| Title: | Targeted metabolomics reveals a male pheromone and sex-specific ascaroside biosynthesis in Caenorhabditis elegans |
| Author(s): | Izrayelit Y; Srinivasan J; Campbell SL; Jo Y; von Reuss SH; Genoff MC; Sternberg PW; Schroeder FC; |
| Address: | "Boyce Thompson Institute and Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA" |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 1554-8937 (Electronic) 1554-8929 (Print) 1554-8929 (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "In the model organism Caenorhabditis elegans, a class of small molecule signals called ascarosides regulate development, mating, and social behaviors. Ascaroside production has been studied in the predominant sex, the hermaphrodite, but not in males, which account for less than 1% of wild-type worms grown under typical laboratory conditions. Using HPLC-MS-based targeted metabolomics, we show that males also produce ascarosides and that their ascaroside profile differs markedly from that of hermaphrodites. Whereas hermaphrodite ascaroside profiles are dominated by ascr#3, containing an alpha,beta-unsaturated fatty acid, males predominantly produce the corresponding dihydro-derivative ascr#10. This small structural modification profoundly affects signaling properties: hermaphrodites are retained by attomole-amounts of male-produced ascr#10, whereas hermaphrodite-produced ascr#3 repels hermaphrodites and attracts males. Male production of ascr#10 is population density-dependent, indicating sensory regulation of ascaroside biosynthesis. Analysis of gene expression data supports a model in which sex-specific regulation of peroxisomal beta-oxidation produces functionally different ascaroside profiles" |
| Keywords: | "Animals Behavior, Animal Caenorhabditis elegans Chemotaxis Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid/methods Fatty Acids/chemistry Fatty Acids, Unsaturated/metabolism Gene Expression Regulation Glycosides/chemistry Male Mass Spectrometry/methods Metabolomics/*;" |
| Notes: | "MedlineIzrayelit, Yevgeniy Srinivasan, Jagan Campbell, Sydney L Jo, Yeara von Reuss, Stephan H Genoff, Margaux C Sternberg, Paul W Schroeder, Frank C eng GM008500/GM/NIGMS NIH HHS/ HHMI/Howard Hughes Medical Institute/ T32 GM008500/GM/NIGMS NIH HHS/ GM085285/GM/NIGMS NIH HHS/ R01 GM085285/GM/NIGMS NIH HHS/ GM088290/GM/NIGMS NIH HHS/ R01 GM088290/GM/NIGMS NIH HHS/ Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't 2012/06/06 ACS Chem Biol. 2012 Aug 17; 7(8):1321-5. doi: 10.1021/cb300169c. Epub 2012 Jun 12" |
