Loss of the seipin gene perturbs eggshell formation in Caenorhabditis elegans
Journal
Development (Cambridge, England)
Journal Volume
147
Journal Issue
20
Date Issued
2020
Author(s)
Bai, Xiaofei
Huang, Leng-Jie
Chen, Sheng-Wen
Nebenfuehr, Benjamin
Wysolmerski, Brian
Olson, Sara K
Golden, Andy
Wang, Chao-Wen
Abstract
Seipin, an evolutionary conserved protein, plays pivotal roles during lipid droplet (LD) biogenesis and is associated with various human diseases with unclear mechanisms. Here, we analyzed Caenorhabditis elegans mutants deleted of the sole SEIPIN gene, seip-1 Homozygous seip-1 mutants displayed penetrant embryonic lethality, which is caused by the disruption of the lipid-rich permeability barrier, the innermost layer of the C. elegans embryonic eggshell. In C. elegans oocytes and embryos, SEIP-1 is associated with LDs and is crucial for controlling LD size and lipid homeostasis. The seip-1 deletion mutants reduced the ratio of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) in their embryonic fatty acid pool. Interestingly, dietary supplementation of selected n-6 PUFAs rescued the embryonic lethality and defective permeability barrier. Accordingly, we propose that SEIP-1 may maternally regulate LD biogenesis and lipid homeostasis to orchestrate the formation of the permeability barrier for eggshell synthesis during embryogenesis. A lipodystrophy allele of seip-1 resulted in embryonic lethality as well and could be rescued by PUFA supplementation. These experiments support a great potential for using C. elegans to model SEIPIN-associated human diseases.
Subjects
Eggshell; Fatty acid; Lipid droplet; PUFAs; Permeability barrier; Seipin
SDGs
Other Subjects
fat droplet; membrane protein; omega 6 fatty acid; seipin 1; unclassified drug; Caenorhabditis elegans protein; fat droplet; unsaturated fatty acid; adult; allele; animal cell; animal experiment; animal model; animal tissue; Article; biogenesis; Caenorhabditis elegans; confocal microscopy; controlled study; data analysis software; deletion mutant; diet supplementation; egg shell; embryo; embryo development; fatty acid synthesis; female; homozygosity; lethality; lipid analysis; lipid homeostasis; lipodystrophy; male; nonhuman; oocyte; permeability barrier; phenotype; priority journal; transmission electron microscopy; young adult; animal; Caenorhabditis elegans; dietary supplement; disease model; drug effect; egg shell; embryology; fertilization; gene; gene deletion; gene expression regulation; genetics; human; lipidomics; metabolism; mutation; nonmammalian embryo; ovulation; permeability; Saccharomyces cerevisiae; ultrastructure; Animals; Caenorhabditis elegans; Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins; Dietary Supplements; Disease Models, Animal; Egg Shell; Embryo, Nonmammalian; Fatty Acids, Unsaturated; Fertilization; Gene Deletion; Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; Genes, Helminth; Humans; Lipid Droplets; Lipidomics; Mutation; Oocytes; Ovulation; Permeability; Saccharomyces cerevisiae
Publisher
COMPANY BIOLOGISTS LTD
Type
journal article