Joy Alcedo
Associate Professor
313-577-3473
Department of Biological Sciences, Rm 2109/Rm 2177
Website(s)
Joy Alcedo
Research interest(s)/area of expertise
Sensory influence on physiology through insulin signaling
Research
For optimal survival, an animal has to process complex environmental information to generate the appropriate physiological responses. Since an animal's sensory neurons are involved in processing environmental cues, it is not surprising that sensory neurons will influence animal physiology. An interesting demonstration of this sensory influence on physiology is the observation that subsets of chemosensory neurons affect developmental programs and lifespan in the worm C. elegans. For example, specific sensory neurons modulate the gametogenesis switch to oogenesis in this animal. In addition, subsets of gustatory and olfactory neurons can either shorten or lengthen worm lifespan, responses that are also present in the fruit fly Drosophila.
The nature of these neurons suggests that some of the cues that affect development and lifespan are food-derived and that perception of these cues alone can exert different effects on physiology. Consistent with this idea, we have found that the sensory system modulates oocyte biology and longevity in response to the type of animal diet. We have shown that this diet-dependent sensory influence on physiology involves the activities of specific neuropeptides, such as some of the neuronally expressed insulin-like peptides (ILPs) in the worm. Since we have shown that a C. elegans ILP code regulates distinct developmental switches that can lead to physiological state(s) that alter lifespan, we will determine the molecular and cellular bases through which these peptides process sensory information to optimize physiology. Considering that diet is a significant risk factor in many diseases, our studies should yield insight into the mechanisms of such diseases.
Education
- 1997: Ph.D., University of Zurich, Switzerland
- 2004: Postdoctoral fellow, University of California, San Francisco
Selected publications
Mishra, S., Dabaja, M., Akhlaq, A., Pereira, B., Marbach, K., Rovcanin, M., Chandra, R., Caballero, A., Fernandes de Abreu, D., Ch'ng, Q., and Alcedo, J. (2023). Specific sensory neurons and insulin-like peptides modulate food type-dependent oogenesis and fertilization in Caenorhabditis elegans. eLife 12, e83224. (Research article)
Sifoglu, D., and Alcedo, J. (2022). Homme fatal: how males cause demise. Nat Aging 2, 773-774. (News and Views)
Alcedo, J., and Prahlad, V. (2020). Neuromodulators: an essential part of survival. J Neurogenet 34. doi: 10.1080/01677063.2020.1839066.
Wu, T., Duan, F., Yang, W., Liu, H., Caballero, A., Fernandes de Abreu, D.A., Dar, A.R., Alcedo, J., Ch’ng, Q.L., Butcher, R.A., and Zhang, Y. (2019). Pheromones modulate learning by regulating the balanced signals of two insulin-like peptides. Neuron 104, 1095-1109.
Ewald, C.Y., Hourihan, J.M., Bland, M.S., Obieglo, C., Katic, I., Moronetti Mazzeo, L.E., Alcedo, J., Blackwell, T.K., and Hynes, N.E. (2017). NADPH oxidase-mediated redox signaling promotes oxidative stress resistance and longevity through memo-1 in C. elegans. eLife 6, e19493.
Artan, M., Jeong, D.E., Lee, D., Kim, Y.I., Son, H.G., Husain, Z., Kim, J., Altintas, O., Kim, K., Alcedo, J., and Lee, S.J. (2016). Food-derived sensory cues modulate longevity via distinct neuroendocrine insulin-like peptides. Genes Dev. 30, 1047-1057.
Ostojic, I., Boll, W., Waterson, M.J., Chan, T., Chandra, R., Pletcher, S.D., and Alcedo, J. (2014). Positive and negative gustatory inputs affect Drosophila lifespan partly in parallel to dFOXO signaling. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 111, 8143-8148.
Waterson, M.J., Chung, B.Y., Harvanek, Z.M., Ostojic, I., Alcedo, J., and Pletcher, S.D. (2014). Water sensor ppk28 modulates Drosophila lifespan and physiology through AKH signaling. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 111, 8137-8142.
Fernandes de Abreu, D.A.*, Caballero, A.*, Fardel, P., Stroustrup, N., Chen, Z., et al., Antebi, A.+, Blanc, E.+, Apfeld, J.+, Zhang, Y.+, Alcedo, J.+, and Ch’ng, Q.L.+ (2014). An insulin-to-insulin regulatory network orchestrates phenotypic specificity in development and physiology. PLoS Genet 10, e1004225. *:Equal contributions. +:Co-corresponding authors.
Chen, Z., Hendricks, M., Cornils, A., Maier, W., Alcedo, J., and Zhang, Y. (2013). Two insulin-like peptides antagonistically regulate aversive olfactory learning in C. elegans. Neuron 77, 572-585.
Cornils, A., Gloeck, M., Chen, Z., Zhang, Y., and Alcedo, J. (2011). Specific insulin-like peptides encode sensory information to regulate distinct developmental processes. Development 138, 1183-1193.
Fierro-Gonzalez, J. C., Cornils, A., Alcedo, J., Vizuete, A. M.+, and Swoboda, P.+ (2011). The thioredoxin TRX-1 modulates the function of an insulin-like neuropeptide during dauer formation in Caenorhabditis elegans. PLoS One 6, e16561. +: Co-corresponding authors
Maier, W.*, Adilov, B.*, Regenass, M., and Alcedo, J. (2010). A neuromedin U receptor acts with the sensory system to modulate food type-dependent effects on C. elegans lifespan. PLoS Biol 8, e1000376. *: Equal contributions.
Noll, H., Alcedo, J., Frei, E., Hunt, J., Matranga, V., Hochstrasser, M., Aebersold, R., Newitt, R., and Noll, M. (2007). The major cell adhesion glycoprotein of the sea urchin embryo is an ironless, calcium-binding member of the transferrin family. Dev. Biol. 310, 54-70.
Alcedo, J., and Kenyon, C. (2004). Regulation of C. elegans longevity by specific gustatory and olfactory neurons. Neuron 41, 45-55. Cover; Featured article. (Previewed by Adam Antebi (2004). Long life: a matter of taste (and smell). Neuron 41, 1-3.)
Alcedo, J.*, Zou, Y.*, and Noll, M. (2000). Posttranscriptional regulation of Smoothened is part of a self-correcting mechanism in the Hedgehog signaling system. Mol. Cell 6, 457-465. *: Equal contributions.
Alcedo, J., Ayzenzon, M., Von Ohlen, T., Noll, M., and Hooper, J. E. (1996). The Drosophila smoothened gene encodes a seven-pass membrane protein, a putative receptor for the Hedgehog signal. Cell 86, 221-232.