Observations on the Membranous Components of Amphibian Oocyte Nucleoli

1971 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
J. KEZER ◽  
H. C. MACGREGOR ◽  
E. SCHABTACHL
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Envelope ◽  
Nuclear Membrane ◽  
Fibrous Material ◽  
Plethodon Cinereus ◽  
Unit Membrane ◽  
Central Mass ◽  
Thin Sections ◽  
The Core ◽  
Ascaphus Truei ◽  
Beaded Appearance

Nucleoli in some large yolky oocytes of Plethodon cinereus and Ascaphus truei have attached to them a filament which may or may not have a beaded appearance. These filaments have been called ‘nucleolar tails’. One nucles may contain several hundred of them. They may be up to 200 µm long and are usually about 1 µm wide. The beads which are sometimes attached to the filament are round, refractile and up to 3 µm in diameter. The tails are a feature of nuclei in which the nucleoli have left the nuclear envelope and migrated inward to cluster around the chromosomes in the centre of the nucleus. The tails project radially outwards from the central mass of nucleoli. Tails may be attached to round solid nucleoli, as a usually the case in A. truei, or they may be attached to ring nucleoli, as is often the case in P. cinereus, or they may lie free in the nuclear sap. Those nucleoli which remain atttached to the nucleolar organizing site on the lampbrush chormosomes of P. cinereus never have tails. Nucleolar tails are Feulgen-negative and do not stain with gallocyanine when it is used under the proper conditions for staining nucleic acids. Tails are unaffected by deoxyribonuclease and ribonuclease but are destroyed by proteolyic enzymes. Thin sections of oocytes whose nuclei contained nucleolar tails showed chains of membranous vesicles lying near to many of the nucleoli. These vesicles appeared empty, some of them were confluent with their neighbours, all were bounded by a unit membrane and all were coated on their outer surfaces by a fine fibrous material. The chains of vesicles commonly ended near a depression on the surface of the core of a nucleolus. Chains of vesicles sometimes extended into a long membranous tube. We have interpreted these chains of vesicles and tubes as sections through nucleolar tails. It is suggested that nucleolar tails may be associated with the replication of nucleolar DNA, or with the division of nucleolar cores and nucleoli, or with the production of nuclear membrane at a time when the nucleus in enlarging rapidly. Each of these suggestions is discussed. A likeness between nucleolar tails and the mesosomes of bacteria is proposed and discussed.

Pattern of Incorporation of [3H]Uridine into RNA of Amphibian Oocyte Nucleoli

1967 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 145-150
Author(s):  
H. C. MACGREGOR
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Envelope ◽  
Incubation Time ◽  
Core Material ◽  
Distinct Component ◽  
Thin Sections ◽  
The Core ◽  
Amphibian Oocyte ◽  
Nucleolar Rna ◽  
Silver Grains

Amphibian oocytes were incubated in vitro in the presence of [3H]uridine, and autoradiographs were made of nucleoli isolated from these oocytes and of sections of oocytes. After incubations of 2 h or less the nucleoli of oocytes larger than 0.6 mm diameter are asymmetrically labelled. With longer incubations nucleoli from oocytes of 0.6 to 1.1 mm diameter become more uniformly labelled. Those of oocytes larger than 1.2 mm diameter remain asymmetrically labelled whatever the incubation time. Autoradiographs of 1-µ sections through oocytes larger than 0.6 mm diameter show, after short incubations, asymmetrically labelled nucleoli. In these autoradiographs silver grains are concentrated over a distinct component of each nucleolus which is eccentrically placed towards the nuclear envelope. Thin sections of oocytes show nucleoli consisting of core and cortex. The core material is always concentrated into the half of the nucleolus which lies nearer the nuclear envelope. Autoradiographs of separated nucleolar cores and cortices from oocytes larger than 0.6 mm diameter show, after short incubations, silver grains over cores but not over cortices. Similar autoradiographs prepared from oocytes of 0.6 to 1.1 mm diameter, after longer incubations, show grains over cores and cortices. These results appear to indicate that nucleolar RNA is synthesized in the nucleolar core, in association with the nucleolar DNA, and is thence transferred to the cortex where it is built into ribonucleoprotein particles. Initial asymmetrical labelling is a consequence of the eccentric location of the nucleolar core. The nucleoli of oocytes smaller than 0.6 mm diameter always label symmetrically; such nucleoli consist entirely of core material. It is suggested that the nucleoli of oocytes larger than 1.2 mm diameter always label asymmetrically because transfer of RNA from core to cortex proceeds more slowly than in smaller oocytes.

scholarly journals Structural analysis of different LINC complexes reveals distinct binding modes

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Victor E. Cruz ◽  
F. Esra Demircioglu ◽  
Thomas U. Schwartz
Keyword(s):  
Structural Analysis ◽  
High Resolution ◽  
Nuclear Envelope ◽  
Chromosome Pairing ◽  
Nuclear Membrane ◽  
Homologous Chromosome ◽  
The Sun ◽  
Binding Modes ◽  
The Core ◽  
Homologous Chromosome Pairing

AbstractLinker of nucleoskeleton and cytoskeleton (LINC) complexes are molecular tethers that span the nuclear envelope (NE) and physically connect the nucleus to the cytoskeleton. They transmit mechanical force across the NE in processes such as nuclear anchorage, nuclear migration, and homologous chromosome pairing during meiosis. LINC complexes are composed of KASH proteins traversing the outer nuclear membrane, and SUN proteins crossing the inner nuclear membrane. Humans have several SUN- and KASH-containing proteins, yet what governs their proper engagement is poorly understood. To investigate this question, we solved high resolution crystal structures of human SUN2 in complex with the KASH-peptides of Nesprin3, Nesprin4, and KASH5. In comparison to the published structures of SUN2-KASH1/2 we observe alternative binding modes for these KASH peptides. While the core interactions between SUN and the C-terminal residues of the KASH peptide are similar in all five complexes, the extended KASH-peptide adopts at least two different conformations. The much-improved resolution allows for a more detailed analysis of other elements critical for KASH interaction, including the KASH-lid and the cation loop, and a possible self-locked state for unbound SUN. In summary, we observe distinct differences between the examined SUN-KASH complexes. These differences may have an important role in regulating the SUN-KASH network.

scholarly journals Experimental disintegration of the nuclear envelope. Evidence for pore-connecting fibrils.

1976 ◽  
Vol 69 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
U Scheer ◽  
J Kartenbeck ◽  
M F Trendelenburg ◽  
J Stadler ◽  
W W Franke
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Envelope ◽  
Nuclear Membrane ◽  
Thin Sections ◽  
Low Salt ◽  
Ultrathin Sections ◽  
Nuclear Structures ◽  
Pore Complexes ◽  
Membrane Components ◽  
20 Nm ◽  
Surface Tension Forces

The disintegration of the nuclear envelope has been examined in nuclei and nuclear envelopes isolated from amphibian oocytes from amphibian oocytes and rat liver tissue, using different electron microscope techniques (ultrathin sections and negatively or positively stained spread preparations). Various treatments were studied, including disruption by surface tension forces, very low salt concentrations, and nonionic detergents such as Triton C-100 and Nonidet P-40. The highest local stability of the cylinders of nonmembranous pore complex material is emphasized. As progressive disintegration occurred in the membrane regions, a network of fibrils became apparent which interconnects the pore complexes and is distinguished from the pore complex-associated about 15-20 nm thick, located at the level of the inner nuclear membrane, which is recognized in thin sections to bridge the interpore distances. With all disintegraiton treatments a somewhat higher susceptibility of the outer nuclear membrane is notable, but a selective removal does not take place. Final stages of disintegration are generally characterized by the absence of identifiable, membrane-like structures. Analysis of detergent-treated nuclei and nuclear membrane fractions shows almost complete absence of lipid components but retention bo significant amount of glycoproteins with a typical endomembrane-type carbohydrate pattern. Various alternative interpretations of these observations are discussed. From the present observations and those of Aaronson and Blobel (1,2), we favor the notion that threadlike intrinsic membrane components are stabilized by their attachment to the pore complexes, and perhaps also to peripheral nuclear structures,and constitute a detergent-resistant, interpore skeleton meshwork.

Membranous alterations in the cytoplasm and nucleus in a primitive neuroectodermal tumor of the brain

1978 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
pp. 628-629
Author(s):  
C. N. Sun ◽  
C. Araoz ◽  
H. J. White
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Envelope ◽  
Tumor Cells ◽  
Osmium Tetroxide ◽  
Primitive Neuroectodermal Tumor ◽  
Uranyl Acetate ◽  
Neuroectodermal Tumor ◽  
Annulate Lamellae ◽  
Lead Citrate ◽  
Thin Sections ◽  
The Brain

The ultrastructure of a cerebral primitive neuroectodermal tumor has been reported previously. In the present case, we will present some unusual previously unreported membranous structures and alterations in the cytoplasm and nucleus of the tumor cells.Specimens were cut into small pieces about 1 mm3 and immediately fixed in 4% glutaraldehyde in phosphate buffer for two hours, then post-fixed in 1% buffered osmium tetroxide for one hour. After dehydration, tissues were embedded in Epon 812. Thin sections were stained with uranyl acetate and lead citrate.In the cytoplasm of the tumor cells, we found paired cisternae (Fig. 1) and annulate lamellae (Fig. 2) noting that the annulate lamellae were sometimes associated with the outer nuclear envelope (Fig. 3). These membranous structures have been reported in other tumor cells. In our case, mitochondrial to nuclear envelope fusions were often noted (Fig. 4). Although this phenomenon was reported in an oncocytoma, their frequency in the present study is quite striking.

scholarly journals FINE STRUCTURE OF LIPID-DEPLETED MITOCHONDRIA

1967 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 193-208 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sidney Fleischer ◽  
Becca Fleischer ◽  
Walther Stoeckenius
Keyword(s):  
Fine Structure ◽  
Reductase Activity ◽  
Aqueous Acetone ◽  
Unit Membrane ◽  
Mitochondrial Membranes ◽  
Inner Membrane ◽  
Thin Sections ◽  
Membrane Particles ◽  
Succinate Cytochrome C Reductase ◽  
Many Particles

The fine structure of mitochondria and submitochondrial vesicles depleted of their lipid by extraction with aqueous acetone was studied. Thin sections of mitochondrial membranes depleted of more than 95% of their lipid retained the unit membrane structure. Densitometer tracings of the electron micrographs showed that the unit membrane of extracted mitochondria was, on the average, wider than that of unextracted controls and showed a greater variation in width. The outer membrane was lost in mitochondria from which 80–95% of the lipids was extracted. Inner membrane particles were present on submitochondrial vesicles depleted of up to 85% of their lipids. However, when more than 95% of the lipid was removed, few, if any, particles remained attached to the membranes but many particles were found unattached in the background. When lipid was restored to lipid-deficient preparations, the mitochondrial membranes were found to be devoid of inner membrane particles but were fully active with respect to succinate-cytochrome c reductase activity.

BAF is required for emerin assembly into the reforming nuclear envelope

2001 ◽  
Vol 114 (24) ◽  
pp. 4575-4585 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tokuko Haraguchi ◽  
Takako Koujin ◽  
Miriam Segura-Totten ◽  
Kenneth K. Lee ◽  
Yosuke Matsuoka ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Envelope ◽  
Hela Cells ◽  
Core Region ◽  
Lamin B ◽  
The Core ◽  
Double Stranded Dna ◽  
Recessive Form ◽  
Nuclear Envelope Assembly

Mutations in emerin cause the X-linked recessive form of Emery-Dreifuss muscular dystrophy (EDMD). Emerin localizes at the inner membrane of the nuclear envelope (NE) during interphase, and diffuses into the ER when the NE disassembles during mitosis. We analyzed the recruitment of wildtype and mutant GFP-tagged emerin proteins during nuclear envelope assembly in living HeLa cells. During telophase, emerin accumulates briefly at the ‘core’ region of telophase chromosomes, and later distributes over the entire nuclear rim. Barrier-to-autointegration factor (BAF), a protein that binds nonspecifically to double-stranded DNA in vitro, co-localized with emerin at the ‘core’ region of chromosomes during telophase. An emerin mutant defective for binding to BAF in vitro failed to localize at the ‘core’ in vivo, and subsequently failed to localize at the reformed NE. In HeLa cells that expressed BAF mutant G25E, which did not show ‘core’ localization, the endogenous emerin proteins failed to localize at the ‘core’ region during telophase, and did not assemble into the NE during the subsequent interphase. BAF mutant G25E also dominantly dislocalized LAP2β and lamin A from the NE, but had no effect on the localization of lamin B. We conclude that BAF is required for the assembly of emerin and A-type lamins at the reforming NE during telophase, and may mediate their stability in the subsequent interphase.

scholarly journals THE CELL ENVELOPES OF TWO EXTREMELY HALOPHILIC BACTERIA

1963 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 681-689 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. D. Brown ◽  
C. D. Shorey
Keyword(s):  
Single Unit ◽  
Cell Envelope ◽  
Halophilic Bacteria ◽  
Layered Compound ◽  
Halobacterium Halobium ◽  
Chemical Analyses ◽  
Unit Membrane ◽  
Thin Sections ◽  
Whole Cells ◽  
Cell Envelopes

The cell envelope of Halobacterium halobium was seen in thin sections of permanganate-fixed cells to consist of one membrane. This membrane appeared mostly as a unit membrane but in a few preparations it resembled a 5-layered compound membrane. The cell envelope of Halobacterium salinarium at high resolution was always seen as a 5-layered structure different in appearance from the apparent compound membrane of H. halobium. The "envelopes" which were isolated in 12.5 per cent NaCl from each organism were indistinguishable from each other in the electron microscope and comprised, in each case, a single unit membrane with an over-all thickness of about 110 A. Some chemical analyses were made of isolated membranes after freeing them from salt by precipitating and washing with trichloroacetic acid. Such precipitated membranes consisted predominantly of protein, with little carbohydrate and no peptido-aminopolysaccharide (mucopeptide). Sectioned whole cells of H. halobium contained intracellular electron-opaque structures of unknown function.

scholarly journals Nuclear envelope rupture: Actin fibers are putting the squeeze on the nucleus

2016 ◽  
Vol 215 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan Lammerding ◽  
Katarina Wolf
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Envelope ◽  
Nuclear Membrane ◽  
Nuclear Lamina ◽  
Cell Biol ◽  
Biophysical Processes

Cells exhibit transient nuclear envelope ruptures during interphase, but the responsible biophysical processes remain unclear. In this issue, Hatch and Hetzer (2016. J. Cell Biol. http://dx.doi.org/10.1083/jcb.201603053) show that actin fibers constrict the nucleus, causing chromatin protrusions and nuclear membrane ruptures at sites with nuclear lamina defects.

scholarly journals Endoplasmic reticulum-to-Golgi transitions upon herpes virus infection

F1000Research ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 1804 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Wild ◽  
Andres Kaech ◽  
Elisabeth M. Schraner ◽  
Ladina Walser ◽  
Mathias Ackermann
Keyword(s):  
Endoplasmic Reticulum ◽  
Nuclear Envelope ◽  
Golgi Complex ◽  
Nuclear Membrane ◽  
Progeny Virus ◽  
Cytoplasmic Matrix ◽  
Outer Nuclear Membrane ◽  
Nuclear Membranes ◽  
Perinuclear Space ◽  
Hsv 1

Background: Herpesvirus capsids are assembled in the nucleus, translocated to the perinuclear space by budding, acquiring tegument and envelope, or released to the cytoplasm via impaired nuclear envelope. One model proposes that envelopment, “de-envelopment” and “re-envelopment” is essential for production of infectious virus. Glycoproteins gB/gH were reported to be essential for de-envelopment, by fusion of the “primary” envelope with the outer nuclear membrane. Yet, a high proportion of enveloped virions generated from genomes with deleted gB/gH were found in the cytoplasm and extracellular space, suggesting the existence of alternative exit routes.Methods: We investigated the relatedness between the nuclear envelope and membranes of the endoplasmic reticulum and Golgi complex, in cells infected with either herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) or a Us3 deletion mutant thereof, or with bovine herpesvirus 1 (BoHV-1) by transmission and scanning electron microscopy, employing freezing technique protocols.Results:  The Golgi complex is a compact entity in a juxtanuclear position covered by a membrane on thecisface. Golgi membranes merge with membranes of the endoplasmic reticulum forming an entity with the perinuclear space. All compartments contained enveloped virions. After treatment with brefeldin A, HSV-1 virions aggregated in the perinuclear space and endoplasmic reticulum, while infectious progeny virus was still produced.Conclusions: The data suggest that virions derived by budding at nuclear membranes are intraluminally transported from the perinuclear space via Golgi -endoplasmic reticulum transitions into Golgi cisternae for packaging. Virions derived by budding at nuclear membranes are infective like Us3 deletion mutants, which  accumulate in the perinuclear space. Therefore, i) de-envelopment followed by re-envelopment is not essential for production of infective progeny virus, ii) the process taking place at the outer nuclear membrane is budding not fusion, and iii) naked capsids gain access to the cytoplasmic matrix via impaired nuclear envelope as reported earlier.

scholarly journals Unrestrained ESCRT-III drives chromosome fragmentation and micronuclear catastrophe

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marina Vietri ◽  
Sebastian W. Schultz ◽  
Aurélie Bellanger ◽  
Carl M. Jones ◽  
Camilla Raiborg ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Envelope ◽  
Nuclear Membrane ◽  
Genome Stability ◽  
Membrane Deformation ◽  
Chromosome Fragmentation ◽  
Inner Nuclear Membrane ◽  
Membrane Rupture ◽  
Membrane Fission ◽  
Stable Association ◽  
Inner Nuclear Membrane Protein

AbstractThe ESCRT-III membrane fission machinery1,2 restores nuclear envelope integrity during mitotic exit3,4 and interphase5,6. Whereas primary nuclei resealing takes minutes, micronuclear envelope ruptures appear irreversible and result in catastrophic collapse associated with chromosome fragmentation and rearrangements (chromothripsis), thought to be a major driving force in cancer development7-10. Despite its importance11-13, the mechanistic underpinnings of nuclear envelope sealing in primary nuclei and the defects observed in micronuclei remain largely unknown. Here we show that CHMP7, the nucleator of ESCRT-III filaments at the nuclear envelope3,14, and the inner nuclear membrane protein LEMD215 act as a compartmentalization sensor detecting the loss of nuclear integrity. In cells with intact nuclear envelope, CHMP7 is actively excluded from the nucleus to preclude its binding to LEMD2. Nuclear influx of CHMP7 results in stable association with LEMD2 at the inner nuclear membrane that licenses local polymerization of ESCRT-III. Tight control of nuclear CHMP7 levels is critical, as induction of nuclear CHMP7 mutants is sufficient to induce unrestrained growth of ESCRT-III foci at the nuclear envelope, causing dramatic membrane deformation, local DNA torsional stress, single-stranded DNA formation and fragmentation of the underlying chromosomes. At micronuclei, membrane rupture is not associated with repair despite timely recruitment of ESCRT-III. Instead, micronuclei inherently lack the capacity to restrict accumulation of CHMP7 and LEMD2. This drives unrestrained ESCRT-III recruitment, membrane deformation and DNA defects that strikingly resemble those at primary nuclei upon induction of nuclear CHMP7 mutants. Preventing ESCRT-III recruitment suppresses membrane deformation and DNA damage, without restoring nucleocytoplasmic compartmentalization. We propose that the ESCRT-III nuclear integrity surveillance machinery is a double-edged sword, as its exquisite sensitivity ensures rapid repair at primary nuclei while causing unrestrained polymerization at micronuclei, with catastrophic consequences for genome stability16-18.

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