RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 Ras inhibition by trametinib treatment in Drosophila attenuates gut pathology in females and extends lifespan in both sexes JF bioRxiv FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory SP 356295 DO 10.1101/356295 A1 Regan, Jennifer C A1 Lu, Yu-Xuan A1 Bolukbasi, Ekin A1 Khericha, Mobina A1 Partridge, Linda YR 2018 UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2018/06/26/356295.abstract AB Females of most species live longer than do males. Furthermore, lifespan-extending interventions in laboratory model organisms are often more effective in females (Regan and Partridge 2013). For instance, genetic and pharmacological suppression of activity of the insulin/insulin-like signalling - target of rapamycin (IIS-TOR) network generally extends female lifespan more than that of males in both Drosophila and mice (Clancy et al. 2001; Selman et al. 2009). We previously showed that attenuation of Ras-dependent IIS signalling by treatment with the FDA-approved MEK inhibitor, trametinib extends lifespan in females (Slack et al. 2015). Here, we demonstrate that trametinib treatment has beneficial effects on female-specific, age-related gut pathologies, similar to those obtained through dietary restriction (Regan et al. 2016). Importantly, we identify Ras inhibition as an effective lifespan-extending manipulation in males as well as females, pointing to parallel mechanisms of lifespan extension by trametinib in both sexes.