Lifespan extension in Caenorhabditis elegans by DMSO is dependent on sir-2.1 and daf-16.
Dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) is an important solvent that is widely used in industry and medical studies, as well as in the study of aging, in which it is used as a negative control for lifespan assays; however, our data showed that 0.5% and 2% DMSO extended the lifespan of Caenorhabditis elegans by 24.4% and 23.0% (the first trial), respectively. Treatment with 0.5% DMSO did not affect the progeny number or the lifespan of C. elegans under thermal stress. Using real time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), we found that the expression levels of hsp-16.2, hsp-70, lys-7, old-1, and sod-5 were enhanced by 2.5, 2.9, 1.3, 2.3, and 4.5-fold, respectively, after treatment with 0.5% DMSO. This suggests that these genes downstream of DAF-16 might function in the lifespan extension properties of DMSO. Using the transgenic strain lys-7::GFP, we found that treatment with 0.5% DMSO also caused expression levels of lys-7 increased by 1.5-fold. Genetic analysis using mutants of aging-related genes showed that lifespan extension in C. elegans by DMSO was dependent on sir-2.1 and daf-16 but not eat-2 or hsf-1. In summary, we report the function and the putative mechanism of DMSO in lifespan extension of C. elegans. This study draws attention to using DMSO as a solvent when conducting aging studies.
Wang
Xiangming
X
The Experimental Research Center, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing 100700, China. xm224@sohu.com
Wang
Xiaoyan
X
Li
Lianda
L
Wang
Danqiao
D
D000818:Animals; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D004121:Dimethyl Sulfoxide / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051858:Forkhead Transcription Factors; D015870:Gene Expression; D008136:Longevity / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics; D037761:Sirtuins / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D012997:Solvents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*
D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins; D051858:Forkhead Transcription Factors; D012997:Solvents; D014157:Transcription Factors; C108831:daf-16 protein, C elegans; C507014:SIR-2.1 protein, C elegans; D037761:Sirtuins; D004121:Dimethyl Sulfoxide