The Ras-Erk-ETS-Signaling Pathway Is a Drug Target for Longevity.

Identifying the molecular mechanisms that underlie aging and their pharmacological manipulation are key aims for improving lifelong human health. Here, we identify a critical role for Ras-Erk-ETS signaling in aging in Drosophila. We show that inhibition of Ras is sufficient for lifespan extension downstream of reduced insulin/IGF-1 (IIS) signaling. Moreover, direct reduction of Ras or Erk activity leads to increased lifespan. We identify the E-twenty six (ETS) transcriptional repressor, Anterior open (Aop), as central to lifespan extension caused by reduced IIS or Ras attenuation. Importantly, we demonstrate that adult-onset administration of the drug trametinib, a highly specific inhibitor of Ras-Erk-ETS signaling, can extend lifespan. This discovery of the Ras-Erk-ETS pathway as a pharmacological target for animal aging, together with the high degree of evolutionary conservation of the pathway, suggests that inhibition of Ras-Erk-ETS signaling may provide an effective target for anti-aging interventions in mammals.

Expression and purification of recombinant G protein-coupled receptors: A review.

Given their extensive role in cell signalling, GPCRs are significant drug targets; despite this, many of these receptors have limited or no available prophylaxis. Novel drug design and discovery significantly rely on structure determination, of which GPCRs are typically elusive. Progress has been made thus far to produce sufficient quantity and quality of protein for downstream analysis. As such, this review highlights the systems available for recombinant GPCR expression, with consideration of their advantages and disadvantages, as well as examples of receptors successfully expressed in these systems. Additionally, an overview is given on the use of detergents and the styrene maleic acid (SMA) co-polymer for membrane solubilisation, as well as purification techniques.

Signal Transduction Pathways in Ageing.

It is now widely recognised that ageing and its associated functional decline are regulated by a wide range of molecules that fit into specific cellular pathways. Here, we describe several of the evolutionary conserved cellular signalling pathways that govern organismal ageing and discuss how their identification, and work on the individual molecules that contribute to them, has aided in the design of therapeutic strategies to alleviate the adverse effects of ageing and age-related disease.

Regulation of lifespan, metabolism, and stress responses by the Drosophila SH2B protein, Lnk.

Drosophila Lnk is the single ancestral orthologue of a highly conserved family of structurally-related intracellular adaptor proteins, the SH2B proteins. As adaptors, they lack catalytic activity but contain several protein-protein interaction domains, thus playing a critical role in signal transduction from receptor tyrosine kinases to form protein networks. Physiological studies of SH2B function in mammals have produced conflicting data. However, a recent study in Drosophila has shown that Lnk is an important regulator of the insulin/insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-1 signaling (IIS) pathway during growth, functioning in parallel to the insulin receptor substrate, Chico. As this pathway also has an evolutionary conserved role in the determination of organism lifespan, we investigated whether Lnk is required for normal lifespan in Drosophila. Phenotypic analysis of mutants for Lnk revealed that loss of Lnk function results in increased lifespan and improved survival under conditions of oxidative stress and starvation. Starvation resistance was found to be associated with increased metabolic stores of carbohydrates and lipids indicative of impaired metabolism. Biochemical and genetic data suggest that Lnk functions in both the IIS and Ras/Mitogen activated protein Kinase (MapK) signaling pathways. Microarray studies support this model, showing transcriptional feedback onto genes in both pathways as well as indicating global changes in both lipid and carbohydrate metabolism. Finally, our data also suggest that Lnk itself may be a direct target of the IIS responsive transcription factor, dFoxo, and that dFoxo may repress Lnk expression. We therefore describe novel functions for a member of the SH2B protein family and provide the first evidence for potential mechanisms of SH2B regulation. Our findings suggest that IIS signaling in Drosophila may require the activity of a second intracellular adaptor, thereby yielding fundamental new insights into the functioning and role of the IIS pathway in ageing and metabolism.

A biphasic model of lifespan in nematode Caenorhabditis elegans worm.

Ageing research focuses on identifying lifespan modifiers and understanding and appropriately interpreting their effects. One of the most relevant quantities being studied is the shape of the survival curve that can reveal crucial information on the mechanism of action. Here, we introduce a bilogistic model to describe the shape of the lifespan curves of Caenorhabditis elegans populations. Using the corrected Akaike information criterion and the RMSE as goodness-of-fit tests, we show that the bilogistic model provides a better fit to the experimental data from nematode worms than other mathematical models and can identify and confirm biphasic lifespan data. Our parametric model offers a method to interpret replicate experiments data in terms of the shape parameters of the lifespan curve and enables robust statistical analysis of intra- and inter-group variance. We apply the model to novel lifespan data from C. elegans and Drosophila melanogaster and provide a rational statistical analysis of lifespan modifiers such as temperature and daf-16/FOXO mutation.

Experimental Medicine for HIV Vaccine Research and Development.

The development of safe and effective HIV vaccines has been a scientific challenge for more than 40 years. Despite disappointing results from efficacy clinical trials, much has been learnt from years of research and development. In a rapidly evolving HIV prevention landscape, swift evaluation of multiple vaccine approaches eliciting cross-reactive humoral and cellular responses is needed to ensure the development of efficacious vaccine candidates. To contain increasing costs, innovative clinical research methods are required. Experimental medicine has the potential to accelerate vaccine discovery by iterating early stages of clinical testing faster and by selecting the most promising immunogen combinations for further clinical evaluation. As part of its mission to unite diverse stakeholders involved in the response to the HIV epidemic, the Global HIV Vaccine Enterprise at IAS-the International AIDS Society-hosted a series of online events between January and September 2022 to discuss the merits and challenges of experimental medicine studies to accelerate the development of safe and effective HIV vaccines. This report summarizes key questions and discussions across the series of events, which brought together scientists, policy makers, community stakeholders, advocates, bioethicists, and funders.

Genome-wide dFOXO targets and topology of the transcriptomic response to stress and insulin signalling.

FoxO transcription factors, inhibited by insulin/insulin-like growth factor signalling (IIS), are crucial players in numerous organismal processes including lifespan. Using genomic tools, we uncover over 700 direct dFOXO targets in adult female Drosophila. dFOXO is directly required for transcription of several IIS components and interacting pathways, such as TOR, in the wild-type fly. The genomic locations occupied by dFOXO in adults are different from those observed in larvae or cultured cells. These locations remain unchanged upon activation by stresses or reduced IIS, but the binding is increased and additional targets activated upon genetic reduction in IIS. We identify the part of the IIS transcriptional response directly controlled by dFOXO and the indirect effects and show that parts of the transcriptional response to IIS reduction do not require dfoxo. Promoter analyses revealed GATA and other forkhead factors as candidate mediators of the indirect and dfoxo-independent effects. We demonstrate genome-wide evolutionary conservation of dFOXO targets between the fly and the worm Caenorhabditis elegans, enriched for a second tier of regulators including the dHR96/daf-12 nuclear hormone receptor.

Molecular inhibition of RAS signalling to target ageing and age-related health.

The RAS/MAPK pathway is a highly conserved signalling pathway with a well-established role in cancer. Mutations that hyperactivate this pathway are associated with unregulated cell proliferation. Evidence from a range of model organisms also links RAS/MAPK signalling to ageing. Genetic approaches that reduce RAS/MAPK signalling activity extend lifespan and also improve healthspan, delaying the onset and/or progression of age-related functional decline. Given its role in cancer, therapeutic interventions that target and inhibit this pathway's key components are under intense investigation. The consequent availability of small molecule inhibitors raises the possibility of repurposing these compounds to ameliorate the deleterious effects of ageing. Here, we review evidence that RAS/MAPK signalling inhibitors already in clinical use, such as trametinib, acarbose, statins, metformin and dihydromyricetin, lead to lifespan extension and to improved healthspan in a range of model systems. These findings suggest that the repurposing of small molecule inhibitors of RAS/MAPK signalling might offer opportunities to improve health during ageing, and to delay or prevent the development of age-related disease. However, challenges to this approach, including poor tolerance to treatment in older adults or development of drug resistance, first need to be resolved before successful clinical implementation.

Zoledronate Extends Health Span and Survival via the Mevalonate Pathway in a FOXO-dependent Manner.

Over recent decades, increased longevity has not been paralleled by extended health span, resulting in more years spent with multiple diseases in older age. As such, interventions to improve health span are urgently required. Zoledronate (Zol) is a nitrogen-containing bisphosphonate, which inhibits the farnesyl pyrophosphate synthase enzyme, central to the mevalonate pathway. It is already used clinically to prevent fractures in osteoporotic patients, who have been reported to derive unexpected and unexplained survival benefits. Using Drosophila as a model we determined the effects of Zol on life span, parameters of health span (climbing ability and intestinal dysplasia), and the ability to confer resistance to oxidative stress using a combination of genetically manipulated Drosophila strains and Western blotting. Our study shows that Zol extended life span, improved climbing activity, and reduced intestinal epithelial dysplasia and permeability with age. Mechanistic studies showed that Zol conferred resistance to oxidative stress and reduced accumulation of X-ray-induced DNA damage via inhibition of farnesyl pyrophosphate synthase. Moreover, Zol was associated with inhibition of phosphorylated AKT in the mammalian traget of rapamycin pathway downstream of the mevalonate pathway and required dFOXO for its action, both molecules associated with increased longevity. Taken together, our work indicates that Zol, a drug already widely used to prevent osteoporosis and dosed only once a year, modulates important mechanisms of aging. Its repurposing holds great promise as a treatment to improve health span.

Insulin signalling regulates remating in female Drosophila.

Mating rate is a major determinant of female lifespan and fitness, and is predicted to optimize at an intermediate level, beyond which superfluous matings are costly. In female Drosophila melanogaster, nutrition is a key regulator of mating rate but the underlying mechanism is unknown. The evolutionarily conserved insulin/insulin-like growth factor-like signalling (IIS) pathway is responsive to nutrition, and regulates development, metabolism, stress resistance, fecundity and lifespan. Here we show that inhibition of IIS, by ablation of Drosophila insulin-like peptide (DILP)-producing median neurosecretory cells, knockout of dilp2, dilp3 or dilp5 genes, expression of a dominant-negative DILP-receptor (InR) transgene or knockout of Lnk, results in reduced female remating rates. IIS-mediated regulation of female remating can occur independent of virgin receptivity, developmental defects, reduced body size or fecundity, and the receipt of the female receptivity-inhibiting male sex peptide. Our results provide a likely mechanism by which females match remating rates to the perceived nutritional environment. The findings suggest that longevity-mediating genes could often have pleiotropic effects on remating rate. However, overexpression of the IIS-regulated transcription factor dFOXO in the fat body-which extends lifespan-does not affect remating rate. Thus, long life and reduced remating are not obligatorily coupled.

Ras signaling in aging and metabolic regulation.

Aberrant signal transduction downstream of the Ras GTPase has a well-established role in tumorigenesis. Mutations that result in hyperactivation of Ras are responsible for a third of all human cancers. Hence, small molecule inhibitors of the Ras signal transduction cascade have been under intense focus as potential cancer treatments. In both invertebrate and mammalian models, emerging evidence has also implicated components of the Ras signaling pathway in aging and metabolic regulation. Here, I review the current evidence for Ras signaling in these newly discovered roles highlighting the interactions between the Ras pathway and other longevity assurance mechanisms. Defining the role of Ras signaling in maintaining age-related health may have important implications for the development of interventions that could not only increase lifespan but also delay the onset and/or progression of age-related functional decline.

A mosaic genetic screen for novel mutations affecting Drosophila neuroblast divisions.

BACKGROUND: The asymmetric segregation of determinants during cell division is a fundamental mechanism for generating cell fate diversity during development. In Drosophila, neural precursors (neuroblasts) divide in a stem cell-like manner generating a larger apical neuroblast and a smaller basal ganglion mother cell. The cell fate determinant Prospero and its adapter protein Miranda are asymmetrically localized to the basal cortex of the dividing neuroblast and segregated into the GMC upon cytokinesis. Previous screens to identify components of the asymmetric division machinery have concentrated on embryonic phenotypes. However, such screens are reaching saturation and are limited in that the maternal contribution of many genes can mask the effects of zygotic loss of function, and other approaches will be necessary to identify further genes involved in neuroblast asymmetric division. RESULTS: We have performed a genetic screen in the third instar larval brain using the basal localization of Miranda as a marker for neuroblast asymmetry. In addition to the examination of pupal lethal mutations, we have employed the MARCM (Mosaic Analysis with a Repressible Cell Marker) system to generate postembryonic clones of mutations with an early lethal phase. We have screened a total of 2,300 mutagenized chromosomes and isolated alleles affecting cell fate, the localization of basal determinants or the orientation of the mitotic spindle. We have also identified a number of complementation groups exhibiting defects in cell cycle progression and cytokinesis, including both novel genes and new alleles of known components of these processes. CONCLUSION: We have identified four mutations which affect the process of neuroblast asymmetric division. One of these, mapping to the imaginal discs arrested locus, suggests a novel role for the anaphase promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C) in the targeting of determinants to the basal cortex. The identification and analysis of the remaining mutations will further advance our understanding of the process of asymmetric cell division. We have also isolated a number of mutations affecting cell division which will complement the functional genomics approaches to this process being employed by other laboratories. Taken together, these results demonstrate the value of mosaic screens in the identification of genes involved in neuroblast division.

Lithium Promotes Longevity through GSK3/NRF2-Dependent Hormesis.

The quest to extend healthspan via pharmacological means is becoming increasingly urgent, both from a health and economic perspective. Here we show that lithium, a drug approved for human use, promotes longevity and healthspan. We demonstrate that lithium extends lifespan in female and male Drosophila, when administered throughout adulthood or only later in life. The life-extending mechanism involves the inhibition of glycogen synthase kinase-3 (GSK-3) and activation of the transcription factor nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor (NRF-2). Combining genetic loss of the NRF-2 repressor Kelch-like ECH-associated protein 1 (Keap1) with lithium treatment revealed that high levels of NRF-2 activation conferred stress resistance, while low levels additionally promoted longevity. The discovery of GSK-3 as a therapeutic target for aging will likely lead to more effective treatments that can modulate mammalian aging and further improve health in later life.

Cell-nonautonomous effects of dFOXO/DAF-16 in aging.

Drosophila melanogaster and Caenorhabditis elegans each carry a single representative of the Forkhead box O (FoxO) family of transcription factors, dFOXO and DAF-16, respectively. Both are required for lifespan extension by reduced insulin/Igf signaling, and their activation in key tissues can extend lifespan. Aging of these tissues may limit lifespan. Alternatively, FoxOs may promote longevity cell nonautonomously by signaling to themselves (FoxO to FoxO) or other factors (FoxO to other) in distal tissues. Here, we show that activation of dFOXO and DAF-16 in the gut/fat body does not require dfoxo/daf-16 elsewhere to extend lifespan. Rather, in Drosophila, activation of dFOXO in the gut/fat body or in neuroendocrine cells acts on other organs to promote healthy aging by signaling to other, as-yet-unidentified factors. Whereas FoxO-to-FoxO signaling appears to be required for metabolic homeostasis, our results pinpoint FoxO-to-other signaling as an important mechanism through which localized FoxO activity ameliorates aging.

Activation of AMPK by the putative dietary restriction mimetic metformin is insufficient to extend lifespan in Drosophila.

The biguanide drug, metformin, commonly used to treat type-2 diabetes, has been shown to extend lifespan and reduce fecundity in C. elegans through a dietary restriction-like mechanism via the AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) and the AMPK-activating kinase, LKB1. We have investigated whether the longevity-promoting effects of metformin are evolutionarily conserved using the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster. We show here that while feeding metformin to adult Drosophila resulted in a robust activation of AMPK and reduced lipid stores, it did not increase lifespan in either male or female flies. In fact, we found that when administered at high concentrations, metformin is toxic to flies. Furthermore, no decreases in female fecundity were observed except at the most toxic dose. Analysis of intestinal physiology after metformin treatment suggests that these deleterious effects may result from disruptions to intestinal fluid homeostasis. Thus, metformin appears to have evolutionarily conserved effects on metabolism but not on fecundity or lifespan.

Detrimental effects of RNAi: a cautionary note on its use in Drosophila ageing studies.

RNA interference (RNAi) provides an important tool for gene function discovery. It has been widely exploited in Caenorhabditis elegans ageing research because it does not appear to have any non-specific effects on ageing-related traits in that model organism. We show here that ubiquitous, adult-onset activation of the RNAi machinery, achieved by expressing a double stranded RNA targeting GFP or lacZ for degradation, or by increasing expression of Dicer substantially reduces lifespan in Drosophila melanogaster. Induction of GFPRNAi construct also alters the response of lifespan to nutrition, exacerbating the lifespan-shortening effects of food containing a high quantity of yeast. Our study indicates that activation of the RNAi machinery may have sequence-independent side-effects on lifespan, and that caution needs to be exercised when employing ubiquitous RNAi in Drosophila ageing studies. However, we also show that RNAi restricted to certain tissues may not be detrimental to lifespan.

But is this Really the 'Parent' or 'Guardian'? Practical Strategies for Consent to Child Research in South Africa

Research ethics committees (RECs) in South Africa may require consent from a parent or legal guardian for child research. In instances where an REC determines that parental or guardianship consent is required; how far should researchers go to establish if the accompanying adult is in fact the parent or guardian? Should researchers accept disclosures at face value; probe assertions that are made; or even call for supporting documentation? In this article we set out the facts research staff should possess; propose key questions they could ask; and recommend practical steps for uncertain cases. We recognise that a parental/guardianship consent strategy may not be appropriate in all instances; but do not debate that issue in this article. This article is confined to practical advice for researchers wishing to implement a parental or guardianship consent approach