Study finds that in nematodes, SKN-1B controls behaviors like foraging, eating, and resting.
In nematode worms, a key controller allows the worm to sense when it needs food and when it feels full, and then changes its behavior accordingly. Jennifer Tullet of the University of Kent and colleagues report these new findings in a paper published March 4th in PLOS Genetics. They propose that a similar factor may control feelings of fullness in humans.
Deciding when and how much to eat is crucial for maintaining health and preventing overeating. Our bodies take in complex molecular signals from our nervous, physiological, and metabolic systems, which tell us when we’re hungry and when to stop eating, but how these signals work is not yet well understood. Tullet and her colleagues used the nematode worm C. elegans, to investigate how the worm’s nervous system senses its food status and communicates fullness to the rest of the animal.
SKN-1B: The Fullness Regulator
They identified a new master controller of this system, SKN-1B, which appears to be deeply involved in food-detection and food-related behaviors. SKN-1B is a transcription factor, meaning that it can regulate when other genes are turned on or off. The researchers discovered that it functions by changing hormonal signaling in the worm and activating the network of mitochondria that provides power in each cell. Based on the worm’s nutritional needs, SKN-1B can tell the animal to switch between behaviors, such as searching for food, eating, and taking a post-meal nap.
Future Drug Potential for Appetite Control
The new study suggests the possibility that a similar transcription factor in humans regulates food-sensing and the feeling of being full. Instead of SKN-1B, mammals have NF-E2 related transcription factors, or Nrfs, which scientists think function in metabolism and the process of converting food nutrients into energy. Nrfs also play a role in the phenomenon where animals live longer when they restrict their calories. If future research confirms the role of Nrfs in signaling fullness, then Nrfs may be a new target for developing drugs that control overeating.
The authors add, “We are really excited about this work, understanding the neuroendocrinology of eating and sleeping is so important to lifelong health and wellbeing.”
Reference: “Neuronal SKN-1B modulates nutritional signalling pathways and mitochondrial networks to control satiety” by Nikolaos Tataridas-Pallas, Maximillian A. Thompson, Alexander Howard, Ian Brown, Marina Ezcurra, Ziyun Wu, Isabel Goncalves Silva, Christopher D. Saunter, Timo Kuerten, David Weinkove, T. Keith Blackwell and Jennifer M. A. Tullet, 4 March 2021, PLoS Genetics.
DOI: 10.
Funding: This work was funded by awards from UKRI | Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) to JMAT BB/R003629/1; and HHS | National Institutes of Health (NIH) AG054215; GM122610; and DK036836 to TKB. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.
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