Control of C. elegans growth arrest by stochastic, yet synchronized DAF-16/FOXO nuclear translocation pulses

FOXO transcription factors are highly conserved effectors of insulin and insulin-like growth factor signaling, that are crucial for mounting responses to a broad range of stresses. Key signaling step is the stress-induced translocation of FOXO proteins to the nucleus, where they induce expression of stress response genes. Insulin signaling and FOXO proteins often control responses that impact the entire organism, such as growth or starvation-induced developmental arrest, but how body-wide coordination is achieved is poorly understood. Here, we leverage the small size of the nematode C. elegans, to quantify translocation dynamics of DAF-16, the sole C. elegans FOXO transcription factor, with single-cell resolution, yet in a body-wide manner. Surprisingly, when we exposed individual animals to constant levels of stress that cause larval developmental arrest, DAF-16/FOXO translocated between the nucleus and cytoplasm in stochastic pulses. Even though the occurrence of translocation pulses was random, they nevertheless exhibited striking synchronization between cells throughout the body. DAF-16/FOXO pulse dynamics were strongly linked to body-wide growth, with isolated translocation pulses causing transient reduction of growth and full growth arrest observed only when pulses were of sufficiently high frequency or duration. Finally, we observed translocation pulses of FOXO3A in mammalian cells under nutrient stress. The link between DAF-16/FOXO pulses and growth provides a rationale for their synchrony, as uniform proportions are only maintained when growth and, hence, pulse dynamics are tightly coordinated between all cells. Long-range synchronization of FOXO translocation dynamics might therefore be integral also to growth control in more complex animals.