| Title: | Dauer Formation in C. elegans Is Modulated through AWC and ASI-Dependent Chemosensation |
| Author(s): | Pandey P; Bhat US; Singh A; Joy A; Birari V; Kadam NY; Babu K; |
| Address: | "Department of Biological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Mohali, Manauli, Punjab 140306, India pratimashpandey@gmail.com kavita.babu@babulab.org. Department of Biological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Mohali, Manauli, Punjab 140306, India. Centre for Neuroscience, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Karnataka 560012, India" |
| DOI: | 10.1523/ENEURO.0473-20.2021 |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 2373-2822 (Electronic) 2373-2822 (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "The perception of our surrounding environment is an amalgamation of stimuli detected by sensory neurons. In Caenorhabditis elegans, olfaction is an essential behavior that determines various behavioral functions such as locomotion, feeding and development. Sensory olfactory cues also initiate downstream neuroendocrine signaling that controls aging, learning, development and reproduction. Innate sensory preferences toward odors (food, pathogens) and reproductive pheromones are modulated by 11 pairs of amphid chemosensory neurons in the head region of C. elegans Amongst these sensory neurons, the ASI neuron has neuroendocrine functions and secretes neuropeptides, insulin-like peptide (DAF-28) and the TGF-beta protein, DAF-7. Its expression levels are modulated by the presence of food (increased levels) and population density (decreased levels). A recent study has shown that EXP-1, an excitatory GABA receptor regulates DAF-7/TGF-beta levels and participates in DAF-7/TGF-beta-mediated behaviors such as aggregation and bordering. Here, we show that exp-1 mutants show defective responses toward AWC-sensed attractive odors in a non-autonomous manner through ASI neurons. Our dauer experiments reveal that in daf-7 mutants, ASI expressed EXP-1 and STR-2 (a G-protein-coupled receptor; GPCR) that partially maintained reproductive growth of animals. Further, studies suggest that neuronal connections between ASI and AWC neurons are allowed at least partially through ASI secreted DAF-7 or through alternate TGF- beta pathway/s regulated by EXP-1 and STR-2. Together, our behavioral, genetic and imaging experiments propose that EXP-1 and STR-2 integrate food cues and allow the animals to display DAF-7/TGF-beta neuroendocrine dependent or independent behavioral responses contributing to chemosensensory and developmental plasticity" |
| Keywords: | Animals *Caenorhabditis elegans *Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins/genetics Mutation Sensory Receptor Cells Signal Transduction Transforming Growth Factor beta/genetics ASI neuron C.elegans Exp-1 Str-2 chemotaxis dauer;neuroscience; |
| Notes: | "MedlinePandey, Pratima Bhat, Umer S Singh, Anuradha Joy, Aiswarya Birari, Varun Kadam, Nagesh Y Babu, Kavita eng WT_/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom IA/I/12/1/500516/WTDBT_/DBT-Wellcome Trust India Alliance/India IA/S/19/2/504649/WTDBT_/DBT-Wellcome Trust India Alliance/India 2021/03/14 eNeuro. 2021 Apr 14; 8(2):ENEURO.0473-20.2021. doi: 10.1523/ENEURO.0473-20.2021. Print 2021 Mar-Apr" |
