K. Adam Bohnert

Adam Bohnert

Associate Professor
CDIB Division
Ph.D., Vanderbilt University, 2013

Office: 220 Life Sciences Building
Lab: 265/273/277/279/383 Life Sciences Building
Phone: 225-578-3204
Lab Phone: 225-578-6230
Email: bohnerta@lsu.edu

Area of Interest

My lab investigates a fundamental question in the field of aging biology: how are offspring, formed from the cells of even very old parents, born young? Germ cells, the reproductive cells of animals, have been proposed to undergo a rejuvenation event, which eliminates parental damage and resets age with each generation. The mechanisms responsible for germline rejuvenation remain largely mysterious. Using advanced imaging techniques, I am tracking age-related damage and quality control machinery in the germ cells of a transparent, genetically-tractable nematode, Caenorhabditis elegans. Recently, I made the exciting discovery that protein aggregates, common hallmarks of aging, are eliminated from C. elegans oocytes just prior to fertilization. This renewal in protein homeostasis (‘proteostasis’) requires sperm-dependent activation of lysosomes, organelles with far-reaching implications for cellular health. By studying how age-related phenotypes are reset in the germline, I hope to understand the molecular basis for transgenerational age-resetting, and to ultimately uncover natural mechanisms by which something old can become young again.

Selected Honors and Awards

Year	Honor/Award
2020	W. M. Keck Foundation Medical Research Grant
2020	AFAR & Glenn Foundation Junior Faculty Grant
2014 - 2017	Jane Coffin Childs Postdoctoral Fellowship
2014	Ruth L. Kirschstein NRSA F32 Fellowship, NIH (declined)
2008 - 2010	Integrated Biological Systems Training in Oncology T32 Training Grant, NIH and Vanderbilt University
2007	Phi Beta Kappa
2006 - 2007	Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship

Selected Publications

Butsch, T.J., Johnson, A.E., Bohnert, K.A. Meiotic activation of Mitf/TFEB declines with age in the Drosophila testis. (submitted)

Ricaurte-Perez, C., Wall, P.K., Dubuisson, O., Bohnert, K.A., Johnson, A.E. DAF-16/FOXO and HLH-30/TFEB comprise a cooperative regulatory axis controlling tubular lysosome induction in C. elegans. (submitted) Preprint posted on Research Square. doi: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-4049366/v1.

Gill, J.P., DeLeo, K.R., Bohnert, K.A., Johnson, A.E. (2024) Human SVIP is sufficient to stimulate tubular lysosomes and extend healthspan in well-fed Caenorhabditis elegans. microPublication Biology, doi: 10.17912/micropub.biology.001379.

Flora, Y., Bohnert, K.A. (2023). SPIN-4/Spinster supports sperm activation in C. elegans via spinghosine-1-phosphate transport. Developmental Biology, 504, 137-148.

Villalobos, T.V., Ghosh, B., DeLeo, K.R., Alam, S., Ricaurte-Perez, C., Wang, A., Mercola, B.M., Butsch, T.J., Ramos, C.D., Das, S., Eymard, E.D., Bohnert, K.A.*, Johnson, A.E.* (*co-corresponding) (2023). Tubular lysosome induction couples animal starvation to healthy aging. Nature Aging, 3(9), 1091-1106.
News and Views: Sigmond, T., Vellai, T. (2023). Lysosomal alteration links food limitation to longevity. Nature Aging, 3(9), 1048-1050.

Butsch, T.J., Johnson, A.E.*, Bohnert, K.A.* (*co-corresponding) (2023). Rbp4-Gal4, a germline driver that activates in meiosis, reveals functions for VCP in spermatid development. Fly, 17(1), 2234795.

Butsch, T.J., Dubuisson, O., Johnson, A.E., Bohnert, K.A. (2023). VCP promotes tTAF-target gene expression and spermatocyte differentiation by downregulating mono-ubiquitylated H2A. Development, 150(14), dev201557.

Rossi, A.M., Bohnert, K.A., Gould, K.L. (2023). The fission yeast cytokinetic ring component Fic1 promotes septum formation. Biology Open, 12(5), bio059957.

Bohnert, K.A.*, Johnson, A.E.* (*co-corresponding) (2022). Branching off: new insight into lysosomes as tubular organelles. Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology, 10, 863922.

Ramos, C.D., Bohnert, K.A.*, Johnson, A.E.* (co-corresponding) (2022). Reproductive tradeoffs govern sexually dimorphic tubular lysosome induction in Caenorhabditis elegans. Journal of Experimental Biology, 225(12), jeb244282.
Inside JEB feature: Knight, K. (2022). Different tubular lysosome strategies of male and hermaphrodite C. elegans. Journal of Experimental Biology, 225(12), jeb244612.

Butsch, T.J., Dubuisson, O., Johnson, A.E., Bohnert, K.A. (2022). A meiotic switch in lysosome activity supports spermatocyte development in young flies but collapses with age. iScience, 25(6), 104382.

Ghosh, B., Guidry, H.J., Johnston, M., Bohnert, K.A. (2022). A fat-promoting botanical extract from Artemisia scoparia exerts geroprotective effects on Caenorhabditis elegans lifespan and stress resistance. Journals of Gerontology Series A, 77(6), 1112-1120.

Dolese, D.A., Junot, M.J., Ghosh, B., Butsch, T.J., Johnson, A.E., Bohnert, K.A. (2021). Degradative tubular lysosomes link pexophagy to starvation and early aging in C. elegans. Autophagy, 18(7), 1522-1533.

Butsch, T.J., Ghosh, B., Bohnert, K.A. (2021). Organelle-specific autophagy in cellular aging and rejuvenation. Advances in Geriatric Medicine and Research, 3(2), e210010.

Samaddar, M., Goudeau, J., Sanchez, M., Hall, D.H., Bohnert, K.A., Ingaramo, M., Kenyon, C. (2021). A genetic screen identifies new steps in oocyte maturation that enhance proteostasis in the immortal germ lineage. eLife, 10, e62653.

Bohnert, K.A., Rossi, A., Jin, Q.-W., Chen, J.-S., Gould, K.L. (2020). Phosphoregulation of the cytokinetic protein Fic1 contributes to fission yeast growth polarity establishment. Journal of Cell Science, 133, jcs244392.

Willet, A.H., Bohnert, K.A., Gould, K.L. (2018). Cdk1-dependent phosphoinhibition of a formin-F-BAR interaction opposes cytokinetic contractile ring formation. Molecular Biology of the Cell, 29(6), 713-721.

Bohnert, K.A. (2018). Staining the Germline in Live Caenorhabditis elegans: Overcoming Challenges by Applying a Fluorescent-dye Feeding Strategy. Bio-Protocol, 8, e3077.

Bohnert, K.A., Kenyon, C. (2017). A lysosomal switch triggers proteostasis renewal in the immortal C. elegans germ lineage. Nature, 551(7682), 629.
Preview: Patil, C.K., Denic, V. (2018). Putting your best egg forward. Developmental Cell, 44(1): 5-7.
Preview: Shemesh, N., Ben-Zvi, A. (2018). No excess baggage: new life starts with a clean slate. Molecular Cell, 69(2), 163-164.
New York Times feature: Zimmer, C. Young again: how one cell turns back time. November 22, 2017.

Willet, A.H., McDonald, N.A., Bohnert, K.A., Baird, M.A., Allen, J.R., Davidson, M.W., Gould, K.L. (2015). The F-BAR Cdc15 promotes contractile ring formation through the direct recruitment of the formin Cdc12. Journal of Cell Biology, 208(4), 391-399.
Perez-Rodriguez, I., Bohnert, K.A., Cuebas, M., Keddis, R., Vetriani, C. (2013). Detection and phylogenetic analysis of the membrane-bound nitrate reductase (Nar) in pure cultures and microbial communities from deep-sea hydrothermal vents. FEMS Microbiology Ecology, 86(2), 256--267.

Bohnert, K.A., Willet, A.H., Kovar, D.R., Gould, K.L. (2013). Formin-based control of the actin cytoskeleton during cytokinesis. Biochemical Society Transactions, 41(6), 1750-1754.

Bohnert, K.A., Grzegorzewska, A.P., Willet, A.H., Vander Kooi, C.W., Kovar, D.R., Gould, K.L. (2013). SIN-dependent phosphoinhibition of formin multimerization controls fission yeast cytokinesis. Genes & Development, 27(19), 2164-2177.

Bohnert, K.A., Gould, K.L. (2012). Cytokinesis-based constraints on polarized cell growth in fission yeast. PLoS Genetics, 8(10), e1003004.

Bohnert, K.A., Gould, K.L. (2011). On the cutting edge: post-translational modifications in cytokinesis. Trends in Cell Biology, 21(5), 283-292.

Bohnert, K.A., Chen, J.-S., Clifford, D.M., Vander Kooi, C.W., Gould, K.L. (2009). A link between aurora kinase and Clp1/Cdc14 regulation uncovered by the identification of a fission yeast borealin-like protein. Molecular Biology of the Cell, 20(16), 3646-3659.