Regulation of Insulin Signaling Pathway in C. Elegans Aging

Living organisms must allocate energy to processes that support their growth, reproduction, and survival in stressful conditions. One of the major, conserved biological systems that helps coordinate these decisions is the insulin signaling pathway, which links nutrient availability to physiological processes affecting metabolism, stress response, and aging. Because this pathway is present in multicellular organisms ranging from tiny worms to humans, studying it in simple model organisms can provide important insights into the biology of aging.
My project will use the microscopic roundworm C. elegans, a widely studied animal model in aging research, to identify genes that may be involved in lifespan regulation through insulin signaling. Previous research in the Gupta lab has identified many genes whose expression changes in response to alterations in insulin signaling. For my summer project, I will use a small set of promising candidate genes from this list for further study. Using a technique called RNA interference (RNAi), I propose to reduce/eliminate expression of these genes in worms and examine how they affect aging-related characteristics such as lifespan, movement, stress resistance, and reproduction. By observing visible changes in worms in response to alterations in these genes, my project promises to identify new regulators of aging that function in Insulin signaling pathway. Subsequent characterization of these genes could improve our knowledge of how nutrient signaling influences aging and may ultimately contribute to better understanding of mechanisms that contribute to healthy aging.