Department of Molecular Pharmacology and Neurobiology, Yokohama City University, Graduate School of Medicine, Yokohama 236-0004, Japan.
J Neurosci. 2011 Nov 16;31(46):16603-10. doi: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.4018-11.2011.
The ability to detect harmful chemicals rapidly is essential for the survival of all animals. In Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans), repellents trigger an avoidance response, causing animals to move away from repellents. Dihydrocaffeic acid (DHCA) is a water-soluble repellent and nonflavonoid catecholic compound that can be found in plant products. Using a Xenopus laevis (X. laevis) oocyte expression system, we identified a candidate dihydrocaffeic acid receptor (DCAR), DCAR-1. DCAR-1 is a novel seven-transmembrane protein that is expressed in the ASH avoidance sensory neurons of C. elegans. dcar-1 mutant animals are defective in avoidance response to DHCA, and cell-specific expression of dcar-1 in the ASH neurons of dcar-1 mutant animals rescued the defect in avoidance response to DHCA. Our findings identify DCAR-1 as the first seven-transmembrane receptor required for avoidance of a water-soluble repellent, DHCA, in C. elegans.
快速检测有害化学物质的能力对所有动物的生存都是至关重要的。在秀丽隐杆线虫（C. elegans）中，驱避剂会引发回避反应，使动物远离驱避剂。二咖啡酸（DHCA）是一种水溶性驱避剂和非类黄酮儿茶酚化合物，可在植物产品中找到。我们使用非洲爪蟾（X. laevis）卵母细胞表达系统，鉴定出一个候选二咖啡酸受体（DCAR），即 DCAR-1。DCAR-1 是一种新型的七跨膜蛋白，在秀丽隐杆线虫的 ASH 回避感觉神经元中表达。dcar-1 突变动物在回避 DHCA 方面存在缺陷，而在 dcar-1 突变动物的 ASH 神经元中特异性表达 dcar-1 则挽救了对 DHCA 的回避反应缺陷。我们的研究结果表明，DCAR-1 是秀丽隐杆线虫回避水溶性驱避剂 DHCA 所需的第一个七跨膜受体。
