C. elegans - starvation and UV

DNA damage comprises a causal factor for aging and aging-associated diseases. Defects in genome maintenance pathways give rise to a variety of human congenital syndromes that are characterized by growth retardation, cancer susceptibility, and accelerated aging. The specific consequences of unrepaired DNA damage in human diseases are particularly apparent in syndromes caused by distinct nucleotide excision repair (NER) defects, however, with yet poorly understood genotype-phenotype correlations and highly complex disease phenotypes. We have established that the equivalent mutations in the simple metazoan Caenorhabditis elegans reflect the distinct outcomes of DNA repair defects and allow investigating the consequences of persistent DNA damage during animal development and aging. Here, we employed proteome, lipidome, and phosphoproteome analysis of NER-deficient animals in response to UV treatment in order to gain comprehensive insights into the full range of physiological adaptations to the presence of unrepaired DNA damage. We derive metabolic changes indicative of a tissue maintenance program and implicate an autophagy-mediated protoestatic response. We assign central roles for the IIS regulator DAF-2 and the EGF-signalling pathway in orchestrating this adaptive response to DNA damage. Our results provide new insights into the DNA damage responses in the organismal context.