Light and Hydrogen Peroxide Inhibit C. elegans Feeding through Gustatory Receptor Orthologs and Pharyngeal Neurons

Bhatla, Nikhil; Horvitz, H. Robert

doi:10.1016/j.neuron.2014.12.061

Cited by 131 publications

(271 citation statements)

References 56 publications

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“…For example, in Drosophila and C. elegans, light has been shown to drive cellular signaling via newly discovered signaling pathways (Edwards et al 2008;Liu et al 2010;Xiang et al 2010). In C. elegans, reactive oxygen species driven by illumination have been implicated in this signaling (Bhatla and Horvitz 2015). Light-receptive molecules have been reported to exist in brains of the vertebrates (Okano et al 1994;Blackshaw and Snyder 1999;Koyanagi et al 2013).…”

Section: Heat and Lightmentioning

confidence: 99%

Principles of designing interpretable optogenetic behavior experiments

2015

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Over the last decade, there has been much excitement about the use of optogenetic tools to test whether specific cells, regions, and projection pathways are necessary or sufficient for initiating, sustaining, or altering behavior. However, the use of such tools can result in side effects that can complicate experimental design or interpretation. The presence of optogenetic proteins in cells, the effects of heat and light, and the activity of specific ions conducted by optogenetic proteins can result in cellular side effects. At the network level, activation or silencing of defined neural populations can alter the physiology of local or distant circuits, sometimes in undesired ways. We discuss how, in order to design interpretable behavioral experiments using optogenetics, one can understand, and control for, these potential confounds.

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Section: Heat and Lightmentioning

confidence: 99%

Principles of designing interpretable optogenetic behavior experiments

2015

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“…Nematodes have an extremely sensitive thermosensory system capable of discriminating temperature changes as small as 0.05°C by means of the AFD and AWC sensory neurons, through the activation of guanylate cyclases and the TAX-2/TAX-4 cyclic nucleotide-gated channel (40)(41)(42). Regarding light sensing, at least two noncanonical photoreceptors of the GPCR gustatory receptor family, LITE-1 and GUR-3, were reported to sense short-length UV light directly or indirectly through a phototransduction pathway in which TAX-2 and TAX-4 also participate (39,43,44). Although photoreceptors are expressed in many neurons in the nervous system of the nematode, the ASJ, AWB, ASK, and ASH neurons have been reported to play a major role as photoreceptor cells for phototaxis in a redundant manner (45).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Briefly, both pathways are based on G protein-coupled transmembrane receptors able to sense either light or temperature. These receptors activate a G protein that turns on a series of pathway-specific guanylate cyclases, increasing cGMP concentration and activating the TAX-4/ TAX-2 cyclic nucleotide-gated channel (39,(41)(42)(43)(44). Although the mechanisms underlying light and temperature sensing are well described, and most of the molecular components of the cascades have been reported, very little is known about the role of these pathways in the synchronization of the nematode clock.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Circadian rhythms identified in Caenorhabditis elegans by in vivo long-term monitoring of a bioluminescent reporter

Goya

Romanowski

Caldart

et al. 2016

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Circadian rhythms are based on endogenous clocks that allow organisms to adjust their physiology and behavior by entrainment to the solar day and, in turn, to select the optimal times for most biological variables. Diverse model systems-including mice, flies, fungi, plants, and bacteria-have provided important insights into the mechanisms of circadian rhythmicity. However, the general principles that govern the circadian clock of Caenorhabditis elegans have remained largely elusive. Here we report robust molecular circadian rhythms in C. elegans recorded with a bioluminescence assay in vivo and demonstrate the main features of the circadian system of the nematode. By constructing a luciferase-based reporter coupled to the promoter of the suppressor of activated let-60 Ras (sur-5) gene, we show in both population and single-nematode assays that C. elegans expresses ∼24-h rhythms that can be entrained by light/dark and temperature cycles. We provide evidence that these rhythms are temperature-compensated and can be re-entrained after phase changes of the synchronizing agents.In addition, we demonstrate that light and temperature sensing requires the photoreceptors LITE and GUR-3, and the cyclic nucleotidegated channel subunit TAX-2. Our results shed light on C. elegans circadian biology and demonstrate evolutionarily conserved features in the circadian system of the nematode.C. elegans | circadian rhythms | luminescence | temperature | light

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“…The results described by Bhatla et al [2] are part of a third wave of studies on pharyngeal nervous system function, and highlight the importance of detailed functional studies to understand the neural basis of behavior [7][8][9][10][11]. The authors combined laser ablation of specific neurons with newer tools, such as optogenetic stimulation and calcium imaging, to demonstrate that there are at least three independent circuits for inhibiting feeding, serving the function of the ''control circuit'' originally proposed by Albertson and Thomson [2].…”

mentioning

confidence: 91%