Dataset Information

Receptor-mediated endocytosis in the Caenorhabditis elegans oocyte.

ABSTRACT: The Caenorhabditis elegans oocyte is a highly amenable system for forward and reverse genetic analysis of receptor-mediated endocytosis. We describe the use of transgenic strains expressing a vitellogenin::green fluorescent protein (YP170::GFP) fusion to monitor yolk endocytosis by the C. elegans oocyte in vivo. This YP170::GFP reporter was used to assay the functions of C. elegans predicted proteins homologous to vertebrate endocytosis factors using RNA-mediated interference. We show that the basic components and pathways of endocytic trafficking are conserved between C. elegans and vertebrates, and that this system can be used to test the endocytic functions of any new gene. We also used the YP170::GFP assay to identify rme (receptor-mediated endocytosis) mutants. We describe a new member of the low-density lipoprotein receptor superfamily, RME-2, identified in our screens for endocytosis defective mutants. We show that RME-2 is the C. elegans yolk receptor.

SUBMITTER: Grant B

PROVIDER: S-EPMC25760 | biostudies-literature | 1999 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Receptor-mediated endocytosis in the Caenorhabditis elegans oocyte.

Grant B B Hirsh D D

Molecular biology of the cell 19991201 12

The Caenorhabditis elegans oocyte is a highly amenable system for forward and reverse genetic analysis of receptor-mediated endocytosis. We describe the use of transgenic strains expressing a vitellogenin::green fluorescent protein (YP170::GFP) fusion to monitor yolk endocytosis by the C. elegans oocyte in vivo. This YP170::GFP reporter was used to assay the functions of C. elegans predicted proteins homologous to vertebrate endocytosis factors using RNA-mediated interference. We show that the b ...[more]

PMID: 10588660

Similar Datasets

Project description:BackgroundTemperature influences biology at all levels, from altering rates of biochemical reactions to determining sustainability of entire ecosystems. Although extended exposure to elevated temperatures influences organismal phenotypes important for human health, agriculture, and ecology, the molecular mechanisms that drive these responses remain largely unexplored. Prolonged, mild temperature stress (48 h at 28 °C) has been shown to inhibit reproduction in Caenorhabditis elegans without significantly impacting motility or viability.ResultsAnalysis of molecular responses to chronic stress using RNA-seq uncovers dramatic effects on the transcriptome that are fundamentally distinct from the well-characterized, acute heat shock response (HSR). While a large portion of the genome is differentially expressed ≥ 4-fold after 48 h at 28 °C, the only major class of oogenesis-associated genes affected is the vitellogenin gene family that encodes for yolk proteins (YPs). Whereas YP mRNAs decrease, the proteins accumulate and mislocalize in the pseudocoelomic space as early as 6 h, well before reproduction declines. A trafficking defect in a second, unrelated fluorescent reporter and a decrease in pre-synaptic neuronal signaling indicate that the YP mislocalization is caused by a generalized defect in endocytosis. Molecular chaperones are involved in both endocytosis and refolding damaged proteins. Decreasing levels of the major HSP70 chaperone, HSP-1, causes similar YP trafficking defects in the absence of stress. Conversely, increasing chaperone levels through overexpression of the transcription factor HSF-1 rescues YP trafficking and restores neuronal signaling.ConclusionsThese data implicate chaperone titration during chronic stress as a molecular mechanism contributing to endocytic defects that influence multiple aspects of organismal physiology. Notably, HSF-1 overexpression improves recovery of viable offspring after exposure to stress. These findings provide important molecular insights into understanding organismal responses to temperature stress as well as phenotypes associated with chronic protein misfolding.

Dataset Information

Receptor-mediated endocytosis in the Caenorhabditis elegans oocyte.

Publications

Receptor-mediated endocytosis in the Caenorhabditis elegans oocyte.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure