473061, Henan, China.
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Dal Bello M, Pérez-Escudero A, Schroeder FC, Gore J. Inversion of pheromone preference optimizes foraging in C. elegans. eLife 2021; 10:58144. [PMID: 34227470 PMCID: PMC8260229 DOI: 10.7554/elife.58144] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2020] [Accepted: 06/09/2021] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Foraging animals have to locate food sources that are usually patchily distributed and subject to competition. Deciding when to leave a food patch is challenging and requires the animal to integrate information about food availability with cues signaling the presence of other individuals (e.g., pheromones). To study how social information transmitted via pheromones can aid foraging decisions, we investigated the behavioral responses of the model animal Caenorhabditis elegans to food depletion and pheromone accumulation in food patches. We experimentally show that animals consuming a food patch leave it at different times and that the leaving time affects the animal preference for its pheromones. In particular, worms leaving early are attracted to their pheromones, while worms leaving later are repelled by them. We further demonstrate that the inversion from attraction to repulsion depends on associative learning and, by implementing a simple model, we highlight that it is an adaptive solution to optimize food intake during foraging.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martina Dal Bello
- Physics of Living Systems Group, Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, United States
| | - Alfonso Pérez-Escudero
- Physics of Living Systems Group, Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, United States.,Centre de Recherches sur la Cognition Animale (CRCA), Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Université de Toulouse; CNRS; UPS, Toulouse, France
| | - Frank C Schroeder
- Boyce Thompson Institute and Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Cornell University, New York, United States
| | - Jeff Gore
- Physics of Living Systems Group, Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, United States
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Noble LM, Rockman MV, Teotónio H. Gene-level quantitative trait mapping in Caenorhabditis elegans. G3-GENES GENOMES GENETICS 2021; 11:6114457. [PMID: 33693602 PMCID: PMC8022935 DOI: 10.1093/g3journal/jkaa061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2020] [Accepted: 12/13/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
The Caenorhabditis elegans multiparental experimental evolution (CeMEE) panel is a collection of genome-sequenced, cryopreserved recombinant inbred lines useful for mapping the evolution and genetic basis of quantitative traits. We have expanded the resource with new lines and new populations, and here report the genotype and haplotype composition of CeMEE version 2, including a large set of putative de novo mutations, and updated additive and epistatic mapping simulations. Additive quantitative trait loci explaining 4% of trait variance are detected with >80% power, and the median detection interval approaches single-gene resolution on the highly recombinant chromosome arms. Although CeMEE populations are derived from a long-term evolution experiment, genetic structure is dominated by variation present in the ancestral population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luke M Noble
- Institut de Biologie, École Normale Supérieure, CNRS 8197, Inserm U1024, PSL Research University, F-75005 Paris, France.,Department of Biology, Center for Genomics and Systems Biology, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA
| | - Matthew V Rockman
- Department of Biology, Center for Genomics and Systems Biology, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA
| | - Henrique Teotónio
- Institut de Biologie, École Normale Supérieure, CNRS 8197, Inserm U1024, PSL Research University, F-75005 Paris, France
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43
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Evans KS, van Wijk MH, McGrath PT, Andersen EC, Sterken MG. From QTL to gene: C. elegans facilitates discoveries of the genetic mechanisms underlying natural variation. Trends Genet 2021; 37:933-947. [PMID: 34229867 DOI: 10.1016/j.tig.2021.06.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2021] [Revised: 06/01/2021] [Accepted: 06/03/2021] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
Although many studies have examined quantitative trait variation across many species, only a small number of genes and thereby molecular mechanisms have been discovered. Without these data, we can only speculate about evolutionary processes that underlie trait variation. Here, we review how quantitative and molecular genetics in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans led to the discovery and validation of 37 quantitative trait genes over the past 15 years. Using these data, we can start to make inferences about evolution from these quantitative trait genes, including the roles that coding versus noncoding variation, gene family expansion, common versus rare variants, pleiotropy, and epistasis play in trait variation across this species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathryn S Evans
- Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA; Interdisciplinary Biological Sciences Program, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA
| | - Marijke H van Wijk
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University and Research, 6708 PB, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Patrick T McGrath
- School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332, USA
| | - Erik C Andersen
- Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA.
| | - Mark G Sterken
- Laboratory of Nematology, Wageningen University and Research, 6708 PB, Wageningen, The Netherlands.
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44
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Zhang F, Weckhorst JL, Assié A, Hosea C, Ayoub CA, Khodakova AS, Cabrera ML, Vidal Vilchis D, Félix MA, Samuel BS. Natural genetic variation drives microbiome selection in the Caenorhabditis elegans gut. Curr Biol 2021; 31:2603-2618.e9. [PMID: 34048707 PMCID: PMC8222194 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2021.04.046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2020] [Revised: 04/12/2021] [Accepted: 04/19/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Host genetic landscapes can shape microbiome assembly in the animal gut by contributing to the establishment of distinct physiological environments. However, the genetic determinants contributing to the stability and variation of these microbiome types remain largely undefined. Here, we use the free-living nematode Caenorhabditis elegans to identify natural genetic variation among wild strains of C. elegans that drives assembly of distinct microbiomes. To achieve this, we first established a diverse model microbiome that represents the strain-level phylogenetic diversity naturally encountered by C. elegans in the wild. Using this community, we show that C. elegans utilizes immune, xenobiotic, and metabolic signaling pathways to favor the assembly of different microbiome types. Variations in these pathways were associated with enrichment for specific commensals, including the Alphaproteobacteria Ochrobactrum. Using RNAi and mutant strains, we showed that host selection for Ochrobactrum is mediated specifically by host insulin signaling pathways. Ochrobactrum recruitment is blunted in the absence of DAF-2/IGFR and modulated by the competitive action of insulin signaling transcription factors DAF-16/FOXO and PQM-1/SALL2. Further, the ability of C. elegans to enrich for Ochrobactrum as adults is correlated with faster animal growth rates and larger body size at the end of development. These results highlight a new role for the highly conserved insulin signaling pathways in the regulation of gut microbiome composition in C. elegans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fan Zhang
- Alkek Center for Metagenomics and Microbiome Research and Department of Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Jessica L Weckhorst
- Alkek Center for Metagenomics and Microbiome Research and Department of Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Program in Quantitative and Computational Biosciences, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Adrien Assié
- Alkek Center for Metagenomics and Microbiome Research and Department of Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Ciara Hosea
- Alkek Center for Metagenomics and Microbiome Research and Department of Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Program in Development, Disease Models and Therapeutics, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Christopher A Ayoub
- Alkek Center for Metagenomics and Microbiome Research and Department of Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Anastasia S Khodakova
- Alkek Center for Metagenomics and Microbiome Research and Department of Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Mario Loeza Cabrera
- Alkek Center for Metagenomics and Microbiome Research and Department of Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Program in Development, Disease Models and Therapeutics, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Daniela Vidal Vilchis
- Alkek Center for Metagenomics and Microbiome Research and Department of Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Marie-Anne Félix
- Ecole Normale Supérieure, IBENS, CNRS UMR8197, INSERM U1024, Paris, France
| | - Buck S Samuel
- Alkek Center for Metagenomics and Microbiome Research and Department of Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Program in Quantitative and Computational Biosciences, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA; Program in Development, Disease Models and Therapeutics, Baylor College of Medicine, 1 Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
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45
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Mosquera JV, Bacher MC, Priess JR. Nuclear lipid droplets and nuclear damage in Caenorhabditis elegans. PLoS Genet 2021; 17:e1009602. [PMID: 34133414 PMCID: PMC8208577 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1009602] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2021] [Accepted: 05/14/2021] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Fat stored in the form of lipid droplets has long been considered a defining characteristic of cytoplasm. However, recent studies have shown that nuclear lipid droplets occur in multiple cells and tissues, including in human patients with fatty liver disease. The function(s) of stored fat in the nucleus has not been determined, and it is possible that nuclear fat is beneficial in some situations. Conversely, nuclear lipid droplets might instead be deleterious by disrupting nuclear organization or triggering aggregation of hydrophobic proteins. We show here that nuclear lipid droplets occur normally in C. elegans intestinal cells and germ cells, but appear to be associated with damage only in the intestine. Lipid droplets in intestinal nuclei can be associated with novel bundles of microfilaments (nuclear actin) and membrane tubules that might have roles in damage repair. To increase the normal, low frequency of nuclear lipid droplets in wild-type animals, we used a forward genetic screen to isolate mutants with abnormally large or abundant nuclear lipid droplets. Genetic analysis and cloning of three such mutants showed that the genes encode the lipid regulator SEIP-1/seipin, the inner nuclear membrane protein NEMP-1/Nemp1/TMEM194A, and a component of COPI vesicles called COPA-1/α-COP. We present several lines of evidence that the nuclear lipid droplet phenotype of copa-1 mutants results from a defect in retrieving mislocalized membrane proteins that normally reside in the endoplasmic reticulum. The seip-1 mutant causes most germ cells to have nuclear lipid droplets, the largest of which occupy more than a third of the nuclear volume. Nevertheless, the nuclear lipid droplets do not trigger apoptosis, and the germ cells differentiate into gametes that produce viable, healthy progeny. Thus, our results suggest that nuclear lipid droplets are detrimental to intestinal nuclei, but have no obvious deleterious effect on germ nuclei.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Meghan C. Bacher
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
| | - James R. Priess
- Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
- Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
- Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
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46
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Aspillaga-Cid A, Vera DC, Ebensperger LA, Correa LA. Parental care in male degus (Octodon degus) is flexible and contingent upon female care. Physiol Behav 2021; 238:113487. [PMID: 34087278 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2021.113487] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2021] [Revised: 05/26/2021] [Accepted: 05/27/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Parents in many animal species provide care to their offspring as a mechanism to enhance their own fitness. In mammals, this behavior is expressed mostly by the females, but also by males of some species. Proximally, rates of paternal offspring care have been linked to organizational and activational effects of testosterone. Specifically, intrauterine position of male fetuses is associated with differential exposure to testosterone, leading to development of males with different levels of masculinization (assessed through differences in the length of the anogenital distance (AGD). The relative roles played by organizational and activational effects of testosterone on male parental care remain unclear. In this study, we aimed to determine if male sex-biased uterine environment and testosterone levels across the breeding period explain variation in paternal care in the social rodent, Octodon degus. Neither quantity (time with the offspring) nor quality (frequency of grooming and retrieving) of paternal care was affected by male sex-biased uterine environment, nor did paternal care significantly differ across the different stages of male reproduction. In contrast, paternal care was associated with maternal care. Quantity of male care decreased with increasing quantity of maternal care, and quality of male care increased with increasing quality of maternal care. While serum testosterone did not differ between males with different sex-biased uterine environment, male testosterone tended to increase during mating and decrease when pregnant females or offspring were present.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonia Aspillaga-Cid
- Departamento de Ecología, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Daniela C Vera
- Departamento de Ecología, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Luis A Ebensperger
- Departamento de Ecología, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Loreto A Correa
- Departamento de Ecología, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile; Escuela de Medicina Veterinaria, Facultad de Ciencias. Universidad Mayor, Camino la Pirámide 5750, Huechuraba, Santiago, Chile.
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47
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Koneru SL, Hintze M, Katsanos D, Barkoulas M. Cryptic genetic variation in a heat shock protein modifies the outcome of a mutation affecting epidermal stem cell development in C. elegans. Nat Commun 2021; 12:3263. [PMID: 34059684 PMCID: PMC8166903 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-23567-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2020] [Accepted: 04/29/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
A fundamental question in medical genetics is how the genetic background modifies the phenotypic outcome of mutations. We address this question by focusing on the seam cells, which display stem cell properties in the epidermis of Caenorhabditis elegans. We demonstrate that a putative null mutation in the GATA transcription factor egl-18, which is involved in seam cell fate maintenance, is more tolerated in the CB4856 isolate from Hawaii than the lab reference strain N2 from Bristol. We identify multiple quantitative trait loci (QTLs) underlying the difference in phenotype expressivity between the two isolates. These QTLs reveal cryptic genetic variation that reinforces seam cell fate through potentiating Wnt signalling. Within one QTL region, a single amino acid deletion in the heat shock protein HSP-110 in CB4856 is sufficient to modify Wnt signalling and seam cell development, highlighting that natural variation in conserved heat shock proteins can shape phenotype expressivity. How the genetic background modifies the expression of mutations is a key question that is addressed in this study in the context of seam cell development in Caenorhabditis elegans isolates. One amino acid deletion in a conserved heat shock protein is sufficient to shape phenotype expressivity upon mutation of a GATA transcription factor.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sneha L Koneru
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College, London, United Kingdom
| | - Mark Hintze
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College, London, United Kingdom
| | - Dimitris Katsanos
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College, London, United Kingdom
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48
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Le TS, Nguyen TTH, Thi Mai Huong B, Nguyen HG, Ha BH, Nguyen VS, Nguyen MH, Nguyen HH, Wang J. Cultivation of Caenorhabditis elegans on new cheap monoxenic media without peptone. J Nematol 2021; 53:e2021-36. [PMID: 33860269 PMCID: PMC8040142 DOI: 10.21307/jofnem-2021-036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2020] [Indexed: 01/30/2023] Open
Abstract
The study of species biodiversity within the Caenorhabditis genus of nematodes would be facilitated by the isolation of as many species as possible. So far, over 50 species have been found, usually associated with decaying vegetation or soil samples, with many from Africa, South America and Southeast Asia. Scientists based in these regions can contribute to Caenorhabditis sampling and their proximity would allow intensive sampling, which would be useful for understanding the natural history of these species. However, severely limited research budgets are often a constraint for these local scientists. In this study, we aimed to find a more economical, alternative growth media to rear Caenorhabditis and related species. We tested 25 media permutations using cheaper substitutes for the reagents found in the standard nematode growth media (NGM) and found three media combinations that performed comparably to NGM with respect to the reproduction and longevity of C. elegans. These new media should facilitate the isolation and characterization of Caenorhabditis and other free-living nematodes for the researchers in the poorer regions such as Africa, South America, and Southeast Asia where nematode diversity appears high.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tho Son Le
- College of Forestry Biotechnology, Vietnam National University of Forestry, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - T. T. Hang Nguyen
- College of Forestry Biotechnology, Vietnam National University of Forestry, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - Bui Thi Mai Huong
- College of Forestry Biotechnology, Vietnam National University of Forestry, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - H. Gam Nguyen
- College of Forestry Biotechnology, Vietnam National University of Forestry, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - B. Hong Ha
- College of Forestry Biotechnology, Vietnam National University of Forestry, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - Van Sang Nguyen
- Faculty of Biology, VNU University of Science, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - Minh Hung Nguyen
- Center for Molecular Biology, Institute of Research and Development, Duy Tan University, Da Nang, Vietnam
| | - Huy-Hoang Nguyen
- Institute of Genome Research, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - John Wang
- Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan
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49
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Dubois C, Gupta S, Mugler A, Félix MA. Temporally regulated cell migration is sensitive to variation in body size. Development 2021; 148:dev196949. [PMID: 33593818 PMCID: PMC10683003 DOI: 10.1242/dev.196949] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2020] [Accepted: 01/14/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Few studies have measured the robustness to perturbations of the final position of a long-range migrating cell. In the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, the QR neuroblast migrates anteriorly, while undergoing three division rounds. We study the final position of two of its great-granddaughters, the end of migration of which was previously shown to depend on a timing mechanism. We find that the variance in their final position is similar to that of other long-range migrating neurons. As expected from the timing mechanism, the position of QR descendants depends on body size, which we varied by changing maternal age or using body size mutants. Using a mathematical model, we show that body size variation is partially compensated for. Applying environmental perturbations, we find that the variance in final position increased following starvation at hatching. The mean position is displaced upon a temperature shift. Finally, highly significant variation was found among C. elegans wild isolates. Overall, this study reveals that the final position of these neurons is quite robust to stochastic variation, shows some sensitivity to body size and to external perturbations, and varies in the species.This article has an associated 'The people behind the papers' interview.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clément Dubois
- Institut de Biologie de l'Ecole Normale Supérieure, CNRS, Inserm, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Shivam Gupta
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA
| | - Andrew Mugler
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA
| | - Marie-Anne Félix
- Institut de Biologie de l'Ecole Normale Supérieure, CNRS, Inserm, 75005 Paris, France
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50
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Hartman JH, Widmayer SJ, Bergemann CM, King DE, Morton KS, Romersi RF, Jameson LE, Leung MCK, Andersen EC, Taubert S, Meyer JN. Xenobiotic metabolism and transport in Caenorhabditis elegans. JOURNAL OF TOXICOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH. PART B, CRITICAL REVIEWS 2021; 24:51-94. [PMID: 33616007 PMCID: PMC7958427 DOI: 10.1080/10937404.2021.1884921] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
Caenorhabditis elegans has emerged as a major model in biomedical and environmental toxicology. Numerous papers on toxicology and pharmacology in C. elegans have been published, and this species has now been adopted by investigators in academic toxicology, pharmacology, and drug discovery labs. C. elegans has also attracted the interest of governmental regulatory agencies charged with evaluating the safety of chemicals. However, a major, fundamental aspect of toxicological science remains underdeveloped in C. elegans: xenobiotic metabolism and transport processes that are critical to understanding toxicokinetics and toxicodynamics, and extrapolation to other species. The aim of this review was to initially briefly describe the history and trajectory of the use of C. elegans in toxicological and pharmacological studies. Subsequently, physical barriers to chemical uptake and the role of the worm microbiome in xenobiotic transformation were described. Then a review of what is and is not known regarding the classic Phase I, Phase II, and Phase III processes was performed. In addition, the following were discussed (1) regulation of xenobiotic metabolism; (2) review of published toxicokinetics for specific chemicals; and (3) genetic diversity of these processes in C. elegans. Finally, worm xenobiotic transport and metabolism was placed in an evolutionary context; key areas for future research highlighted; and implications for extrapolating C. elegans toxicity results to other species discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica H Hartman
- Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
| | - Samuel J Widmayer
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, United States
| | | | - Dillon E King
- Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
| | - Katherine S Morton
- Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
| | - Riccardo F Romersi
- Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
| | - Laura E Jameson
- School of Mathematical and Natural Sciences, Arizona State University - West Campus, Glendale, Arizona, United States
| | - Maxwell C K Leung
- School of Mathematical and Natural Sciences, Arizona State University - West Campus, Glendale, Arizona, United States
| | - Erik C Andersen
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, United States
| | - Stefan Taubert
- Dept. Of Medical Genetics, Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics, BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, the University of British Colombia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Joel N Meyer
- Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina
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