Subhshri Sahu and Alissa Richmond Armstrong
Inter-organ communication plays a pivotal role in regulating whole organism physiological responses to changes in environmental factors such as nutrition. Over nutrition, or obesity, can lead to adipocyte dysfunction and is often associated with human diseases, including type 2 diabetes and many cancers. The Drosophila melanogaster ovary, a stem cell-supported organ, is highly responsive to dietary changes, showing a severe reduction in egg production when female flies are fed a protein-poor diet. This effect on egg production is mediated by nutrient-sensing pathways acting within the ovary and remote nutrient sensing by other tissues such as the fat body. We have previously shown that amino acid sensing specifically in adipocytes, the major cellular component of the Drosophila fat body controls germline stem cell (GSC) maintenance in adult ovaries. Reduced adipocyte amino acid transport leads to loss of GSCs by activation of the amino acid response pathway. We hypothesize that the amino acid response pathway mediates GSC loss by reducing translation of factors necessary for maintenance. The highly conserved AAR pathway further activates two downstream effects that may mediate its control on GSC maintenance: a global reduction in translation and selective up-regulation of ATF4 dependent transcription.
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Journal of Oncology Translational Research received 93 citations as per Google Scholar report
