Mutations in chemosensory cilia cause resistance to paraquat in nematode Caenorhabditis elegans.
The relationship between oxidative stress and longevity is a matter of concern in various organisms. We isolated mutants resistant to paraquat from nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. One mutant named mev-4 was long-lived and showed cross-resistance to heat and Dyf phenotype (defective in dye filling). Genetic and sequence analysis revealed that mev-4 had a nonsense mutation on the che-11 gene, homologues of which are involved in formation of cilia and flagella in other organisms. The paraquat resistance was commonly observed in various Dyf mutants and did not depend on the daf-16 gene, whereas the extension of life span did depend on it. Expression of antioxidant enzyme genes seemed normal. These results suggest that chemosensory neurons are a target of oxidative stress and influence longevity dependent on the daf-16 signaling in C. elegans.
Kihara Institute for Biological Research, Yokohama City University, Maioka-cho 641-12, Totsuka-ku, Yokohama 244-0813, Japan.
Michihiko
M
Fujii
Yuki
Y
Matsumoto
Nanae
N
Tanaka
Kensuke
K
Miki
Toshikazu
T
Suzuki
Naoaki
N
Ishii
Dai
D
Ayusawa
D000367:Age Factors; D000818:Animals; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000494:pharmacology; D001483:Base Sequence; D015152:Blotting, Northern; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000502:physiology*; D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D002923:Cilia / Q000502:physiology*; D018389:Codon, Nonsense; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004351:Drug Resistance; D016650:Fluorescein-5-isothiocyanate / Q000494:pharmacology; D051858:Forkhead Transcription Factors; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009154:Mutation; D009474:Neurons / Q000378:metabolism; D018384:Oxidative Stress; D010269:Paraquat / Q000494:pharmacology*; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D015398:Signal Transduction; D013696:Temperature; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics; D014466:Ultraviolet Rays
D000975:Antioxidants; D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins; D018389:Codon, Nonsense; D051858:Forkhead Transcription Factors; D014157:Transcription Factors; C108831:daf-16 protein, C elegans; D016650:Fluorescein-5-isothiocyanate; D010269:Paraquat