Ammonia excretion in Caenorhabditis elegans: Physiological and molecular characterization of the rhr-2 knock-out mutant
| dc.contributor.author | Adlimoghaddam, Aida | |
| dc.contributor.author | O'Donnell, Michael J. | |
| dc.contributor.author | Kormish, Jay | |
| dc.contributor.author | Banh, Sheena | |
| dc.contributor.author | Treberg, Jason R. | |
| dc.contributor.author | Merz, David | |
| dc.contributor.author | Weihrauch, Dirk | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2017-10-16T21:12:31Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2017-10-16T21:12:31Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2016 | |
| dc.description.abstract | Previous studies have shown the free living soil nematode Caenorhabditis elegans (N2 strain) to be ammonotelic. Ammonia excretion was suggested to take place partially via the hypodermis, involving the Na+/K+-ATPase (NKA), V-ATPase (VAT), carbonic anhydrase, NHX-3 and a functional microtubule network and at least one Rh-like ammonia transporter RHR-1. In the current study we show that a second Rh-protein, RHR-2, is highly expressed in the hypodermis, here also in the apical membrane of that tissue. To further characterize the role of RHR-2 in ammonia excretion, a knock-out mutant rhr-2(ok403), further referred to as Δrhr-2, was employed. Compared to wild-type worms (N2), this mutant showed a lower rate of ammonia excretion and a lower hypodermal H+ excretion rate. At the same time rhr-1, nka, vat, and nhx-3 showed higher mRNA expression levels when compared to N2. Also, in contrast to N2 worms, Δrhr-2 did not show enhanced ammonia excretion rates when exposed to a low pH environment, suggesting that RHR-2 represents the apical NH3 pathway that allows ammonia trapping via the hypodermis in N2 worms. A hypothetical model for the mechanism of hypodermal ammonia excretion is proposed on the basis of data in this and previous investigations. | en_US |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/1993/32671 | |
| dc.language.iso | eng | en_US |
| dc.publisher | Comp Biochem Physiol A | en_US |
| dc.rights | open access | en_US |
| dc.subject | Rh-proteins | en_US |
| dc.subject | V-ATPase | en_US |
| dc.subject | NHX-3 | en_US |
| dc.title | Ammonia excretion in Caenorhabditis elegans: Physiological and molecular characterization of the rhr-2 knock-out mutant | en_US |
| dc.type | Article | en_US |