Abstract
For several years, DEAD box RNA helicase Vasa (DDX4) has been used as a bona fide germline marker in different organisms. C. elegans VBH-1 is a close homolog of the Vasa protein, which plays an important role in gametogenesis, germ cell survival and embryonic development. Here, we show that VBH-1 protects nematodes from heat shock and oxidative stress. Using the germline-defective mutant glp-4(bn2) we found that a potential somatic expression of vbh-1 might be important for stress survival. We also show that the VBH-1 paralog LAF-1 is important for stress survival, although this protein is not redundant with its counterpart. Furthermore, we observed that the mRNAs of the heat shock proteins hsp-1 and sip-1 are downregulated when vbh-1 or laf-1 are silenced. Previously, we reported that in C. elegans, VBH-1 was primarily expressed in P granules of germ cells and in the cytoplasm of all blastomeres. Here we show that during stress, VBH-1 co-localizes with CGH-1 in large aggregates in the gonad core and oocytes; however, VBH-1 aggregates do not overlap with CGH-1 foci in early embryos under the same conditions. These data demonstrate that, in addition to the previously described role for this protein in the germline, VBH-1 plays an important role during the stress response in C. elegans through the potential direct or indirect regulation of stress response mRNAs.
Publication types
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Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
MeSH terms
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Animals
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Animals, Genetically Modified
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Caenorhabditis elegans / genetics*
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Caenorhabditis elegans / metabolism*
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Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins / chemistry
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Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins / genetics*
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Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins / metabolism*
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DEAD-box RNA Helicases / chemistry
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DEAD-box RNA Helicases / genetics*
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DEAD-box RNA Helicases / metabolism*
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Gene Expression Regulation
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Gonads / metabolism
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Heat-Shock Proteins / genetics
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Protein Binding
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Protein Interaction Domains and Motifs
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Protein Transport
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RNA Interference
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RNA Nucleotidyltransferases / metabolism
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RNA, Messenger / genetics
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Stress, Physiological / genetics*
Substances
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Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins
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Heat-Shock Proteins
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RNA, Messenger
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RNA Nucleotidyltransferases
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VBH-1 protein, C elegans
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cgh-1 protein, C elegans
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DEAD-box RNA Helicases
Grants and funding
This project was supported by grants from LOREAL/UNESCO, PAPIIT-UNAM (IN225509 and IN207412) and CONACYT-MEXICO (50896Q and 103856-Q). This study was performed in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Ph.D. degree in Biomedical Sciences of DP at the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico. DP received a Ph.D. fellowship from CONACyT-Mexico and a CONACyT/Grant fellowship (103856-Q) to complete his studies. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.