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Updated: Nov 12, 2025

Measurements of Physiological Stress Responses in C. Elegans
Published on: May 21, 2020
Cortisol promotes stress tolerance via DAF-16 in Caenorhabditis elegans
Kensuke Yasuda1, Yuki Kubo1, Hiroki Murata1
1Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-8572, Japan.
Abstract:
In this study, we studied the effects of cortisol and cortisone on the age-related decrease in locomotion in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans and on the tolerance to heat stress at 35 °C and to oxidative stress induced by the exposure to 0.1% H2O2. Changes in mRNA expression levels of C. elegans genes related to stress tolerance were also analyzed. Cortisol treatment restored nematode movement following heat stress and increased viability under oxidative stress, but also shortened worm lifespan. Cortisone, a cortisol precursor, also restored movement after heat stress. Additionally, cortisol treatment increased mRNA expression of the hsp-12.6 and sod-3 genes. Furthermore, cortisol treatment failed to restore movement of daf-16-deficient mutants after heat stress, whereas cortisone failed to restore the movement of dhs-30-deficient mutants after heat stress. In conclusion, the results suggested that cortisol promoted stress tolerance via DAF-16 but shortened the lifespan, whereas cortisone promoted stress tolerance via DHS-30.
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