Cell and Developmental Biology Commons^™

Regulation Of The Heat Shock Response Via Lysine Acetyltransferase Cbp-1 And In Neurodegenerative Disease In Caenorhabditis Elegans, Lindsey N. Barrett

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The decline of proteostasis is a hallmark of aging that is, in part, affected by the dysregulation of the heat shock response (HSR), a highly conserved cellular response to proteotoxic stress in the cell. The heat shock transcription factor HSF-1 is well-studied as a key regulator of proteostasis, but mechanisms that could be used to modulate HSF-1 function to enhance proteostasis during aging are largely unknown. In this study, we examined lysine acetyltransferase regulation of the HSR and HSF-1 in C. elegans. We performed an RNA interference screen of lysine acetyltransferases and examined mRNA expression of the heat-shock inducible gene …

The Effects Of Aging On Wound Healing And Limb Regeneration In The Axolotl, Hande Sahin

Graduate Masters Theses

The Mexican axolotl is capable of regenerating various parts of its body and maintains this capacity throughout its entire life. Although this ability is sustained through adulthood, multiple regenerative processes appear to be negatively affected by aging. Here, we focus on evaluating the effect of aging on the rate of wound healing and limb regeneration. We have developed new in vivo, and ex vivo assays to characterize wound healing and identify differences between young and aged animals during this process. We have also characterized morphological features of mature skin from both groups of animals and although there are no obvious …

Dna Damage And Aging In Progeria Compared To Healthy Cells., Ashtyn Marie Hill

Chancellor’s Honors Program Projects

No abstract provided.

Age-Associated Methylation Suppresses Spry1, Leading To A Failure Of Re-Quiescence And Loss Of The Reserve Stem Cell Pool In Elderly Muscle., Anne Bigot, William J Duddy, Zamalou G Ouandaogo, Elisa Negroni, Virginie Mariot, Svetlana Ghimbovschi, Brennan Harmon, Aurore Wielgosik, Camille Loiseau, Joseph Devaney, Julie Dumonceaux, Gillian Butler-Browne, Vincent Mouly, Stéphanie Duguez

Genomics and Precision Medicine Faculty Publications

The molecular mechanisms by which aging affects stem cell number and function are poorly understood. Murine data have implicated cellular senescence in the loss of muscle stem cells with aging. Here, using human cells and by carrying out experiments within a strictly pre-senescent division count, we demonstrate an impaired capacity for stem cell self-renewal in elderly muscle. We link aging to an increased methylation of the SPRY1 gene, a known regulator of muscle stem cell quiescence. Replenishment of the reserve cell pool was modulated experimentally by demethylation or siRNA knockdown of SPRY1. We propose that suppression of SPRY1 by age-associated …

High-Throughput Screening Of Age-Related Changes In Caenorhabditis Elegans, Neil Copes

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This project was developed to identify novel methods for high-throughput culturing and screening of C. elegans to investigate age-related metabolic changes and to survey the proteomic and metabolomic factors associated with age-related changes. To accomplish these goals we developed a novel way to grow C. elegans in liquid culture in 96-well microplates for several weeks without suffering significant fluid loss due to evaporation and without needing to shake or unseal the plates for aeration. We also developed methods for assaying the total volume of live C. elegans in microplate cultures using a fluorescence microplate reader and for performing RNAi experiments …

The Effects Of Supplemented Metabolites On Lifespan And Stress Response Pathways In Caenorhabditis Elegans, Clare B. Edwards

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Understanding how metabolites contribute to anaplerosis, antioxidant effects, and hormetic pathways during aging is fundamental to creating supplements and dietary habits that may decrease age-associated disease and decline, thus improving the quality of life in old age. In order to uncover metabolic pathways that delay aging, the effects of large sets of metabolites associated with mitochondrial function on lifespan were investigated.

Malate, the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle metabolite, increased lifespan and thermotolerance in C. elegans. Addition of fumarate and succinate also extended lifespan and all three metabolites activated nuclear translocation of the cytoprotective DAF-16/FOXO transcription factor and protected from paraquat-induced …

Subcellular Analysis Of The Disulfide Proteome In P66shc Expressing Nerve Cells, Tyler Cann

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The longevity associated protein p66Shc has been suggested to regulate organismal lifespan through initiation of apoptotic pathways. Following stress-induced translocation into the mitochondria, p66Shc promotes increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and triggers poorly defined downstream signaling events that lead to decreased cell viability. Protein disulfide bonding has recently emerged as aROSdependent post-translational modification that regulates protein function and signaling processes. Using the mouse hippocampal HT-22 cell line, I sought to determine the changes in the disulfide proteome associated with p66Shc mediatedROSproduction. Through Redox 2D-SDSPAGEanalysis of mitochondrial and cytosolic extracts, redox sensitive proteins altered by p66Shc mediatedROSformation were identified. Of …

Effects Of Aging On Regulators Of Muscle Apoptosis In The Female F344bn Rat, Murali K. Gadde

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Age-related muscle atrophy is a consequence of normal aging characterized by decreases in muscle mass and strength. The mechanism(s) underlying the loss of muscle mass with increasing age is not fully understood, however recent data has suggested that muscle cell apoptosis may be involved. Here we investigate how aging affects the regulation of muscle apoptosis in the extensor digitorum longus (EDL) and soleus muscles of young (6-month), aged (26-month), and very aged (30-month) female Fischer 344/NNiaHSD X Brown Norway / BiNia (F344BN) rats. EDL and soleus muscle mass/body weight ratios were lower in aged animals but not different between 26- …

Short Telomeres In Short-Lived Males: What Are The Molecular And Evolutionary Causes?, Stephanie Jemielity, Masayuki Kimura, Karen M. Parker, Joel D. Parker, Xiaojian Cao, Abraham Aviv, Laurent Keller

Joel D Parker

Telomere length regulation is an important aspect of cell maintenance in eukaryotes, since shortened telomeres can lead to a number of defects, including impaired cell division. Although telomere length is correlated with lifespan in some bird species, its possible role in aging and lifespan determination is still poorly understood. Here we investigate telomere dynamics (changes in telomere length and attrition rate) and telomerase activity in the ant Lasius niger, a species in which different groups of individuals have evolved extraordinarily different lifespans. We found that somatic tissues of the short-lived males had dramatically shorter telomeres than those of the much …