用光遗传学定量、定时控制肠菌代谢，促进宿主长寿 | 热心肠日报
Optogenetic control of gut bacterial metabolism to promote longevity
光遗传学控制肠道细菌代谢以促进长寿
10.7554/eLife.56849
2020-12-16, Article
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Gut microbial metabolism is associated with host longevity. However, because it requires direct manipulation of microbial metabolism in situ, establishing a causal link between these two processes remains challenging. We demonstrate an optogenetic method to control gene expression and metabolite production from bacteria residing in the host gut. We genetically engineer an Escherichia coli strain that secretes colanic acid (CA) under the quantitative control of light. Using this optogenetically-controlled strain to induce CA production directly in the Caenorhabditis elegans gut, we reveal the local effect of CA in protecting intestinal mitochondria from stress-induced hyper-fragmentation. We also demonstrate that the lifespan-extending effect of this strain is positively correlated with the intensity of green light, indicating a dose-dependent CA benefit on the host. Thus, optogenetics can be used to achieve quantitative and temporal control of gut bacterial metabolism in order to reveal its local and systemic effects on host health and aging.
First Authors:
Lucas A Hartsough
Correspondence Authors:
Meng C Wang,Jeffrey J Tabor
All Authors:
Lucas A Hartsough,Mooncheol Park,Matthew V Kotlajich,John Tyler Lazar,Bing Han,Chih-Chun J Lin,Elena Musteata,Lauren Gambill,Meng C Wang,Jeffrey J Tabor