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The multiple faces of calcineurin signaling in Caenorhabditis elegans: Development, behaviour and aging

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Abstract

Calcineurin, a well-conserved protein phosphatase 2B (PP2B), is a Ca2+-calmodulin–dependent serine/threonine protein phosphatase that is known to be involved in a myriad of cellular processes and signal transduction pathways. The biological role of calcineurin has been extensively studied in diverse groups of organisms. Homologues of mammalian and Drosophila calcineurin subunits exist in the nematode, Caenorhabditis elegans. The C. elegans counterpart of the catalytic subunit, calcineurin A, cna-1/tax-6, and the regulatory subunit, calcineurin B, cnb-1, are known to express ubiquitously in multiple tissues including neurons. The characterization of C. elegans calcineurin mutants facilitates identification of its physiological functions and signaling pathways. Genetic interactions between cna-1/tax-6 and cnb-1 mutants with a number of mutants involved in several signaling pathways have exemplified the pivotal role of calcineurin in regulating nematode development, behaviour and lifespan (aging). The present review has been aimed to provide a succinct summary of the multiple functions of calcineurin in C. elegans relating to its development, fertility, proliferation, behaviour and lifespan. Analyses of cna-1/tax-6 and cnb-1 interacting proteins and regulators of the phosphatase in this fascinating worm model have an immense scope to identify potential drug targets in various parasitic nematodes, which cause many diseases inflicting huge economic loss; and also for many human diseases, particularly neurodegenerative and myocardial diseases.

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Acknowledgements

JIL is grateful to the National Institute of Drug Abuse for the Post-doctoral NRSA Fellowship. SM duly acknowledges the Indian Council of Medical Research for Research Associateship. KY is thankful to the National Institute of Deafness and Communication Disorders for the Post-doctoral NRSA fellowship. MD is supported by the Scientist Pool Grant from the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, 1100 Fairview Ave. N, Seattle, WA, 98109, USA

    Jin Il Lee & Kyoung–Hye Yoon

  2. Department of Biotechnology, West Bengal University of Technology, BF-142, Sector-I, Salt Lake, Kolkata, 700 064, West Bengal, India

    Sutapa Mukherjee & Jaya Bandyopadhyay

  3. Dr. B. R. Ambedkar Center for Biomedical Research, University of Delhi, Delhi, 110 007, India

    Meenakshi Dwivedi

Authors
  1. Jin Il Lee
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  2. Sutapa Mukherjee
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  3. Kyoung–Hye Yoon
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  4. Meenakshi Dwivedi
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  5. Jaya Bandyopadhyay
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jaya Bandyopadhyay.

Additional information

MS received 20 December 2012; accepted 21 February 2013

Corresponding editor: Robert M Greenberg

[Lee JI, Mukherjee S, Yoon K-H, Dwivedi M and Bandyopadhyay J 2013 The multiple faces of calcineurin signaling in Caenorhabditis elegans: Development, behaviour and aging. J. Biosci. 38 1–15] DOI 10.1007/s12038-013-9319-6

Jin Il Lee and Sutapa Mukherjee contributed equally to this work.

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Lee, J.I., Mukherjee, S., Yoon, K. et al. The multiple faces of calcineurin signaling in Caenorhabditis elegans: Development, behaviour and aging. J Biosci 38, 417–431 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12038-013-9319-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12038-013-9319-6

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