Energy Scarcity Promotes a Brain-wide Sleep State Modulated by Insulin Signaling in C. elegans

Cell Reports

Susanne Skora¹  Manuel Zimmer¹  Fanny Mende¹ 

[1] Research Institute of Molecular Pathology (IMP), Vienna Biocenter (VBC), Campus-Vienna-Biocenter 1, 1030 Vienna, Austria;

关键词: energy homeostasis;    starvation;    insulin signaling;    daf-2;    whole-brain imaging;    behavior;    sleep;    arousal;    neuronal population dynamics;    Caenorhabditis elegans;   

DOI  :  10.1016/j.celrep.2017.12.091

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Neural information processing entails a high energetic cost, but its maintenance is crucial for animal survival. However, the brain’s energy conservation strategies are incompletely understood. Employing functional brain-wide imaging and quantitative behavioral assays, we describe a neuronal strategy in Caenorhabditis elegans that balances energy availability and expenditure. Upon acute food deprivation, animals exhibit a transiently elevated state of arousal, indicated by foraging behaviors and increased responsiveness to food-related cues. In contrast, long-term starvation suppresses these behaviors and biases animals to intermittent sleep episodes. Brain-wide neuronal population dynamics, which are likely energetically costly but important for behavior, are robust to starvation while animals are awake. However, during starvation-induced sleep, brain dynamics are systemically downregulated. Neuromodulation via insulin-like signaling is required to transiently maintain the animals’ arousal state upon acute food deprivation. Our data suggest that the regulation of sleep and wakefulness supports optimal energy allocation.

【 授权许可】

Unknown