CSB Seminar Series – Jadiel Wasson, PhD – NYU

CSB Departmental Seminar

Jadiel Wasson, PhD

Arts and Science, New York University

TITLE: From external cues to internal states: tuning inherited information

ABSTRACT: Classically, inheritance was believed to be restricted to the passage of information from parent to progeny in the form of genetically encoded material. It has become appreciated that other types of information, including that which informs about the environment, can be passed between generations. However, the mechanisms behind how this information can be both passed on and interpreted by the embryo remain unknown. Recently, we have identified a previously unknown pathway for intergenerational communication that links neuronal responses to maternal provisioning in C. elegans. Here, a chemosensory signaling pathway responsive to social cues initiated in the mother alters the pool of maternally provided factors that modulates gene silencing in progeny. This intergenerational signal transmission depends on specific chemosensory neurons and neuronal FMRFamide (Phe-Met-Arg-Phe)–like peptides including FLP-21. Parental FLP-21 signaling dampens oxidative stress resistance and promotes the deposition of mRNAs for translational components in progeny, which, in turn, reduces gene silencing. Furthermore, overexpression of FLP-21 has the opposing effect on gene silencing in progeny suggesting that the levels of FLP-21 signaling in mothers influences embryonic stress phenotypes. We are currently investigating various aspects of this maternal signaling pathway including the neurocircuitry, key molecular components, and tissue-specific requirements to identify the relay from environmental social cues to modulation of embryonic gene silencing. To this end, we have identified key receptors that are required for this relay from parental environment to progeny response. Taken together, we hypothesize that loss of social cues in the parental environment represents an adverse environment that stimulates stress responses across generations.  This work demonstrates how alterations to chemosensory signaling pathways can have long range consequences via changes in not only what mothers provide to their young, but also how resulting progeny modulate their gene expression changes in response to a challenge. Ultimately, this work will lead to a clearer understanding of the mechanisms involved in cross-generational signaling between mother and progeny.

HOST: Max Shafer

LOCATION: Cell and Systems Biology, 25 Harbord Street, Suite 432

LIVESTREAM LINK: https://csb.utoronto.ca/live-stream/