The Transcription Factor DAF-16 is Essential for Increased Longevity in C. elegans Exposed to Bifidobacterium longum BB68

Sci Rep. 2017 Aug 7;7(1):7408. doi: 10.1038/s41598-017-07974-3.

Abstract

The longevity-promoting benefits of lactobacilli were hypothesized as early as 1907. Although the anti-aging effects of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) have been observed in nematodes, rodents and humans for over a century, the mechanisms underlying the effects of probiotics on aging have rarely been assessed. Using the Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) model, various studies have elucidated the role of different signaling cascades, especially the DAF-16 cascade, on lifespan extension by LAB. In this study, the mechanisms through which Bifidobacterium longum strain BB68 affects the longevity of C. elegans were assessed. The lifespan of nematodes increased by 28% after worms were fed BB68, and this extension of lifespan was completely lost in backgrounds containing a mutated DAF-16 gene. High levels of DAF-16 (in the daf-16 (mu86); muIs61 strain) nuclear accumulation and high expression of the SOD-3 gene (a DAF-16-specific target gene) were observed as a result of BB68 treatment. Immunofluorescence microscopy revealed that TIR-1 and JNK-1 are involved in the phosphorylation and activation of DAF-16. Thus, BB68 increased the longevity of nematodes by activating the TIR-1 - JNK-1 - DAF-16 signaling pathway, and the cell wall component of BB68 contributed to longevity.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Bifidobacteriales Infections
  • Bifidobacterium longum / growth & development*
  • Caenorhabditis elegans / microbiology*
  • Caenorhabditis elegans / physiology*
  • Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins / analysis
  • Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins / metabolism*
  • Cell Nucleus / chemistry
  • Forkhead Transcription Factors / metabolism*
  • Longevity*
  • Microscopy, Fluorescence
  • Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases / metabolism*
  • Phosphorylation
  • Protein Processing, Post-Translational
  • Receptors, G-Protein-Coupled / metabolism*
  • Signal Transduction
  • Superoxide Dismutase / analysis

Substances

  • Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins
  • Forkhead Transcription Factors
  • Receptors, G-Protein-Coupled
  • daf-16 protein, C elegans
  • tir-1 protein, C elegans
  • Sod-3 protein, C elegans
  • Superoxide Dismutase
  • JNK-1 protein, C elegans
  • Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases