Search results for "C. elegans"
showing 10 items of 11 documents
Sigma-1 Receptor Activation Induces Autophagy and Increases Proteostasis Capacity In Vitro and In Vivo
2019
Dysfunction of autophagy and disturbed protein homeostasis are linked to the pathogenesis of human neurodegenerative diseases and the modulation of autophagy as the protein clearance process has become one key pharmacological target. Due to the role of sigma-1 receptors (Sig-1R) in learning and memory, and the described pleiotropic neuroprotective effects in various experimental paradigms, Sig-1R activation is recognized as one potential approach for prevention and therapy of neurodegeneration and, interestingly, in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis associated with mutated Sig-1R, autophagy is disturbed. Here we analyzed the effects of tetrahydro-N,N-dimethyl-2,2-diphenyl-3-furanmethanamine hyd…
Increased Stress Resistance and Lifespan in Chaenorhabditis elegans Wildtype and Knockout Mutants—Implications for Depression Treatment by Medicinal …
2021
Depression and anxiety disorders are widespread diseases, and they belong to the leading causes of disability and greatest burdens on healthcare systems worldwide. It is expected that the numbers will dramatically rise during the COVID-19 pandemic. Established medications are not sufficient to adequately treat depression and are not available for everyone. Plants from traditional medicine may be promising alternatives to treat depressive symptoms. The model organism Chaenorhabditis elegans was used to assess the stress reducing effects of methanol/dichlormethane extracts from plants used in traditional medicine. After initial screening for antioxidant activity, nine extracts were selected f…
Function and Evolution of Nematode RNAi Pathways
2019
Selfish genetic elements, like transposable elements or viruses, are a threat to genomic stability. A variety of processes, including small RNA-based RNA interference (RNAi)-like pathways, has evolved to counteract these elements. Amongst these, endogenous small interfering RNA and Piwi-interacting RNA (piRNA) pathways were implicated in silencing selfish genetic elements in a variety of organisms. Nematodes have several incredibly specialized, rapidly evolving endogenous RNAi-like pathways serving such purposes. Here, we review recent research regarding the RNAi-like pathways of Caenorhabditis elegans as well as those of other nematodes, to provide an evolutionary perspective. We argue tha…
UNC-52/perlecan affects gonadal leader cell migrations in C. elegans hermaphrodites through alterations in growth factor signaling.
2003
0012-1606 doi: DOI: 10.1016/S0012-1606(03)00014-9; The unc-52 gene of Claenorhabditis elegans encodes a homologue of the basement membrane heparan sulfate proteoglycan perlecan. Viable alleles reduce the abundance of UNC-52 in late larval stages and increase the frequency of distal tip cell (DTC) migration defects caused by mutations disrupting the UNC-6/netrin guidance system. These unc-52 alleles do not cause circumferential DTC migration defects in an otherwise wild-type genetic background. The effects of unc-52 mutations on DTC migrations are distinct from effects on myofilament organization and can be partially suppressed by mutations in several genes encoding growth factor-like molecu…
Serotonergic transcriptional regulatory logic in Caenorhabditis elegans
2017
Tesis doctoral, 298 páginas, figuras y tablas
In vivo Antimicrobial Activity Assessment of a Cauliflower By-Product Extract Against Salmonella Typhimurium
2020
The main objective of this work was to study the antimicrobial effect of a cauliflower by-product infusion into an affordable in vivo model (Caenorhabditis elegans). The infusion demonstrated some protective effect on non-infected and infected worms with Salmonella Typhimurium as indicated by higher survival percentile values (75, 50, 25, and 5% percentiles) as compared with those from worms unexposed to the infusion. The antimicrobial effect of the infusion was evaluated on Salmonella intestinal colonization of infected worms (24, 48, and 96 h post-infection). At 96 h post-infection, the concentration of Salmonella was reduced around 2 log cycles in infected cauliflower treated group (p < …
Computing temporal sequences associated with dynamic patterns on the C. elegans connectome
2021
AbstractUnderstanding how the structural connectivity of a network constrains the dynamics it is able to support is a very active and open area of research. We simulated the plausible dynamics resulting from the known C. elegans connectome using a recent model and theoretical analysis that computes the dynamics of neurobiological networks by focusing on how local interactions among connected neurons give rise to the global dynamics in an emergent way, independent of the biophysical or molecular details of the cells themselves. We studied the dynamics which resulted from stimulating a chemosensory neuron (ASEL) in a known feeding circuit, both in isolation and embedded in the full connectome…
Validación funcional de extractos polifenólicos de cacao mediante ensayos in vivo con organismos modelo
2016
Los polifenoles son los principales antioxidantes de la dieta y a ellos se les atribuyen múltiples propiedades beneficiosas, como la prevención de enfermedades cardiovasculares, tumorales y degenerativas, que pueden aparecer como consecuencia del estrés oxidativo. El cacao representa una fuente interesante de polifenoles en la dieta, dado su amplio consumo y su riqueza en estos compuestos bioactivos. La actividad antioxidante de los polifenoles en general, y en concreto de los polifenoles del cacao, ha sido ampliamente evaluada in vitro. Sin embargo, los ensayos in vitro no tienen en cuenta aspectos fundamentales en organismos vivos como son la biodisponibilidad y metabolismo, ni proporcion…
Novel Modulators of Proteostasis: RNAi Screen of Chromosome I in a Heat Stress Paradigm in C. elegans
2018
Proteostasis is of vital importance for cellular function and it is challenged upon exposure to acute or chronic insults during neurodegeneration and aging. The proteostasis network is relevant for the maintenance of proteome integrity and mainly comprises molecular chaperones and two degradation pathways, namely, autophagy and the ubiquitin proteasome system. This network is characterized by an impressive functional interrelation and complexity, and occasionally novel factors are discovered that modulate proteostasis. Here, we present an RNAi screen in C. elegans, which aimed to identify modulators of proteostasis in a heat stress paradigm. The screen comprised genes that are located on ch…
RAB3GAP1 and RAB3GAP2 modulate basal and rapamycin-induced autophagy
2014
Macroautophagy is a degradative pathway that sequesters and transports cytosolic cargo in autophagosomes to lysosomes, and its deterioration affects intracellular proteostasis. Membrane dynamics accompanying autophagy are mostly elusive and depend on trafficking processes. RAB GTPase activating proteins (RABGAPs) are important factors for the coordination of cellular vesicle transport systems, and several TBC (TRE2-BUB2-CDC16) domain-containing RABGAPs are associated with autophagy. Employing C. elegans and human primary fibroblasts, we show that RAB3GAP1 and RAB3GAP2, which are components of the TBC domain-free RAB3GAP complex, influence protein aggregation and affect autophagy at basal an…