Unsaturated Fatty Acids Are Required for Germline Proliferation and Membrane Structural Integrity in <i>Caenorhabditis elegans</i>.

ABSTRACT: Unsaturated fatty acids (UFAs) are critical components of membrane lipids, but their specific roles in germline development and reproductive health remain poorly defined. Here, we investigated the consequences of UFA depletion in the Caenorhabditis elegans germline using an auxin-inducible degron (AID) system to conditionally degrade FAT-7, the major Δ9 stearoyl-CoA desaturase, in a fat-5; fat-6 double mutant background. This strategy bypassed the lethality associated with complete loss of Δ9 desaturase activity, enabling analysis of UFA deficiency in adult animals. UFA depletion led to a dramatic reduction in brood size, elevated embryonic and larval lethality, and a severe loss of germline nuclei. We found that UFAs are essential for mitotic proliferation, DNA replication,

SUBMITTER: Battista B 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12324212 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature