IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/nat/nature/v403y2000i6769d10.1038_35000609.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Food and metabolic signalling defects in a Caenorhabditis elegans serotonin-synthesis mutant

Author

Listed:
  • Ji Ying Sze

    (Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School
    University of California)

  • Martin Victor

    (Harvard Medical School)

  • Curtis Loer

    (University of San Diego)

  • Yang Shi

    (Harvard Medical School)

  • Gary Ruvkun

    (Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School)

Abstract

The functions of serotonin have been assigned through serotonin-receptor-specific drugs and mutants1,2; however, because a constellation of receptors remains when a single receptor subtype is inhibited, the coordinate responses to modulation of serotonin levels may be missed. Here we report the analysis of behavioural and neuroendocrine defects caused by a complete lack of serotonin signalling. Analysis of the C. elegans genome sequence showed that there is a single tryptophan hydroxylase gene (tph-1)—the key enzyme for serotonin biosynthesis. Animals bearing a tph-1 deletion mutation do not synthesize serotonin but are fully viable. The tph-1 mutant shows abnormalities in behaviour and metabolism that are normally coupled with the sensation and ingestion of food: rates of feeding and egg laying are decreased; large amounts of fat are stored; reproductive lifespan is increased; and some animals arrest at the metabolically inactive dauer stage. This metabolic dysregulation is, in part, due to downregulation of tranforming growth factor-β and insulin-like neuroendocrine signals. The action of the C. elegans serotonergic system in metabolic control is similar to mammalian serotonergic input to metabolism and obesity2.

Suggested Citation

  • Ji Ying Sze & Martin Victor & Curtis Loer & Yang Shi & Gary Ruvkun, 2000. "Food and metabolic signalling defects in a Caenorhabditis elegans serotonin-synthesis mutant," Nature, Nature, vol. 403(6769), pages 560-564, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:nature:v:403:y:2000:i:6769:d:10.1038_35000609
    DOI: 10.1038/35000609
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/35000609
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1038/35000609?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Tripti Nair & Brandy A. Weathers & Nicole L. Stuhr & James D. Nhan & Sean P. Curran, 2024. "Serotonin deficiency from constitutive SKN-1 activation drives pathogen apathy," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-14, December.
    2. Mikaeli Anne Carmichael & Rebecca Louise Thomson & Lisa Jane Moran & Thomas Philip Wycherley, 2021. "The Impact of Menstrual Cycle Phase on Athletes’ Performance: A Narrative Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(4), pages 1-24, February.
    3. Rebecca Cornell & Wei Cao & Bernie Harradine & Rasoul Godini & Ava Handley & Roger Pocock, 2024. "Neuro-intestinal acetylcholine signalling regulates the mitochondrial stress response in Caenorhabditis elegans," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-12, December.
    4. Hillary A. Miller & Shijiao Huang & Elizabeth S. Dean & Megan L. Schaller & Angela M. Tuckowski & Allyson S. Munneke & Safa Beydoun & Scott D. Pletcher & Scott F. Leiser, 2022. "Serotonin and dopamine modulate aging in response to food odor and availability," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-13, December.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:nat:nature:v:403:y:2000:i:6769:d:10.1038_35000609. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.nature.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.