Investigating the connection between fat metabolism and aging process with broadband coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (BCARS) imaging
There is a strong relationship between lipid metabolism and longevity but the precise nature of this relationship remains poorly understood. This is, in part, because lipids have many functions such as acting as membrane building blocks, signaling molecules, and serving as energy reservoirs. Although there are sophisticated analytical techniques for characterizing lipid species, these techniques generally require extraction procedures that destroy anatomical integrity. While histochemical methods maintain tissue integrity, they provide sparse information on lipid composition. In the proposed research, Dr. Wei-Wen Chen will utilize an advanced spectroscopic imaging system called broadband coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (BCARS) to investigate changes in lipid composition during the course of aging in living C. elegans, a model system widely used in aging research and lipid metabolism because of its many genes that are in common with humans. By examining a variety of short- and long-lived mutants, this study aims to determine parameters that are most relevant to longevity.
