Conclusion
FAEW protects against avoidance behavior of C. elegans through downregulating H4K8ac protein expression and activating DAF-16. This study provides crucial experimental evidence supporting FAEW as a promising candidate for protecting against avoidance behavior associated with PTSD.
Methods
Initially, the effects of FAEW on avoidance behavior, survival, neuroendocrine signaling gene expression, and intestinal bloating were examined. The impact of FAEW on gut-germline-neural signaling was assessed by monitoring H4K8ac expression and the avoidance behavior of par-5 RNAi animals and glp-1(e2141) mutants. RNA-sequencing was conducted to analyze potential signaling pathways. Finally, avoidance behavior was examined using daf-16(mu86) mutants and the rescued animals.
Purpose
The aim of this study was to investigate the protective effect of Free and Easy Wanderer (FAEW) on the avoidance behavior induced by feeding Heat-Killed Escherichia coli, and to elucidate the underlying mechanisms.
Results
FAEW delayed avoidance behavior. FAEW significantly downregulated gene expression in the neuroendocrine signaling pathway and alleviated intestinal bloating of C. elegans. The levels of H4K8ac and par-5 in the germline decreased significantly with FAEW's treatment, and FAEW failed to affect the avoidance behavior of par-5 RNAi animals and glp-1(e2141) mutants. FAEW's effect on avoidance behavior diminished in daf-16(mu86) mutants but was restored in daf-16 rescued animals. FAEW has been observed to restore daf-16 levels.