2D NMR-based metabolomics uncovers interactions between conserved biochemical pathways in the model organism Caenorhabditis elegans.

ABSTRACT: Ascarosides are small-molecule signals that play a central role in C. elegans biology, including dauer formation, aging, and social behaviors, but many aspects of their biosynthesis remain unknown. Using automated 2D NMR-based comparative metabolomics, we identified ascaroside ethanolamides as shunt metabolites in C. elegans mutants of daf-22, a gene with homology to mammalian 3-ketoacyl-CoA thiolases predicted to function in conserved peroxisomal lipid β-oxidation. Two groups of ethanolamides feature β-keto functionalization confirming the predicted role of daf-22 in ascaroside biosynthesis, whereas α-methyl substitution points to unexpected inclusion of methylmalonate at a late stage in the biosynthesis of long-chain fatty acids in C. elegans. We show that ascaroside ethanolamide formati

SUBMITTER: Izrayelit Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3574178 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature