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Updated: Sep 18, 2025
Measuring Caenorhabditis elegans Life Span in 96 Well Microtiter Plates
Published on: March 18, 2011
Quinacrine and rimonabant prolong the life span of Caenorhabditis elegans
Qin He1, Shupan Guo1, Aolan Zhou1
1Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Respiratory Infection and Intervention Laboratory of Frontiers Science Center for Disease-Related Molecular Network, and State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan, China.
Abstract:
Aging and age-related disorders are significant global health concerns, driving interest in potential preventative strategies. In this study, we established a high-throughput screening system to reveal the effects of quinacrine and rimonabant on lifespan extension in C. elegans. Mechanistically, quinacrine influences the metabolic and immune pathways through the insulin/insulin-like growth factor (IIS) pathway, as it fails to prolong longevity in IIS pathway mutants while boosting the expression of the downstream gene sod-3. Metabolomic profiling revealed a significant elevation of phosphatidylserine in quinacrine-treated worms. Parallel investigations showed that rimonabant exerts its lifespan-extending effects via the IIS pathway, specifically through the DAF-2/HSF-1 regulatory axis. It promotes longevity of C. elegans by enhancing antioxidant defense and detoxification pathways. Our findings position both quinacrine and rimonabant as promising anti-aging candidates, offering novel mechanistic insights for developing interventions against age-related disorders.
