A ZTF-7/RPS-2 complex mediates the cold-warm response in C. elegans

• Published in: PLoS genetics Vol. 19; no. 2; p. e1010628
• Main Authors: Xu, Ting, Liao, Shimiao, Huang, Meng, Zhu, Chengming, Huang, Xiaona, Jin, Qile, Xu, Demin, Fu, Chuanhai, Chen, Xiangyang, Feng, Xuezhu, Guang, Shouhong
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 10.02.2023; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Animals; Biology and Life Sciences; Caenorhabditis elegans; Caenorhabditis elegans - genetics; Caenorhabditis elegans - metabolism; Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins - genetics; Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins - metabolism; Cell Nucleus - metabolism; Cold; Cold Temperature; Environmental aspects; Genetic aspects; Genetic screening; Heat; Heat shock proteins; Humans; Immunoprecipitation; Localization; Mass spectroscopy; Nucleoli; Physiological aspects; Protein Binding; Research and Analysis Methods; RNA polymerase; RNA processing; rRNA; Temperature; Zinc finger proteins; China
• ISSN: 1553-7404; 1553-7390; 1553-7404
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1010628

Temperature greatly affects numerous biological processes in all organisms. How multicellular organisms respond to and are impacted by hypothermic stress remains elusive. Here, we found that cold-warm stimuli induced depletion of the RNA exosome complex in the nucleoli but enriched it in the nucleoplasm. To further understand the function and mechanism of cold-warm stimuli, we conducted forward genetic screening and identified ZTF-7, which is required for RNA exosome depletion from nucleoli upon transient cold-warm exposure in C. elegans. ZTF-7 is a putative ortholog of human ZNF277 that may contribute to language impairments. Immunoprecipitation followed by mass spectrometry (IP-MS) found that ZTF-7 interacted with RPS-2, which is a ribosomal protein of the small subunit and participates in pre-rRNA processing. A partial depletion of RPS-2 and other proteins of the small ribosomal subunit blocked the cold-warm stimuli-induced reduction of exosome subunits from the nucleoli. These results established a novel mechanism by which C. elegans responds to environmental cold-warm exposure.