Xiuping Lin, Chang-Sheng Shao, Shereen M Elsherbiny, Qing Huang
Photochemistry and photobiology 2025 Jan-FebAstaxanthin (AST) is a xanthophyll carotenoid with strong oxidation resistance, which can effectively scavenge various free radicals and protect organisms from oxidative damage. AST is also known to have prominent anti-aging effects, but the underlying mechanism of AST in anti-radiation aging is largely unknown. In this work, we applied ultraviolet (UV) irradiation to accelerate the aging of Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) and treated the nematodes with AST to explore whether and how AST could attenuate the radiation-induced aging effect. Our results showed that AST improved the survival rate of C. elegans, reduced the aging biomarkers, and alleviated the mitochondrial dysfunction caused by the irradiation. Based on the transcriptome sequencing analysis, we identified that the key genes regulated by AST were involved in JNK-MAPK and DAF-16 longevity signaling pathways. Furthermore, we employed jnk-1 and daf-16 mutants and verified the role of the JNK-1/DAF-16 signaling pathway in the anti-aging effect. As such, this study has not only demonstrated that AST can resist the aging process caused by UV-irradiation but also revealed the anti-aging mechanism of AST through JNK-1/DAF-16 activation in C. elegans. © 2024 American Society for Photobiology.
Xiuping Lin, Chang-Sheng Shao, Shereen M Elsherbiny, Qing Huang. Astaxanthin attenuates UV-irradiation aging process via activating JNK-1/DAF-16 in Caenorhabditis elegans. Photochemistry and photobiology. 2025 Jan-Feb;101(1):133-146
PMID: 38695248
View Full Text