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Review
. 2014 Nov;30(11):496-503.
doi: 10.1016/j.tig.2014.07.010. Epub 2014 Aug 26.

Worms, bacteria, and micronutrients: an elegant model of our diet

Lutfu Safak Yilmaz  1 , Albertha J M Walhout  2
Affiliations
Review

Worms, bacteria, and micronutrients: an elegant model of our diet

Lutfu Safak Yilmaz et al. Trends Genet. 2014 Nov.

Abstract

Micronutrients are required in small proportions in a diet to carry out key metabolic roles for biomass and energy production. Humans receive micronutrients either directly from their diet or from gut microbiota that metabolize other nutrients. The nematode Caenorhabditis elegans and its bacterial diet provide a relatively simple and genetically tractable model to study both direct and microbe-mediated effects of micronutrients. Recently, this model has been used to gain insight into the relationship between micronutrients, physiology, and metabolism. In particular, two B-type vitamins, vitamin B12 and folate, have been studied in detail. Here we review how C. elegans and its bacterial diet provide a powerful interspecies systems biology model that facilitates the precise delineation of micronutrient effects and the mechanisms involved.

Keywords: Caenorhabditis elegans; folate; gut microbiota; metabolism; micronutrients; vitamin B.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
C. elegans as a model organism to study the direct and microbiota-mediated effects of diet.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Propionic acid breakdown pathway and Vitamin B12. C. elegans genes that are associated with each reaction are shown in italics. Human orthologs of selected genes (bold italics) are provided in Table 1. Dashed arrows indicate pathways not shown in detail. MCM, Methylmalonyl-CoA mutase; ppcoa, propionyl CoA; mmcoa, methylmalonyl CoA; succoa, succinyl CoA; Cbl, cobalamin; adoCbl, adonesylcobalamine.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Methionine and folic acid cycles. C. elegans genes that are associated with each reaction are shown in italics. Human orthologs of selected genes (bold italics) are provided in Table 1. Dotted arrows indicate multiple reactions with multiple genes. MS, methionine synthase; RFC, reduced folate carrier; DHF, dihydrofolate; THF, tetrahydrofolate; 10fTHF, 10-formyltetrahydrofolate, meTHF, 5,10-methenyltetrahydrofolate; mlTHF, 5,10-methylenetetrahydrofolate; 5mTHF, 5-methyltetrahydrofolate; HCys, homocysteine; Met, methionine; SAM, S-adenosyl methionine; SAH, S-adenosyl homocysteine; Cbl, cobalamin; meCbl, methylcobalamine; Ser, serine; Gly, glycine.
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