scholarly journals Arabidopsis Class I Formin FH1 Relocates Between Membrane Compartments During Root Cell Ontogeny And Associates With Plasmodesmata

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Denisa Oulehlová ◽  
Eva Kollárová ◽  
Petra Cifrová ◽  
Přemysl Pejchar ◽  
Viktor Žárský ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cell Shape ◽  
Secretory Pathway ◽  
Fluorescent Protein ◽  
Cell Junctions ◽  
Class I ◽  
Microtubule Organization ◽  
Branch Number ◽  
General Role ◽  
Shape Complexity ◽  
Root Tissues

AbstractFormins are evolutionarily conserved eukaryotic proteins engaged in actin nucleation and other aspects of cytoskeletal organization. Angiosperms have two formin clades with multiple paralogs; typical plant Class I formins are integral membrane proteins that can anchor cytoskeletal structures to membranes. For the main Arabidopsis housekeeping Class I formin, FH1 (At3g25500), plasmalemma localization was documented in heterologous expression and overexpression studies. We previously showed that loss of FH1 function increases cotyledon epidermal pavement cell shape complexity via modification of actin and microtubule organization and dynamics. Here we employ transgenic Arabidopsis expressing green fluorescent protein-tagged FH1 (FH1-GFP) from its native promoter to investigate in vivo behaviour of this formin using advanced microscopy techniques. The fusion protein is functional, since its expression complements the fh1 loss-of-function mutant phenotype. Accidental overexpression of FH1-GFP results in a decrease in trichome branch number, while fh1 mutation has the opposite effect, indicating a general role of this formin in controlling cell shape complexity. Consistent with previous reports, FH1-GFP associates with membranes. However, the protein exhibits surprising actin- and secretory pathway-dependent dynamic localization and relocates between cellular endomembranes and the plasmalemma during cell division and differentiation in root tissues, with transient tonoplast localization at the transition/elongation zones border. FH1-GFP also accumulates in actin-rich regions of cortical cytoplasm and associates with plasmodesmata in both the cotyledon epidermis and root tissues. Together with previous reports from metazoan systems, this suggests that formins might have an ancestral role at cell-cell junctions.

scholarly journals Arabidopsis Class I Formin FH1 Relocates between Membrane Compartments during Root Cell Ontogeny and Associates with Plasmodesmata

2019 ◽  
Vol 60 (8) ◽  
pp. 1855-1870 ◽  
Author(s):  
Denisa Oulehlov� ◽  
Eva Koll�rov� ◽  
Petra Cifrov� ◽  
Přemysl Pejchar ◽  
Viktor Žï¿½rsk� ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cell Shape ◽  
Secretory Pathway ◽  
Fluorescent Protein ◽  
Cell Junctions ◽  
Class I ◽  
Microtubule Organization ◽  
Branch Number ◽  
General Role ◽  
Shape Complexity ◽  
Root Tissues

Abstract Formins are evolutionarily conserved eukaryotic proteins engaged in actin nucleation and other aspects of cytoskeletal organization. Angiosperms have two formin clades with multiple paralogs; typical plant Class I formins are integral membrane proteins that can anchor cytoskeletal structures to membranes. For the main Arabidopsis housekeeping Class I formin, FH1 (At3g25500), plasmalemma localization was documented in heterologous expression and overexpression studies. We previously showed that loss of FH1 function increases cotyledon epidermal pavement cell shape complexity via modification of actin and microtubule organization and dynamics. Here, we employ transgenic Arabidopsis expressing green fluorescent protein-tagged FH1 (FH1-GFP) from its native promoter to investigate in vivo behavior of this formin using advanced microscopy techniques. The fusion protein is functional, since its expression complements the fh1 loss-of-function mutant phenotype. Accidental overexpression of FH1-GFP results in a decrease in trichome branch number, while fh1 mutation has the opposite effect, indicating a general role of this formin in controlling cell shape complexity. Consistent with previous reports, FH1-GFP associates with membranes. However, the protein exhibits surprising actin- and secretory pathway-dependent dynamic localization and relocates between cellular endomembranes and the plasmalemma during cell division and differentiation in root tissues, with transient tonoplast localization at the transition/elongation zones border. FH1-GFP also accumulates in actin-rich regions of cortical cytoplasm and associates with plasmodesmata in both the cotyledon epidermis and root tissues. Together with previous reports from metazoan systems, this suggests that formins might have a shared (ancestral or convergent) role at cell–cell junctions.

scholarly journals Desmoplakin: an unexpected regulator of microtubule organization in the epidermis

2007 ◽  
Vol 176 (2) ◽  
pp. 147-154 ◽  
Author(s):  
Terry Lechler ◽  
Elaine Fuchs
Keyword(s):  
Cell Shape ◽  
Epidermal Differentiation ◽  
Cell Junctions ◽  
Basal Cells ◽  
Cortical Microtubules ◽  
Microtubule Organization ◽  
Centrosomal Protein ◽  
Differentiated Cells

Despite their importance in cell shape and polarity generation, the organization of microtubules in differentiated cells and tissues remains relatively unexplored in mammals. We generated transgenic mice in which the epidermis expresses a fluorescently labeled microtubule-binding protein and show that in epidermis and in cultured keratinocytes, microtubules stereotypically reorganize as they differentiate. In basal cells, microtubules form a cytoplasmic network emanating from an apical centrosome. In suprabasal cells, microtubules concentrate at cell–cell junctions. The centrosome retains its ability to nucleate microtubules in differentiated cells, but no longer anchors them. During epidermal differentiation, ninein, which is a centrosomal protein required for microtubule anchoring (Dammermann, A., and A. Merdes. 2002. J. Cell Biol. 159:255–266; Delgehyr, N., J. Sillibourne, and M. Bornens. 2005. J. Cell Sci. 118:1565–1575; Mogensen, M.M., A. Malik, M. Piel, V. Bouckson-Castaing, and M. Bornens. 2000. J. Cell Sci. 113:3013–3023), is lost from the centrosome and is recruited to desmosomes by desmoplakin (DP). Loss of DP prevents accumulation of cortical microtubules in vivo and in vitro. Our work uncovers a differentiation-specific rearrangement of the microtubule cytoskeleton in epidermis, and defines an essential role for DP in the process.

scholarly journals Nek8445, a protein kinase required for microtubule regulation and cytokinesis in Giardia lamblia

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kelly M. Hennessey ◽  
Germain C.M. Alas ◽  
Ilse Rogiers ◽  
Renyu Li ◽  
Ethan A. Merritt ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cell Cycle ◽  
Giardia Lamblia ◽  
Cell Shape ◽  
Cell Imaging ◽  
Microtubule Organization ◽  
General Role ◽  
Ventral Disc ◽  
Altered Cell ◽  
Fixed Cell

AbstractGiardia has 198 Nek kinases whereas humans have only 11. Giardia has a complex microtubule cytoskeleton that includes eight flagella and several unique microtubule arrays that are utilized for parasite attachment and facilitation of rapid mitosis and cytokinesis. The need to regulate these structures may explain the parallel expansion of the number of Nek family kinases. Here we use live and fixed cell imaging to uncover the role of Nek8445 in regulating Giardia cell division. We demonstrate that Nek8445 localization is cell cycle regulated and this kinase has a role in regulating overall microtubule organization. Nek8445 depletion results in short flagella, aberrant ventral disc organization, loss of the funis, defective axoneme exit and altered cell shape. The axoneme exit defect is specific to the caudal axonemes, which exit from the posterior of the cell, and this defect correlates with rounding of the cell posterior and loss of the funis. Our findings implicate a role for the funis in establishing Giardia’s cell shape and guiding axoneme docking. On a broader scale our results support the emerging view that Nek family kinases have a general role in regulating microtubule organization.

scholarly journals Myosin-dependent remodeling of adherens junctions protects junctions from Snail-dependent disassembly

2016 ◽  
Vol 212 (2) ◽  
pp. 219-229 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mo Weng ◽  
Eric Wieschaus
Keyword(s):  
Cell Shape ◽  
Adherens Junctions ◽  
Myosin Ii ◽  
Cell Junctions ◽  
Snail Expression ◽  
Quantitative Image ◽  
Early Expression ◽  
Temporally Correlated ◽  
Shape Changes

Although Snail is essential for disassembly of adherens junctions during epithelial–mesenchymal transitions (EMTs), loss of adherens junctions in Drosophila melanogaster gastrula is delayed until mesoderm is internalized, despite the early expression of Snail in that primordium. By combining live imaging and quantitative image analysis, we track the behavior of E-cadherin–rich junction clusters, demonstrating that in the early stages of gastrulation most subapical clusters in mesoderm not only persist, but move apically and enhance in density and total intensity. All three phenomena depend on myosin II and are temporally correlated with the pulses of actomyosin accumulation that drive initial cell shape changes during gastrulation. When contractile myosin is absent, the normal Snail expression in mesoderm, or ectopic Snail expression in ectoderm, is sufficient to drive early disassembly of junctions. In both cases, junctional disassembly can be blocked by simultaneous induction of myosin contractility. Our findings provide in vivo evidence for mechanosensitivity of cell–cell junctions and imply that myosin-mediated tension can prevent Snail-driven EMT.

scholarly journals Localization and Interactions of Teichoic Acid Synthetic Enzymes in Bacillus subtilis

2007 ◽  
Vol 190 (5) ◽  
pp. 1812-1821 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alex Formstone ◽  
Rut Carballido-López ◽  
Philippe Noirot ◽  
Jeffery Errington ◽  
Dirk-Jan Scheffers
Keyword(s):  
Bacillus Subtilis ◽  
Cell Shape ◽  
Spatial Organization ◽  
Structural Integrity ◽  
Fluorescent Protein ◽  
Teichoic Acid ◽  
Cytoskeletal Proteins ◽  
Thick Wall ◽  
Wall Teichoic Acid ◽  
Critical Function

ABSTRACT The thick wall of gram-positive bacteria is a polymer meshwork composed predominantly of peptidoglycan (PG) and teichoic acids, both of which have a critical function in maintenance of the structural integrity and the shape of the cell. In Bacillus subtilis 168 the major teichoic acid is covalently coupled to PG and is known as wall teichoic acid (WTA). Recently, PG insertion/degradation over the lateral wall has been shown to occur in a helical pattern. However, the spatial organization of WTA assembly and its relationship with cell shape and PG assembly are largely unknown. We have characterized the localization of green fluorescent protein fusions to proteins involved in several steps of WTA synthesis in B. subtilis: TagB, -F, -G, -H, and -O. All of these localized similarly to the inner side of the cytoplasmic membrane, in a pattern strikingly similar to that displayed by probes of nascent PG. Helix-like localization patterns are often attributable to the morphogenic cytoskeletal proteins of the MreB family. However, localization of the Tag proteins did not appear to be substantially affected by single disruption of any of the three MreB homologues of B. subtilis. Bacterial and yeast two-hybrid experiments revealed a complex network of interactions involving TagA, -B, -E, -F, -G, -H, and -O and the cell shape determinants MreC and MreD (encoded by the mreBCD operon and presumably involved in the spatial organization of PG synthesis). Taken together, our results suggest that, in B. subtilis at least, the synthesis and export of WTA precursors are mediated by a large multienzyme complex that may be associated with the PG-synthesizing machinery.

scholarly journals Fluorescence lifetime imaging of pH along the secretory pathway

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Linders ◽  
Martin ter Beest ◽  
Geert van den Bogaart
Keyword(s):  
Temporal Resolution ◽  
Fluorescence Lifetime ◽  
Secretory Pathway ◽  
Fluorescent Protein ◽  
Excitation Wavelength ◽  
Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging ◽  
Ph Homeostasis ◽  
Ph Changes ◽  
Lifetime Imaging ◽  
Wide Range

Many cellular processes are dependent on correct pH levels, and this is especially important for the secretory pathway. Defects in pH homeostasis in distinct organelles cause a wide range of diseases, including disorders of glycosylation and lysosomal storage diseases. Ratiometric imaging of the pH-sensitive mutant of green fluorescent protein (GFP), pHLuorin, has allowed for targeted pH measurements in various organelles, but the required sequential image acquisition is intrinsically slow and therefore the temporal resolution unsuitable to follow the rapid transit of cargo between organelles. We therefore applied fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM) to measure intraorganellar pH with just a single excitation wavelength. We first validated this method by confirming the pH in multiple compartments along the secretory pathway. Then, we analyze the dynamic pH changes within cells treated with Brefeldin A, a COPI coat inhibitor. Finally, we followed the pH changes of newly-synthesized molecules of the inflammatory cytokine tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α while it was in transit from the endoplasmic reticulum via the Golgi to the plasma membrane. The toolbox we present here can be applied to measure intracellular pH with high spatial and temporal resolution, and can be used to assess organellar pH in disease models.

scholarly journals The Equine Herpesvirus 1 US2 Homolog Encodes a Nonessential Membrane-Associated Virion Component

1999 ◽  
Vol 73 (4) ◽  
pp. 3430-3437 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandra Meindl ◽  
Nikolaus Osterrieder
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Plasma Membrane ◽  
Secretory Pathway ◽  
Fluorescent Protein ◽  
Viral Envelope ◽  
Equine Herpesvirus ◽  
Equine Herpesvirus 1 ◽  
Amino Terminal ◽  
Infected Cells ◽  
Herpesvirus 1

ABSTRACT Experiments were conducted to analyze the equine herpesvirus 1 (EHV-1) gene 68 product which is encoded by the EHV-1 US2 homolog. An antiserum directed against the amino-terminal 206 amino acids of the EHV-1 US2 protein specifically detected a protein with an M r of 34,000 in cells infected with EHV-1 strain RacL11. EHV-1 strain Ab4 encodes a 44,000-M r Us2 protein, whereas vaccine strain RacH, a high-passage derivative of RacL11, encodes a 31,000-M r Us2 polypeptide. Irrespective of its size, the US2 protein was incorporated into virions. The EHV-1 US2 protein localized to membrane and nuclear fractions of RacL11-infected cells and to the envelope fraction of purified virions. To monitor intracellular trafficking of the protein, the green fluorescent protein (GFP) was fused to the carboxy terminus of the EHV-1 US2 protein or to a truncated US2 protein lacking a stretch of 16 hydrophobic amino acids at the extreme amino terminus. Both fusion proteins were detected at the plasma membrane and accumulated in the vicinity of nuclei of transfected cells. However, trafficking of either GFP fusion protein through the secretory pathway could not be demonstrated, and the EHV-1 US2 protein lacked detectable N- and O-linked carbohydrates. Consistent with the presence of the US2 protein in the viral envelope and plasma membrane of infected cells, a US2-negative RacL11 mutant (L11ΔUS2) exhibited delayed penetration kinetics and produced smaller plaques compared with either wild-type RacL11 or a US2-repaired virus. After infection of BALB/c mice with L11ΔUS2, reduced pathogenicity compared with the parental RacL11 virus and the repaired virus was observed. It is concluded that the EHV-1 US2 protein modulates virus entry and cell-to-cell spread and appears to support sustained EHV-1 replication in vivo.

Micron-scale supramolecular myosin arrays help mediate cytoskeletal assembly at mature adherens junctions

2021 ◽  
Vol 221 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hui-Chia Yu-Kemp ◽  
Rachel A. Szymanski ◽  
Daniel B. Cortes ◽  
Nicole C. Gadda ◽  
Madeline L. Lillich ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Self Assembly ◽  
Cell Shape ◽  
Mdck Cells ◽  
Shape Change ◽  
Cell Junctions ◽  
Actin Assembly ◽  
Superresolution Microscopy ◽  
Actin Organization ◽  
Cell Shape Change ◽  
Actomyosin Cytoskeleton

Epithelial cells assemble specialized actomyosin structures at E-Cadherin–based cell–cell junctions, and the force exerted drives cell shape change during morphogenesis. The mechanisms that build this supramolecular actomyosin structure remain unclear. We used ZO-knockdown MDCK cells, which assemble a robust, polarized, and highly organized actomyosin cytoskeleton at the zonula adherens, combining genetic and pharmacologic approaches with superresolution microscopy to define molecular machines required. To our surprise, inhibiting individual actin assembly pathways (Arp2/3, formins, or Ena/VASP) did not prevent or delay assembly of this polarized actomyosin structure. Instead, as junctions matured, micron-scale supramolecular myosin arrays assembled, with aligned stacks of myosin filaments adjacent to the apical membrane, overlying disorganized actin filaments. This suggested that myosin arrays might bundle actin at mature junctions. Consistent with this idea, inhibiting ROCK or myosin ATPase disrupted myosin localization/organization and prevented actin bundling and polarization. We obtained similar results in Caco-2 cells. These results suggest a novel role for myosin self-assembly, helping drive actin organization to facilitate cell shape change.

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