ArticleThe Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience2012
Neurite sprouting and synapse deterioration in the aging Caenorhabditis elegans nervous system.
Article in The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience, 2012. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 130 papers.
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Who cites it
130 citing papers in PubMed, 217 citations in OpenAlex.
- Aging-related behavioral defects in Caenorhabditis elegans.Biology open · 2026Article
- Functional analysis of late-onset Alzheimer's disease risk genes in Caenorhabditis elegans identifies regulators of neuronal aging.Translational neurodegeneration · 2026Article
- Three muscle-specific DAF-16/FOXO transcriptional targets activated by reduced insulin/IGF-1 signaling.G3 (Bethesda, Md.) · 2026Article
- Functional Analysis of Late-Onset Alzheimer's Disease Risk Genes inbioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
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- Unlocking neuronal health: leveraging C. elegans for drug repurposing studies.Cell communication and signaling : CCS · 2026Review
- Cell-intrinsic mTOR/LET-363 influences morphological aging of the ALM touch receptor neuron in Caenorhabditis elegans.PloS one · 2026Article
- Explosive shock wave exposure leads to age-accelerated motor and sensory decline inbioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
- Machine learning predicts lifespan and suggests underlying causes of death in aging C. elegans.Communications biology · 2025Article
- Phospholipid biogenesis maintains neuronal integrity during aging and axon regeneration.Genetics · 2025Article
- Heat shock proteins function as signaling molecules to mediate neuron-glia communication in C. elegans during aging.Nature neuroscience · 2025Article
- Identification of presenilin mutations that have sufficient gamma-secretase proteolytic activity to mediate Notch signaling but disrupt organelle and neuronal health.Neurobiology of disease · 2025Article
- Beyond genes and environment: mapping biological stochasticity in aging.GeroScience · 2025Review
- Synaptic vesicle-omics in mice captures signatures of aging and synucleinopathy.Nature communications · 2025Article
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- A small-molecule screen identifies novel aging modulators by targeting 5-HT/DA signaling pathway.Aging cell · 2025Article
- Nonapoptotic role of EGL-1 in exopher production and neuronal health inProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2025Article
- Cannabinoids and healthy ageing: the potential for extending healthspan and lifespan in preclinical models with an emphasis on Caenorhabditis elegans.GeroScience · 2024Review
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- Autism candidate genebioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2024Article
70 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
16 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
Caenorhabditis elegans is a powerful model for analysis of the conserved mechanisms that modulate healthy aging. In the aging nematode nervous system, neuronal death and/or detectable loss of processes are not readily apparent, but because dendrite restructuring and loss of synaptic integrity are hypothesized to contribute to human brain decline and dysfunction, we combined fluorescence microscopy and electron microscopy (EM) to screen at high resolution for nervous system changes. We report two major components of morphological change in the aging C. elegans nervous system: (1) accumulation of novel outgrowths from specific neurons, and (2) physical decline in synaptic integrity. Novel outgrowth phenotypes, including branching from the main dendrite or new growth from somata, appear at a high frequency in some aging neurons, but not all. Mitochondria are often associated with age-associated branch sites. Lowered insulin signaling confers some maintenance of ALM and PLM neuron structural integrity into old age, and both DAF-16/FOXO and heat shock factor transcription factor HSF-1 exert neuroprotective functions. hsf-1 can act cell autonomously in this capacity. EM evaluation in synapse-rich regions reveals a striking decline in synaptic vesicle numbers and a diminution of presynaptic density size. Interestingly, old animals that maintain locomotory prowess exhibit less synaptic decline than same-age decrepit animals, suggesting that synaptic integrity correlates with locomotory healthspan. Our data reveal similarities between the aging C. elegans nervous system and mammalian brain, suggesting conserved neuronal responses to age. Dissection of neuronal aging mechanisms in C. elegans may thus influence the development of brain healthspan-extending therapies.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.