Acyl-CoA oxidase complexes control the chemical message produced by Caenorhabditis elegans.

ABSTRACT: Caenorhabditis elegans uses ascaroside pheromones to induce development of the stress-resistant dauer larval stage and to coordinate various behaviors. Peroxisomal β-oxidation cycles are required for the biosynthesis of the fatty acid-derived side chains of the ascarosides. Here we show that three acyl-CoA oxidases, which catalyze the first step in these β-oxidation cycles, form different protein homo- and heterodimers with distinct substrate preferences. Mutations in the acyl-CoA oxidase genes acox-1, -2, and -3 led to specific defects in ascaroside production. When the acyl-CoA oxidases were expressed alone or in pairs and purified, the resulting acyl-CoA oxidase homo- and heterodimers displayed different side-chain length preferences in an in vitro activity assay. Specifically, an ACOX-

SUBMITTER: Zhang X 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4386371 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature