Harnessing Microbial Tools: Escherichia coli as a Vehicle for Neuropeptide Functional Analysis in Caenorhabditis elegans.

IF 5.1 3区生物学 Q2 GENETICS & HEREDITY

Genetics Pub Date : 2025-08-06 DOI:10.1093/genetics/iyaf155

Elizabeth M DiLoreto, Shruti Shastry, Emily J Leptich, Douglas K Reilly, Rachel N Arey, Jagan Srinivasan

引用次数: 0

Abstract

Animals respond to changes in their environment and internal states via neuromodulation. Neuropeptides modulate neural circuits with flexibility because one gene can produce either multiple copies of the same neuropeptide or different neuropeptides. However, with this architectural complexity, the function of discrete and active neuropeptides is muddled. Here, we design a genetic tool that facilitates functional analysis of individual peptides. We engineered Escherichia coli bacteria to express active peptides, fed loss-of-function Caenorhabditis elegans, and rescued the activity of genes with varying lengths and functions: pdf-1, flp-3, ins-6, and ins-22. Some peptides were functionally redundant, while others exhibit unique and previously uncharacterized functions. We postulate our rescue-by-feeding approach can elucidate the functional landscape of neuropeptides, identifying the circuits and complex peptidergic pathways that regulate different behavioral and physiological processes.

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利用微生物工具：大肠杆菌作为秀丽隐杆线虫神经肽功能分析的载体。

动物通过神经调节对环境和内部状态的变化做出反应。神经肽可以灵活地调节神经回路，因为一个基因既可以产生相同的神经肽的多个副本，也可以产生不同的神经肽。然而，由于这种结构的复杂性，离散和活性神经肽的功能是混乱的。在这里，我们设计了一个遗传工具，促进单个肽的功能分析。我们设计了大肠杆菌来表达活性肽，喂养失去功能的秀丽隐杆线虫，并恢复了不同长度和功能的基因的活性：pdf-1， flip -3， ins-6和ins-22。一些肽在功能上是冗余的，而另一些则表现出独特的和以前未表征的功能。我们假设我们的喂食拯救方法可以阐明神经肽的功能景观，识别调节不同行为和生理过程的回路和复杂的肽能途径。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Genetics GENETICS & HEREDITY-

CiteScore

6.90

自引率

6.10%

发文量

177

审稿时长

1.5 months

期刊介绍： GENETICS is published by the Genetics Society of America, a scholarly society that seeks to deepen our understanding of the living world by advancing our understanding of genetics. Since 1916, GENETICS has published high-quality, original research presenting novel findings bearing on genetics and genomics. The journal publishes empirical studies of organisms ranging from microbes to humans, as well as theoretical work. While it has an illustrious history, GENETICS has changed along with the communities it serves: it is not your mentor''s journal. The editors make decisions quickly – in around 30 days – without sacrificing the excellence and scholarship for which the journal has long been known. GENETICS is a peer reviewed, peer-edited journal, with an international reach and increasing visibility and impact. All editorial decisions are made through collaboration of at least two editors who are practicing scientists. GENETICS is constantly innovating: expanded types of content include Reviews, Commentary (current issues of interest to geneticists), Perspectives (historical), Primers (to introduce primary literature into the classroom), Toolbox Reviews, plus YeastBook, FlyBook, and WormBook (coming spring 2016). For particularly time-sensitive results, we publish Communications. As part of our mission to serve our communities, we''ve published thematic collections, including Genomic Selection, Multiparental Populations, Mouse Collaborative Cross, and the Genetics of Sex.