title: A mutation in a mitochondrial dehydrogenase/reductase gene causes an increased sensitivity to oxidative stress and mitochondrial defects in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans.
abstract: rad-8 is an interesting mutant that shows increased sensitivities to UV radiation and reactive oxygen species in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. In this study, we have characterized rad-8 and have found that rad-8 showed several phenotypes of mitochondrial dysfunction such as a decreased activity of the respiratory chain, increased generation of superoxide anions, increased oxidative damage, increased apoptosis, and abnormal mitochondrial structure. Our genetic analysis has also indicated that rad-8 has a causative mutation in the F56H1.6 gene, which encodes a mitochondrial dehydrogenase/reductase. The functional role of RAD-8 may be evolutionarily conserved because expression of the putative human homologue RTN4IP/NIMP in rad-8 rescued the increased sensitivity to oxygen in rad-8. These results suggest that RAD-8 plays an important role in oxygen metabolism in mitochondria in higher eukaryotes.
authors: Graduate School of Nanobioscience, Yokohama City University, Kanazawa-ku, Japan. mifuji@yokohama-cu.ac.jp
authors: Michihiko
authors: M
authors: Fujii
authors: Kayo
authors: K
authors: Yasuda
authors: Phil S
authors: PS
authors: Hartman
authors: Dai
authors: D
authors: Ayusawa
authors: Naoaki
authors: N
authors: Ishii
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000235:genetics; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics*; D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D004579:Electron Transport / Q000502:physiology; D015870:Gene Expression; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D050259:Genes, Mitochondrial; D008297:Male; D008928:Mitochondria / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics / Q000648:ultrastructure; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009154:Mutation / Q000235:genetics*; D018384:Oxidative Stress; D010088:Oxidoreductases / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D016415:Sequence Alignment
chemical_list: D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins; C569258:rad-8 protein, C elegans; D010088:Oxidoreductases