scholarly journals An actin network is present in the cytoplasm throughout the cell cycle of carrot cells and associates with the dividing nucleus.

1987 ◽  
Vol 105 (1) ◽  
pp. 387-395 ◽  
Author(s):  
J A Traas ◽  
J H Doonan ◽  
D J Rawlins ◽  
P J Shaw ◽  
J Watts ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mitotic Spindle ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Preprophase Band ◽  
Alternative Methods ◽  
Cell Periphery ◽  
Actin Network ◽  
Suspension Cells ◽  
Daucus Carota L ◽  
Culture Cells ◽  
Transvacuolar Strands

We have studied the F-actin network in cycling suspension culture cells of carrot (Daucus carota L.) using rhodaminyl lysine phallotoxin (RLP). In addition to conventional fixation with formaldehyde, we have used two different nonfixation methods before adding RLP: extracting cells in a stabilizing buffer; inducing transient pores in the plasma membrane with pulses of direct current (electroporation). These alternative methods for introducing RLP revealed additional features of the actin network not seen in aldehyde-fixed cells. The three-dimensional organization of this network in nonflattened cells was demonstrated by projecting stereopairs derived from through-focal series of computer-enhanced images. F-actin is present in interphase cells in four interconnected configurations: a meshwork surrounding the nucleus; thick cables in transvacuolar strands and deep in the cytoplasm; a finer network of bundles within the cortical cytoplasm; even finer filaments that run in ordered transverse array around the cell periphery. The actin network is organized differently during division but it does not disappear as do the cortical microtubules. RLP stains a central filamentous cortical band as the chromatin begins to condense (preprophase); it stains the mitotic spindle (as recently shown by Seagull et al. [Seagull, R. W., M. Falconer, and C. A. Weerdenburg, 1987, J. Cell Biol., 104:995-1004] for aldehyde fixed suspension cells) and the cytokinetic apparatus (as shown by Clayton, L., and C. W. Lloyd, 1985, Exp. Cell Res., 156:231-238). However, it is now shown that an additional network of F-actin persists in the cytoplasm throughout division associating in turn with the preprophase band, the mitotic spindle, and the cytokinetic phragmoplast.

Laser Scanning Confocal Microscopy and Three-Dimesnsional Reconstruction of the Mitotic Spindles of Unequally Dividing Embryonic Cells

1990 ◽  
Vol 48 (3) ◽  
pp. 166-167
Author(s):  
J. Holy ◽  
G. Schatten
Keyword(s):  
Confocal Microscopy ◽  
Mitotic Spindle ◽  
Laser Scanning ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Laser Scanning Confocal Microscopy ◽  
Two Dimensions ◽  
Embryonic Cells ◽  
Mitotic Spindles ◽  
Cleavage Division ◽  
Scanning Confocal Microscopy

One of the classic limitations of light microscopy has been the fact that three dimensional biological events could only be visualized in two dimensions. Recently, this shortcoming has been overcome by combining the technologies of laser scanning confocal microscopy (LSCM) and computer processing of microscopical data by volume rendering methods. We have employed these techniques to examine morphogenetic events characterizing early development of sea urchin embryos. Specifically, the fourth cleavage division was examined because it is at this point that the first morphological signs of cell differentiation appear, manifested in the production of macromeres and micromeres by unequally dividing vegetal blastomeres.The mitotic spindle within vegetal blastomeres undergoing unequal cleavage are highly polarized and develop specialized, flattened asters toward the micromere pole. In order to reconstruct the three-dimensional features of these spindles, both isolated spindles and intact, extracted embryos were fluorescently labeled with antibodies directed against either centrosomes or tubulin.

scholarly journals A highly polarized excitable cell separates sodium channels from sodium-activated potassium channels by more than a millimeter

2015 ◽  
Vol 114 (1) ◽  
pp. 520-530 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yue Ban ◽  
Benjamin E. Smith ◽  
Michael R. Markham
Keyword(s):  
Ion Channels ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Electric Organ ◽  
Metabolic Cost ◽  
Great Distance ◽  
Posterior Region ◽  
Anterior Region ◽  
Cell Periphery ◽  
Spatial Coupling ◽  
Eigenmannia Virescens

The bioelectrical properties and resulting metabolic demands of electrogenic cells are determined by their morphology and the subcellular localization of ion channels. The electric organ cells (electrocytes) of the electric fish Eigenmannia virescens generate action potentials (APs) with Na+ currents >10 μA and repolarize the AP with Na+-activated K+ (KNa) channels. To better understand the role of morphology and ion channel localization in determining the metabolic cost of electrocyte APs, we used two-photon three-dimensional imaging to determine the fine cellular morphology and immunohistochemistry to localize the electrocytes' ion channels, ionotropic receptors, and Na+-K+-ATPases. We found that electrocytes are highly polarized cells ∼1.5 mm in anterior-posterior length and ∼0.6 mm in diameter, containing ∼30,000 nuclei along the cell periphery. The cell's innervated posterior region is deeply invaginated and vascularized with complex ultrastructural features, whereas the anterior region is relatively smooth. Cholinergic receptors and Na+ channels are restricted to the innervated posterior region, whereas inward rectifier K+ channels and the KNa channels that terminate the electrocyte AP are localized to the anterior region, separated by >1 mm from the only sources of Na+ influx. In other systems, submicrometer spatial coupling of Na+ and KNa channels is necessary for KNa channel activation. However, our computational simulations showed that KNa channels at a great distance from Na+ influx can still terminate the AP, suggesting that KNa channels can be activated by distant sources of Na+ influx and overturning a long-standing assumption that AP-generating ion channels are restricted to the electrocyte's posterior face.

scholarly journals Coupled myosin VI motors facilitate unidirectional movement on an F-actin network

2009 ◽  
Vol 187 (1) ◽  
pp. 53-60 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sivaraj Sivaramakrishnan ◽  
James A. Spudich
Keyword(s):  
Single Molecule ◽  
Membrane Trafficking ◽  
Cell Periphery ◽  
Myosin Vi ◽  
Actin Network ◽  
Cortical Actin ◽  
Actin Cortex ◽  
Unidirectional Movement ◽  
Transport Vesicle ◽  
Pointed End

Unconventional myosins interact with the dense cortical actin network during processes such as membrane trafficking, cell migration, and mechanotransduction. Our understanding of unconventional myosin function is derived largely from assays that examine the interaction of a single myosin with a single actin filament. In this study, we have developed a model system to study the interaction between multiple tethered unconventional myosins and a model F-actin cortex, namely the lamellipodium of a migrating fish epidermal keratocyte. Using myosin VI, which moves toward the pointed end of actin filaments, we directly determine the polarity of the extracted keratocyte lamellipodium from the cell periphery to the cell nucleus. We use a combination of experimentation and simulation to demonstrate that multiple myosin VI molecules can coordinate to efficiently transport vesicle-size cargo over 10 µm of the dense interlaced actin network. Furthermore, several molecules of monomeric myosin VI, which are nonprocessive in single molecule assays, can coordinate to transport cargo with similar speeds as dimers.

scholarly journals PTEN controls glandular morphogenesis through a juxtamembrane β-Arrestin1/ARHGAP21 scaffolding complex

eLife ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arman Javadi ◽  
Ravi K Deevi ◽  
Emma Evergren ◽  
Elodie Blondel-Tepaz ◽  
George S Baillie ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mitotic Spindle ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Regulatory Protein ◽  
Membrane Binding ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Spindle Orientation ◽  
C2 Domain ◽  
Gtpase Activating Protein ◽  
Defective Mutant ◽  
Glandular Morphogenesis

PTEN controls three-dimensional (3D) glandular morphogenesis by coupling juxtamembrane signaling to mitotic spindle machinery. While molecular mechanisms remain unclear, PTEN interacts through its C2 membrane-binding domain with the scaffold protein β-Arrestin1. Because β-Arrestin1 binds and suppresses the Cdc42 GTPase-activating protein ARHGAP21, we hypothesize that PTEN controls Cdc42 -dependent morphogenic processes through a β-Arrestin1-ARHGAP21 complex. Here, we show that PTEN knockdown (KD) impairs β-Arrestin1 membrane localization, β-Arrestin1-ARHGAP21 interactions, Cdc42 activation, mitotic spindle orientation and 3D glandular morphogenesis. Effects of PTEN deficiency were phenocopied by β-Arrestin1 KD or inhibition of β-Arrestin1-ARHGAP21 interactions. Conversely, silencing of ARHGAP21 enhanced Cdc42 activation and rescued aberrant morphogenic processes of PTEN-deficient cultures. Expression of the PTEN C2 domain mimicked effects of full-length PTEN but a membrane-binding defective mutant of the C2 domain abrogated these properties. Our results show that PTEN controls multicellular assembly through a membrane-associated regulatory protein complex composed of β-Arrestin1, ARHGAP21 and Cdc42.

scholarly journals Kinesin-14 motors drive a right-handed helical motion of antiparallel microtubules around each other

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Aniruddha Mitra ◽  
Laura Meißner ◽  
Rojapriyadharshini Gandhimathi ◽  
Roman Renger ◽  
Felix Ruhnow ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mitotic Spindle ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Helical Motion ◽  
In Vitro Motility Assay ◽  
In Vitro Motility ◽  
Torque Generation ◽  
Free Microtubules ◽  
20 Nm

Abstract Within the mitotic spindle, kinesin motors cross-link and slide overlapping microtubules. Some of these motors exhibit off-axis power strokes, but their impact on motility and force generation in microtubule overlaps has not been investigated. Here, we develop and utilize a three-dimensional in vitro motility assay to explore kinesin-14, Ncd, driven sliding of cross-linked microtubules. We observe that free microtubules, sliding on suspended microtubules, not only rotate around their own axis but also move around the suspended microtubules with right-handed helical trajectories. Importantly, the associated torque is large enough to cause microtubule twisting and coiling. Further, our technique allows us to measure the in situ spatial extension of the motors between cross-linked microtubules to be about 20 nm. We argue that the capability of microtubule-crosslinking kinesins to cause helical motion of overlapping microtubules around each other allows for flexible filament organization, roadblock circumvention and torque generation in the mitotic spindle.

scholarly journals Functional 3D Human Liver Bud Assembled from MSC-Derived Multiple Liver Cell Lineages

2018 ◽  
Vol 28 (5) ◽  
pp. 510-521 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jing Li ◽  
Feiyue Xing ◽  
Feng Chen ◽  
Liumin He ◽  
Kwok-Fai So ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Human Liver ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Alternative Methods ◽  
Liver Sinusoidal Endothelial Cells ◽  
Medicine Research ◽  
Cell Lineages ◽  
Self Assembled ◽  
Liver Tissues

The severe shortage of donor liver organs requires the development of alternative methods to provide transplantable liver tissues such as stem cell-derived organoids. Despite several studies describing the generation of vascularized and functional liver tissues, none have succeeded in assembling human liver buds containing hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) and liver sinusoidal endothelial cells (LSECs). Here, we report a reproducible, easy-to-follow, and comprehensive self-assembly protocol to generate three-dimensional (3D) human liver buds from naïve mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), MSC-derived hepatocytes, and HSC- and LSEC-like cells. By optimizing the ratio between these different cell lineages, the cell mixture self-assembled into 3D human liver buds within 72 h in vitro, and exhibited similar characteristics with early-stage murine liver buds. In a murine model of acute liver failure, the mesenteric transplantation of self-assembled human liver buds effectively rescued animal death, and triggered hepatic ameliorative effects that were better than the ones observed after splenic transplantation of human hepatocytes or naïve MSCs. In addition, transplanted human liver buds underwent maturation during injury alleviation, after which they exhibited a gene expression profile signature similar to the one of adult human livers. Collectively, our protocol provides a promising new approach for the in vitro construction of functional 3D human liver buds from multiple human MSC-derived hepatic cell lineages; this new technique would be useful for clinical transplantation and regenerative medicine research.

scholarly journals Signals from the spindle midzone are required for the stimulation of cytokinesis in cultured epithelial cells.

1996 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 225-232 ◽  
Author(s):  
L G Cao ◽  
Y L Wang
Keyword(s):  
Epithelial Cells ◽  
Mitotic Spindle ◽  
Actin Filaments ◽  
Cultured Cells ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Equatorial Region ◽  
Culture Cells ◽  
Cultured Epithelial Cells ◽  
Early Anaphase ◽  
Spindle Midzone

The interaction between the mitotic spindle and the cellular cortex is thought to play a critical role in stimulating cell cleavage. However, little is understood about the nature of such interactions, particularly in tissue culture cells. We have investigated the role of the spindle midzone in signaling cytokinesis by creating a barrier in cultured epithelial cells with a blunted needle, to block signals that may emanate from this region. When the barrier was created during metaphase or early anaphase, cleavage took place only on the sides of the cortex facing the mitotic spindle. Microtubules on the cleaving side showed organization typical of that in normal dividing cells. On the noncleaving side, most microtubules passed from one side of the equator into the other without any apparent organization, and actin filaments failed to organize in the equatorial region. When the barrier was created after the first minute of anaphase, cells showed successful cytokinesis, with normal organization of microtubules and actin filaments on both sides of the barrier. Our study suggests that transient signals from the midzone of early anaphase spindles are required for equatorial contraction in cultured cells and that such signaling may involve the organization of microtubules near the equator.

scholarly journals Microfilaments: dynamic arrays in higher plant cells

1987 ◽  
Vol 104 (4) ◽  
pp. 995-1004 ◽  
Author(s):  
RW Seagull ◽  
MM Falconer ◽  
CA Weerdenburg
Keyword(s):  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Plant Cells ◽  
Higher Plant ◽  
Light Microscope Level ◽  
Cell Functions ◽  
Spindle Poles ◽  
Subcortical Region ◽  
Dimensional Distribution ◽  
Transvacuolar Strands ◽  
First Time

By using fluorescently labeled phalloidin we have examined, at the light microscope level, the three-dimensional distribution and reorganization of actin-like microfilaments (mfs) during plant cell cycle and differentiation. At interphase, mfs are organized into three distinct yet interconnected arrays: fine peripheral networks close to the plasma membrane; large axially oriented cables in the subcortical region; a nuclear "basket" of mfs extending into the transvacuolar strands. All these arrays, beginning with the peripheral network, disappear at the onset of mitosis and reappear, beginning with the nuclear basket, after cytokinesis. During mitotic and cytokinetic events, mfs are associated with the spindle and phragmoplast. Actin staining in the spindle is localized between the chromosomes and the spindle poles and changes in a functionally specific manner. The nuclear region appears to be the center for mf organization and/or initiation. During differentiation from rapid cell division to cell elongation, mf arrays switch from an axial to a transverse orientation, thus paralleling the microtubules. This change in orientation reflects a shift in the direction of cytoplasmic streaming. These observations show for the first time that actin-like mfs form intricate and dynamic arrays in plant cells which may be involved in many as yet undescribed cell functions.

scholarly journals Optimization of Allocation and Launch Conditions of Multiple Missiles for Three-Dimensional Collaborative Interception of Ballistic Targets

2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 ◽  
pp. 1-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Burak Yuksek ◽  
N. Kemal Ure
Keyword(s):  
Search Algorithm ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Allocation Problem ◽  
Alternative Methods ◽  
Mixed Integer ◽  
Use Of Resources ◽  
Highly Nonlinear ◽  
Multiple Missiles ◽  
Miss Distance ◽  
And Control

We consider the integrated problem of allocation and control of surface-to-air-missiles for interception of ballistic targets. Previous work shows that using multiple missile and utilizing collaborative estimation and control laws for target interception can significantly decrease the mean miss distance. However, most of these methods are highly sensitive to initial launch conditions, such as the initial pitch and heading angles. In this work we develop a methodology for optimizing selection of multiple missiles to launch among a collection of missiles with prespecified launch coordinates, along with their launch conditions. For the interception we use 3-DoF models for missiles and the ballistic target. The trajectory of the missiles is controlled using three-dimensional extensions of existing algorithms for planar collaborative control and estimation laws. Because the dynamics of the missiles and nature of the allocation problem is highly nonlinear and involves both discrete and continuous variables, the optimization problem is cast as a mixed integer nonlinear programming problem (MINP). The main contribution of this work is the development of a novel probabilistic search algorithm for efficiently solving the missile allocation problem. We verify the algorithm by performing extensive Monte-Carlo simulations on different interception scenarios and show that the developed approach yields significantly less average miss distance and more efficient use of resources compared to alternative methods.

scholarly journals Human kinetochores are swivel joints that mediate microtubule attachments

eLife ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chris A Smith ◽  
Andrew D McAinsh ◽  
Nigel J Burroughs
Keyword(s):  
Chromosome Segregation ◽  
Sister Chromatid ◽  
Mitotic Spindle ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Organisational Change ◽  
Mechanical Process ◽  
Spindle Poles ◽  
Chromatid Cohesion ◽  
Sister Kinetochore ◽  
Dynamic Microtubule

Chromosome segregation is a mechanical process that requires assembly of the mitotic spindle – a dynamic microtubule-based force-generating machine. Connections to this spindle are mediated by sister kinetochore pairs, that form dynamic end-on attachments to microtubules emanating from opposite spindle poles. This bi-orientation generates forces that have been reported to stretch the kinetochore itself, which has been suggested to stabilise attachment and silence the spindle checkpoint. We reveal using three dimensional tracking that the outer kinetochore domain can swivel around the inner kinetochore/centromere, which results in large reductions in intra-kinetochore distance (delta) when viewed in lower dimensions. We show that swivel provides a mechanical flexibility that enables kinetochores at the periphery of the spindle to engage microtubules. Swivel reduces as cells approach anaphase, suggesting an organisational change linked to checkpoint satisfaction and/or obligatory changes in kinetochore mechanochemistry may occur before dissolution of sister chromatid cohesion.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document