Gene-diet interactions and aging in C. elegans

Diet is the most variable aspect of life history, as most individuals have a large diversity of food choices, varying in the type and amount that they ingest. In the short-term, diet can affect metabolism and energy levels. However, in the long run, the net deficiency or excess of calories from diet can influence the progression and severity of age-related diseases. An old and yet still debated question is: how do specific dietary choices impact health- and lifespan? It is clear that genetics can play a critical role - perhaps just as important as diet choices. For example, poor diet in combination with genetic susceptibility can lead to metabolic disorders, such as obesity and type 2 diabetes. Recent work in Caenorhabditis elegans has identified the existence of diet-gene pairs, where the consequence of mutating a specific gene is only realized on specific diets. Many core metabolic pathways are conserved from worm to human. Although only a handful of these diet-gene pairs has been characterized, there are potentially hundreds, if not thousands, of such interactions, which may explain the variability in the rates of aging in humans and the incidence and severity of age-related diseases.