In a groundbreaking discovery, scientists at the University of California, Riverside (UCR) have revealed the crucial role played by an organelle known as the Golgi body in the aging process of plant cells. While this organelle has been recognized for over a century, its direct involvement in aging was only recently unveiled by the UCR research team during an investigation into plant responses to stress.
Originally focusing on understanding the cellular components influencing plant reactions to stress factors like infections, salt levels, and insufficient light, the scientists serendipitously stumbled upon the Golgi body and a key protein responsible for its maintenance. Described as resembling a stack of deflated balloons or dropped lasagna, the Golgi body comprises cup-shaped membrane-covered sacs responsible for sorting and directing various molecules within the cell.
“This finding is a big deal. For the first time, we have defined the profound importance of an organelle in the cell that was not previously implicated in the process of aging,” stated Katie Dehesh, a distinguished professor of molecular biochemistry at UCR and co-author of the study published in Nature Plants.
The Golgi body, often likened to a cell’s post office, packages and dispatches proteins and lipids to their designated locations. The COG protein, likened to a postal worker, controls the movement of small sac envelopes that transport molecules within the cell and aids in attaching sugars to proteins or lipids, a process crucial for biological functions, including immune response.
When the research team disabled the production of COG protein in plants, the impact became evident when the modified plants were deprived of light. The plants exhibited signs of accelerated aging, including yellowing, wrinkling, and thinning of leaves, occurring at an accelerated rate compared to unmodified plants. However, reintroducing the COG protein reversed the aging process swiftly, emphasizing its critical role in stress management.
Importantly, as Golgi bodies are present in the cells of humans, plants, and all eukaryotic organisms, the findings open new avenues to explore the Golgi’s role in human aging. The researchers at UCR plan to delve deeper into the molecular mechanisms underlying these results, with potential implications for advancing our understanding of aging and age-related diseases in humans.