Dafadine inhibits DAF-9 to promote dauer formation and longevity of Caenorhabditis elegans

The authors of this article were able to discover the first small molecule to induce dauer formation (an alternative third larval stage) in C. elegans. They went on to discover its molecular target using null mutations to narrow down which part of the insulin-like signaling pathway it was likely to affect, followed by in vitro and in vivo assays for enzymatic activity of DAF-9. They found that their compound does inhibit DAF-9, as well as a mammalian ortholog, but not other cytochrome P450s.