CGC Bibliography Paper 5729

Positive selection of Caenorhabditis elegans mutants with increased stress resistance and longevity.

Munoz MJ, Riddle DL

Medline:

12586705

Citation:

Genetics 163: 171-180 2003

Type:

ARTICLE

Genes:

aap-1 age-1 daf-1 daf-2 daf-7 daf-16 dyf-2 liv-2 liv-4 liv-5 unc-13 unc-18 unc-31 unc-64

Abstract:

We developed selective conditions for long-lived mutants of the nematode Caenorbabditis elegans by subjecting the first larval stage (L1) to thermal stress at 30degrees for 7 days. The surviving larvae developed to fertile adults after the temperature was shifted to 15degrees. A total of one million F-2 progeny and a half million F-3 progeny of ethyl-methanesulfonate-mutagenized animals were treated in three separate experiments. Among the 81 putative mutants that recovered and matured to the reproductive adult, 63 retested as thermotolerant and 49 (80%) exhibited a >15% increase in mean life span. All the known classes of dauer formation (Daf) mutant that affect longevity were found, including six new alleles of daf-2, and a unique temperature-sensifive, dauer-constitutive allele of age 1. Alleles of dyf-2 and unc-13 were isolated, and mutants of unc-18, a gene that interacts with unc-13, were also found to be long lived. Thirteen additional mutations define at least four new genes.