Abstract: In this paper, 1 mmol/L glucose or 0.02 mmol/L palmitic acid was added to nematode growth medium (NGM) to induce Caenorhabditis elegans fat deposition. Along with the increased fat deposition, lysosomal numbers and acidification levels were also elevated. This suggests that lysosome might regulate nutrient-induced fat deposition. Using lysosomal inhibitor chloroquine and the mutant of hlh-30 that is a key gene involving in lysosomal biosynthesis to inhibit the activity of lysosome, this paper found that lysosome inhibition significantly reduced C. elegans fat deposition. Utilizing various mutants of aak-2, daf-15 and rsks-1, which are key factors in lysosomal nutrient sensing and lipid metabolism-related signaling pathways, the paper explored that mTORC1 signaling pathway mediated the effect of lysosome on nutrient-induced fat deposition in C. elegans. The results show the role of lysosomal activity in nutrient-induced C. elegans fat deposition.
Keywords: lysosome; overnutrition; Caenorhabditis elegans; fat deposition