| Description |
Gerontology and studies of aging have been grappling with the effects of a westernized diet for decades now. Some of these effects include diseases related to overconsumption such as obesity, diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, stroke, and many more. These pathologies are now contributors to many of the leading causes of death, with humans craving much more salt than is necessary for physiological homeostasis. Our relationship with salt is already unhealthy but the continuation of our current diets will be passed on to the next generation with unforeseen consequences. To analyze the effects of high salt on health span and aging, we used Drosophila melanogaster and genetic manipulation to show that a high salt diet is dehydrating and can be rescued through addition of water or changing expression in a key, regulatory protein: Locomotion defect (Loco). While this has been shown in young flies before, we confirmed this finding and extended our study to older flies of 3 and 5 weeks of age. The pertinence of chronic kidney disease, the high salt pandemic, and inability to regulate ion balance with age contribute to the motivation to explore a genetic mutation of Loco and why deficiency in this protein and its associated G-Protein signaling pathway confers resistance to high salt stress. Additionally, extensive literature review and exploration of related insulin signaling/cAMP pathways illuminates a possible link between high salt, hypertension, oxidative stress, and the current theory of molecular aging and senescence. |
