A microRNA program in the C. elegans hypodermis couples to intestinal mTORC2/PQM-1 signaling to modulate fat transport.

ABSTRACT: Animals integrate metabolic, developmental, and environmental information before committing key resources to reproduction. In Caenorhabditis elegans, adult animals transport fat from intestinal cells to the germline to promote reproduction. We identified a microRNA (miRNA)-regulated developmental timing pathway that functions in the hypodermis to nonautonomously coordinate the mobilization of intestinal fat stores to the germline upon initiation of adulthood. This developmental timing pathway, which is controlled by the lin-4 and let-7 miRNAs, engages mTOR signaling in the intestine. The intestinal signaling component is specific to mTORC2 and functions in parallel to the insulin pathway to modulate the activity of the serum/glucocorticoid-regulated kinase (SGK-1). Surprisingly, SGK-1 func

SUBMITTER: Dowen RH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4949325 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature