Lipid Supplementation for Longevity and Gene Transcriptional Analysis in <em>Caenorhabditis elegans</em>

Abstract

Aging is a complex process characterized by progressive physiological changes resulting from both environmental and genetic contributions. Lipids are crucial in constituting structural components of cell membranes, storing energy, and as signaling molecules. Regulation of lipid metabolism and signaling is essential to activate distinct longevity pathways. The roundworm Caenorhabditis elegans is an excellent and powerful organism to dissect the contribution of lipid metabolism and signaling in longevity regulation. Multiple research studies have described how diet supplementation of specific lipid molecules can extend C. elegans lifespan; however, minor differences in the supplementation conditions can cause reproducibility issues among scientists in different labs. Here, two detailed supplementation methods for C. elegans are reported employing lipid supplementation either with bacteria seeded on plates or bacterial suspension in liquid culture. Also provided herein are the details to perform lifespan assays with lifelong lipid supplementation and qRT-PCR analysis using a whole worm lysate or dissected tissues derived from a few worms. Using a combination of longitudinal studies and transcriptional investigations upon lipid supplementation, the feeding assays provide dependable approaches to dissect how lipids influence longevity and healthy aging. This methodology can also be adapted for various nutritional screening approaches to assess changes in a subset of transcripts using either a small number of dissected tissues or a few animals.