New alleles of nlp-2 , nlp-22 , and nlp-23 demonstrate that they are dispensable for stress-induced sleep in C. elegans

TL;DR

This study shows that three neuropeptide genes are not needed for stress-induced sleep in C. elegans, even though they are important for developmentally timed sleep.

Contribution

The study demonstrates that nlp-2, nlp-22, and nlp-23 are not required for stress-induced sleep in C. elegans using CRISPR-generated mutants.

Findings

nlp-22 and nlp-23 are required for developmentally timed sleep in C. elegans.

nlp-2, nlp-22, and nlp-23 are dispensable for stress-induced sleep in C. elegans.

Abstract

Sleep is ancient and genetically conserved across phylogeny. Neuropeptide signaling plays a fundamental role in the regulation of sleep for mammals, fish, and invertebrates like
Caenorhabditis elegans
. Developmentally timed-sleep and stress-induced sleep of
C. elegans
are controlled by distinct and overlapping neuropeptide pathways. The RPamide neuropeptides

nlp-2

,

nlp-22

, and

nlp-23

, play antagonistic roles during the regulation of developmentally-timed sleep, however, their role in stress-induced sleep has not been explored. These genes are linked on the X chromosome, which has made genetic analyses challenging. Here we used CRISPR to generate new alleles of

nlp-22

and

nlp-23

,

nlp-22

;

nlp-23

double mutants, and

nlp-2

;

nlp-22

;

nlp-23

triple mutants. Confirming previous studies, we find that

nlp-22

is required for developmentally-timed sleep, and show that

nlp-23

is also required. However, all three genes are dispensable for stress-induced sleep.

Figures