scholarly journals GMFβ prunes actin branches

2015 ◽  
Vol 209 (6) ◽  
pp. 776-776
Author(s):  
Ben Short
Keyword(s):  
Actin Networks ◽  
Guidance Cues

Study reveals that turnover of lamellipodial actin networks helps fibroblasts follow adhesive guidance cues.

scholarly journals Reconstitution of contractile actomyosin rings in vesicles

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Litschel ◽  
Charlotte F. Kelley ◽  
Danielle Holz ◽  
Maral Adeli Koudehi ◽  
Sven K. Vogel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Actin Polymerization ◽  
Living Cells ◽  
Actin Ring ◽  
Actin Networks ◽  
Mechanical Transformation ◽  
Myosin Motors ◽  
Spherical Vesicles ◽  
Theoretical Considerations ◽  
Encapsulation Methods

AbstractOne of the grand challenges of bottom-up synthetic biology is the development of minimal machineries for cell division. The mechanical transformation of large-scale compartments, such as Giant Unilamellar Vesicles (GUVs), requires the geometry-specific coordination of active elements, several orders of magnitude larger than the molecular scale. Of all cytoskeletal structures, large-scale actomyosin rings appear to be the most promising cellular elements to accomplish this task. Here, we have adopted advanced encapsulation methods to study bundled actin filaments in GUVs and compare our results with theoretical modeling. By changing few key parameters, actin polymerization can be differentiated to resemble various types of networks in living cells. Importantly, we find membrane binding to be crucial for the robust condensation into a single actin ring in spherical vesicles, as predicted by theoretical considerations. Upon force generation by ATP-driven myosin motors, these ring-like actin structures contract and locally constrict the vesicle, forming furrow-like deformations. On the other hand, cortex-like actin networks are shown to induce and stabilize deformations from spherical shapes.

scholarly journals Filamin A Regulates Cardiovascular Remodeling

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (12) ◽  
pp. 6555
Author(s):  
Sashidar Bandaru ◽  
Chandu Ala ◽  
Alex-Xianghua Zhou ◽  
Levent M. Akyürek
Keyword(s):  
Transcription Factors ◽  
Respiratory Diseases ◽  
Cell Function ◽  
Actin Binding ◽  
Cardiovascular Development ◽  
Filamin A ◽  
Cardiovascular Malformations ◽  
Experimental Animal Models ◽  
Actin Networks ◽  
Cardiovascular Remodeling

Filamin A (FLNA) is a large actin-binding cytoskeletal protein that is important for cell motility by stabilizing actin networks and integrating them with cell membranes. Interestingly, a C-terminal fragment of FLNA can be cleaved off by calpain to stimulate adaptive angiogenesis by transporting multiple transcription factors into the nucleus. Recently, increasing evidence suggests that FLNA participates in the pathogenesis of cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, in which the interaction of FLNA with transcription factors and/or cell signaling molecules dictate the function of vascular cells. Localized FLNA mutations associate with cardiovascular malformations in humans. A lack of FLNA in experimental animal models disrupts cell migration during embryogenesis and causes anomalies, including heart and vessels, similar to human malformations. More recently, it was shown that FLNA mediates the progression of myocardial infarction and atherosclerosis. Thus, these latest findings identify FLNA as an important novel mediator of cardiovascular development and remodeling, and thus a potential target for therapy. In this update, we summarized the literature on filamin biology with regard to cardiovascular cell function.

scholarly journals Glycosylation in Axonal Guidance

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (10) ◽  
pp. 5143
Author(s):  
Sampada P. Mutalik ◽  
Stephanie L. Gupton
Keyword(s):  
Neuronal Development ◽  
Axonal Guidance ◽  
Axonal Outgrowth ◽  
Axonal Pathfinding ◽  
Guidance Cues ◽  
Functional Implications ◽  
Protein Functions ◽  
Guidance Receptors ◽  
Surface Localization

How millions of axons navigate accurately toward synaptic targets during development is a long-standing question. Over decades, multiple studies have enriched our understanding of axonal pathfinding with discoveries of guidance molecules and morphogens, their receptors, and downstream signalling mechanisms. Interestingly, classification of attractive and repulsive cues can be fluid, as single guidance cues can act as both. Similarly, guidance cues can be secreted, chemotactic cues or anchored, adhesive cues. How a limited set of guidance cues generate the diversity of axonal guidance responses is not completely understood. Differential expression and surface localization of receptors, as well as crosstalk and spatiotemporal patterning of guidance cues, are extensively studied mechanisms that diversify axon guidance pathways. Posttranslational modification is a common, yet understudied mechanism of diversifying protein functions. Many proteins in axonal guidance pathways are glycoproteins and how glycosylation modulates their function to regulate axonal motility and guidance is an emerging field. In this review, we discuss major classes of glycosylation and their functions in axonal pathfinding. The glycosylation of guidance cues and guidance receptors and their functional implications in axonal outgrowth and pathfinding are discussed. New insights into current challenges and future perspectives of glycosylation pathways in neuronal development are discussed.

FGF3 from the Hypothalamus Regulates the Guidance of Thalamocortical Axons

2020 ◽  
Vol 42 (5-6) ◽  
pp. 208-216
Author(s):  
Kuan Liu ◽  
Zhongsheng Lv ◽  
Hong Huang ◽  
Shuyang Yu ◽  
Li Xiao ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sensory Information ◽  
Axonal Pathfinding ◽  
Fibroblast Growth ◽  
High Concentration ◽  
Dependent Effect ◽  
Development Stages ◽  
Guidance Cues ◽  
Thalamocortical Axons ◽  
Ventral Diencephalon

Thalamus is an important sensory relay station: afferent sensory information, except olfactory signals, is transmitted by thalamocortical axons (TCAs) to the cerebral cortex. The pathway choice of TCAs depends on diverse diffusible or substrate-bound guidance cues in the environment. Not only classical guidance cues (ephrins, slits, semaphorins, and netrins), morphogens, which exerts patterning effects during early embryonic development, can also help axons navigate to their targets at later development stages. Here, expression analyses reveal that morphogen Fibroblast growth factor (FGF)-3 is expressed in the chick ventral diencephalon, hypothalamus, during the pathfinding of TCAs. Then, using in vitro analyses in chick explants, we identify a concentration-dependent effect of FGF3 on thalamic axons: attractant 100 ng/mL FGF3 transforms to a repellent at high concentration 500 ng/mL. Moreover, inhibition of FGF3 guidance functions indicates that FGF3 signaling is necessary for the correct navigation of thalamic axons. Together, these studies demonstrate a direct effect for the member of FGF7 subfamily, FGF3, in the axonal pathfinding of TCAs.

scholarly journals Control of microtubule dynamics using an optogenetic microtubule plus end–F-actin cross-linker

2017 ◽  
Vol 217 (2) ◽  
pp. 779-793 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca C. Adikes ◽  
Ryan A. Hallett ◽  
Brian F. Saway ◽  
Brian Kuhlman ◽  
Kevin C. Slep
Keyword(s):  
Blue Light ◽  
Actin Binding ◽  
Cross Linking ◽  
Dependent Manner ◽  
Exclusion Zone ◽  
Actin Networks ◽  
Drosophila Melanogaster S2 Cells ◽  
Actin Binding Domain ◽  
Specific Factors ◽  
Insight Into

We developed a novel optogenetic tool, SxIP–improved light-inducible dimer (iLID), to facilitate the reversible recruitment of factors to microtubule (MT) plus ends in an end-binding protein–dependent manner using blue light. We show that SxIP-iLID can track MT plus ends and recruit tgRFP-SspB upon blue light activation. We used this system to investigate the effects of cross-linking MT plus ends and F-actin in Drosophila melanogaster S2 cells to gain insight into spectraplakin function and mechanism. We show that SxIP-iLID can be used to temporally recruit an F-actin binding domain to MT plus ends and cross-link the MT and F-actin networks. Cross-linking decreases MT growth velocities and generates a peripheral MT exclusion zone. SxIP-iLID facilitates the general recruitment of specific factors to MT plus ends with temporal control enabling researchers to systematically regulate MT plus end dynamics and probe MT plus end function in many biological processes.

Viscoelasticity of Isotropically Cross-Linked Actin Networks

2007 ◽  
Vol 98 (8) ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Tharmann ◽  
M. M. A. E. Claessens ◽  
A. R. Bausch
Keyword(s):  
Actin Networks
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