Metabolic exploitation of the bacterial arginine deiminase pathway extends Caenorhabditis elegans healthspan

Live Lactococcus lactis JCM 5805 uniquely prolonged maximum lifespan of Caenorhabditis elegans to 25 days, versus 21 days in control and heat-treated groups.

• Why it matters: The mechanisms by which lactic acid bacteria extend C. elegans lifespan are unclear, limiting understanding of how gut microbes shape host aging.
• What they did: The study compared live versus heat-treated Lc5805, measured lifespan, profiled host cuticle-formation gene upregulation (74 genes), and used metabolomics to track L-citrulline and L-ornithine.
• The result: Live Lc5805 increased L-citrulline and L-ornithine in C. elegans, and intestinal bacterial arginine deiminase (arcA) expression—absent in ADI-lacking bacteria and heat-treated groups—indicates active arginine deiminase pathway metabolism in the gut.

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