scholarly journals F actin bundles in Drosophila bristles. I. Two filament cross-links are involved in bundling.

1995 ◽  
Vol 130 (3) ◽  
pp. 629-638 ◽  
Author(s):  
L G Tilney ◽  
M S Tilney ◽  
G M Guild
Keyword(s):  
Plasma Membrane ◽  
Gene Product ◽  
Actin Filaments ◽  
Double Mutant ◽  
Longitudinal Section ◽  
Actin Bundles ◽  
Early Stages ◽  
Filament Bundles ◽  
Cross Links ◽  
Associated Bundles

Transverse sections though Drosophila bristles reveal 7-11 nearly round, plasma membrane-associated bundles of actin filaments. These filaments are hexagonally packed and in a longitudinal section they show a 12-nm periodicity in both the 1.1 and 1.0 views. From earlier studies this periodicity is attributable to cross-links and indicates that the filaments are maximally cross-linked, singed mutants also have 7-11 bundles, but the bundles are smaller, flattened, and the filaments within the bundles are randomly packed (not hexagonal); no periodicity can be detected in longitudinal sections. Another mutant, forked (f36a), also has 7-11 bundles but even though the bundles are very small, the filaments within them are hexagonally packed and display a 12-nm periodicity in longitudinal section. The singed-forked double mutant lacks filament bundles. Thus there are at least two species of cross-links between adjacent actin filaments. Hints of why two species of cross-links are necessary can be gleaned by studying bristle formation. Bristles sprout with only microtubules within them. A little later in development actin filaments appear. At early stages the filaments in the bundles are randomly packed. Later the filaments in the bundles become hexagonally packed and maximally cross-linked. We consider that the forked proteins may be necessary early in development to tie the filaments together in a bundle so that they can be subsequently zippered together by fascin (the singed gene product).

scholarly journals Regulation of Actin Filament Cross-linking and Bundle Shape in Drosophila Bristles

2000 ◽  
Vol 148 (1) ◽  
pp. 87-99 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lewis G. Tilney ◽  
Patricia S. Connelly ◽  
Kelly A. Vranich ◽  
Michael K. Shaw ◽  
Gregory M. Guild
Keyword(s):  
Plasma Membrane ◽  
Actin Filaments ◽  
Cross Linking ◽  
Limited Area ◽  
Actin Bundles ◽  
Electron Microscopy Analysis ◽  
Section Electron ◽  
Cross Links ◽  
Bundle Size ◽  
Cross Linker

Previous studies demonstrate that in developing Drosophila bristles, two cross-linking proteins are required sequentially to bundle the actin filaments that support elongating bristle cells. The forked protein initiates the process and facilitates subsequent cross-linking by fascin. Using cross-linker–specific antibodies, mutants, and drugs we show that fascin and actin are present in excessive amounts throughout bundle elongation. In contrast, the forked cross-linker is limited throughout bundle formation, and accordingly, regulates bundle size and shape. We also show that regulation of cross-linking by phosphorylation can affect bundle size. Specifically, inhibition of phosphorylation by staurosporine results in a failure to form large bundles if added during bundle formation, and leads to a loss of cross-linking by fascin if added after the bundles form. Interestingly, inhibition of dephosphorylation by okadaic acid results in the separation of the actin bundles from the plasma membrane. We further show by thin section electron microscopy analysis of mutant and wild-type bristles that the amount of material that connects the actin bundles to the plasma membrane is also limited throughout bristle elongation. Therefore, overall bundle shape is determined by the number of actin filaments assembled onto the limited area provided by the connector material. We conclude that assembly of actin bundles in Drosophila bristles is controlled in part by the controlled availability of a single cross-linking protein, forked, and in part by controlled phosphorylation of cross-links and membrane actin connector proteins.

scholarly journals F-actin bundles in Drosophila bristles are assembled from modules composed of short filaments.

1996 ◽  
Vol 135 (5) ◽  
pp. 1291-1308 ◽  
Author(s):  
L G Tilney ◽  
P Connelly ◽  
S Smith ◽  
G M Guild
Keyword(s):  
Actin Filament ◽  
Actin Filaments ◽  
Modular Design ◽  
Thin Sections ◽  
Actin Bundle ◽  
Actin Bundles ◽  
Phalloidin Staining ◽  
Filament Bundles ◽  
End To End ◽  
As If

The actin bundles in Drosophila bristles run the length of the bristle cell and are accordingly 65 microns (microchaetes) or 400 microns (macrochaetes) in length, depending on the bristle type. Shortly after completion of bristle elongation in pupae, the actin bundles break down as the bristle surface becomes chitinized. The bundles break down in a bizarre way; it is as if each bundle is sawed transversely into pieces that average 3 microns in length. Disassembly of the actin filaments proceeds at the "sawed" surfaces. In all cases, the cuts in adjacent bundles appear in transverse register. From these images, we suspected that each actin bundle is made up of a series of shorter bundles or modules that are attached end-to-end. With fluorescent phalloidin staining and serial thin sections, we show that the modular design is present in nondegenerating bundles. Decoration of the actin filaments in adjacent bundles in the same bristle with subfragment 1 of myosin reveals that the actin filaments in every module have the same polarity. To study how modules form developmentally, we sectioned newly formed and elongating bristles. At the bristle tip are numerous tiny clusters of 6-10 filaments. These clusters become connected together more basally to form filament bundles that are poorly organized, initially, but with time become maximally cross-linked. Additional filaments are then added to the periphery of these organized bundle modules. All these observations make us aware of a new mechanism for the formation and elongation of actin filament bundles, one in which short bundles are assembled and attached end-to-end to other short bundles, as are the vertical girders between the floors of a skyscraper.

scholarly journals Actin, microvilli, and the fertilization cone of sea urchin eggs.

1980 ◽  
Vol 87 (3) ◽  
pp. 771-782 ◽  
Author(s):  
L G Tilney ◽  
L A Jaffe
Keyword(s):  
Plasma Membrane ◽  
Sea Urchin ◽  
Actin Filaments ◽  
Actin Polymerization ◽  
Germinal Vesicle ◽  
Rapid Phase ◽  
Thin Sections ◽  
Step Process ◽  
Sea Urchin Eggs ◽  
Early Stages

Sea urchin eggs and oocytes at the germinal vesicle stage were fixed at various times after insemination, and thin sections were examined. Actin filaments can first be found in the cortical cytoplasm 1 min after insemination, and by 2 min enormous numbers of filaments are present. At these early stages, the filaments are only occasionally organized into bundles, but one end of many filaments contacts the plasma membrane. By 3 min, and even more dramatically by 5 min after insemination, the filaments become progressively more often found in bundles that lie parallel to the long axis of the microvilli and the fertilization cones. By 7 min, the bundles of filaments in the cone are maximally pronounced, with virtually all the filaments lying parallel to one another. Decoration of the filaments with subfragment 1 of myosin shows that, in both the microvilli and the cones, the filaments are unidirectionally polarized with the arrowheads pointing towards the cell center. The efflux of H+ from the eggs was measured as a function of time after insemination. The rapid phase of H+ efflux occurs at the same time as actin polymerization. From these results it appears that the formation of bundles of actin filaments in microvilli and in cones is a two-step process, involving actin polymerization to form filaments, randomly oriented but in most cases having one end in contact with the plasma membrane, followed by the zippering together of the filaments by macromolecular bridges.

Concentration-dependent effects of cytochalasin D on tight junctions and actin filaments in MDCK epithelial cells

1994 ◽  
Vol 107 (3) ◽  
pp. 367-375 ◽  
Author(s):  
B.R. Stevenson ◽  
D.A. Begg
Keyword(s):  
Epithelial Cells ◽  
Tight Junction ◽  
Actin Filaments ◽  
Mdck Cells ◽  
Microscopic Analysis ◽  
Cytochalasin D ◽  
Transepithelial Resistance ◽  
Actin Bundles ◽  
Filament Bundles ◽  
Tight Junction Permeability

The effects of different concentrations of the actin-disrupting drug cytochalasin D on tight junction permeability and distribution of actin filaments in MDCK epithelial cells were examined. Consistent with previous studies, 2 micrograms/ml cytochalasin D caused a significant decrease in transepithelial resistance, indicative of an increase in tight junction permeability. Surprisingly, increasing concentrations of cytochalasin D caused progressively smaller decreases in transepithelial resistance. The effects of cytochalasin D were reversible. Light microscopic analysis utilizing rhodamine-conjugated phalloidin demonstrated two distinct populations of actin filaments in MDCK cells: an apical peripheral ring of actin, presumably associated with the zonula adherens, and larger actin bundles more basally situated. When treated with 2 micrograms/ml cytochalasin D, both actin populations were severely disrupted and cells became flattened. Actin in the apical ring aggregated along cell boundaries, and these aggregates co-localized with similarly disrupted focal accumulations of the tight junction-associated protein ZO-1. The basal actin filament bundles also reorganized into focal aggregates. Increasing concentrations of cytochalasin D caused gradually less perturbation of the apical actin ring, consistent with the transepithelial resistance observations. However, the basal actin bundles were disrupted at all concentrations of cytochalasin D tested, demonstrating that the two actin populations are differentially sensitive to cytochalasin D and that apical actin filaments are more important in the regulation of tight junction permeability. Finally, treatment of cells with cytochalasin D inhibited the decrease in transepithelial resistance induced by the chelation of extracellular Ca2+.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

scholarly journals Actin filaments elongate from their membrane-associated ends

1981 ◽  
Vol 90 (2) ◽  
pp. 485-494 ◽  
Author(s):  
LG Tilney ◽  
EM Bonder ◽  
DJ DeRosier
Keyword(s):  
Plasma Membrane ◽  
Actin Filament ◽  
Actin Filaments ◽  
The Other ◽  
Dense Material ◽  
Thin Sections ◽  
Vacuole Membrane ◽  
Filament Bundles ◽  
Filament Bundle

In limulus sperm an actin filament bundle 55 mum in length extends from the acrosomal vacuole membrane through a canal in the nucleus and then coils in a regular fashion around the base of the nucleus. The bundle expands systematically from 15 filaments near the acrosomal vacuole to 85 filaments at the basal end. Thin sections of sperm fixed during stages in spermatid maturation reveal that the filament bundle begins to assemble on dense material attached to the acrosomal vacuole membrane. In micrographs fo these early stages in maturation, short bundles are seen extending posteriorly from the dense material. The significance is that these short, developing bundles have about 85 filaments, suggesting that the 85-filament end of the bundle is assembled first. By using filament bundles isolated and incubated in vitro with G actin from muscle, we can determine the end "preferred" for addition of actin monomers during polymerization. The end that would be associated with the acrosomal vacuole membrane, a membrane destined to be continuous with the plasma membrane, is preferred about 10 times over the other, thicker end. Decoration of the newly polymerized portions of the filament bundle with subfragment 1 of myosin reveals that the arrowheads point away from the acrosomal vacuole membrane, as is true of other actin filament bundles attached to membranes. From these observations we conclude that the bundle is nucleated from the dense material associated with the acrosomal vacuole and that monomers are added to the membrane-associated end. As monomers are added at the dense material, the thick first-made end of the filament bundle is pushed down through the nucleus where, upon reaching the base of the nucleus, it coils up. Tapering is brought about by the capping of the peripheral filaments in the bundle.

scholarly journals The spectrin-related molecule, TW-260/240, cross-links the actin bundles of the microvillus rootlets in the brush borders of intestinal epithelial cells.

1983 ◽  
Vol 96 (5) ◽  
pp. 1491-1496 ◽  
Author(s):  
J R Glenney ◽  
P Glenney ◽  
K Weber
Keyword(s):  
Epithelial Cells ◽  
Actin Filaments ◽  
Intestinal Epithelial Cells ◽  
Intestinal Epithelial ◽  
Cross Link ◽  
Actin Bundles ◽  
Terminal Web ◽  
Brush Borders ◽  
Cross Links

Previous studies have shown that molecules related to erythrocyte spectrin are present in the cortical cytoplasm of nonerythroid cells. We report here the localization by immunoelectron microscopy of one such molecule, TW-260/240, in the brush border of intestinal epithelial cells. Using highly specific antibodies against TW-260 and TW-240 as well as antibodies against fodrin, another spectrinlike molecule, we have found that the TW-260/240 molecules are displayed between rootlets at all levels of the terminal web. Occasionally, extended structures appear labeled suggestive of the fine filaments known to cross-link actin bundles. These results are in line with previous in vitro studies showing that TW-260/240 binds to, and cross-links, actin filaments. The results are discussed in terms of a model in which rootlets are immobilized in the terminal web in a matrix of TW-260/240.

scholarly journals Microtubule-associated proteins (MAPs) and the organization of actin filaments in vitro.

1981 ◽  
Vol 90 (2) ◽  
pp. 467-473 ◽  
Author(s):  
R F Sattilaro ◽  
W L Dentler ◽  
E L LeCluyse
Keyword(s):  
Actin Filaments ◽  
Muscle Actin ◽  
Actin Bundles ◽  
Microtubule Associated Proteins ◽  
Associated Proteins ◽  
Filament Bundles ◽  
Reversible Formation ◽  
Brain Microtubules ◽  
28 Nm

When purified muscle actin was mixed with microtubule-associated proteins (MAPs) prepared from brain microtubules assembled in vitro, actin filaments were organized into discrete bundles, 26 nm in diameter. MAP-2 was the principal protein necessary for the formation of the bundles. Analysis of MAP-actin bundle formation by sedimentation and electrophoresis revealed the bundles to be composed of approximately 20% MAP-2 and 80% actin by weight. Transverse striations were observed to occur at 28-nm intervals along negatively stained MAP-actin bundles, and short projections, approximately 12 nm long and spaced at 28-nm intervals, were resolved by high-resolution metal shadowing. The formation of MAP-actin bundles was inhibited by millimolar concentrations of ATP, AMP-PCP (beta, gamma-methylene-adenosine triphosphate), and pyrophosphate but not by AMP, ADP, or GTP. The addition of ATP to a solution containing MAP-actin bundles resulted in the dissociation of the bundles into individual actin filaments; discrete particles, presumably MAP-2, were periodically attached along the splayed filaments. These results demonstrate that MAPs can bind to actin filaments and can induce the reversible formation of actin filament bundles in vitro.

scholarly journals Actin Filament Turnover Regulated by Cross-linking Accounts for the Size, Shape, Location, and Number of Actin Bundles in Drosophila Bristles

2003 ◽  
Vol 14 (10) ◽  
pp. 3953-3966 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lewis G. Tilney ◽  
Patricia S. Connelly ◽  
Linda Ruggiero ◽  
Kelly A. Vranich ◽  
Gregory M. Guild
Keyword(s):  
Plasma Membrane ◽  
Actin Filament ◽  
Actin Filaments ◽  
Stable Bundles ◽  
Actin Bundles ◽  
Membrane Bound ◽  
Turn Over ◽  
Confocal And Electron Microscopy ◽  
Selection Of ◽  
Bundle Structure

Drosophila bristle cells are shaped during growth by longitudinal bundles of cross-linked actin filaments attached to the plasma membrane. We used confocal and electron microscopy to examine actin bundle structure and found that during bristle elongation, snarls of uncross-linked actin filaments and small internal bundles also form in the shaft cytoplasm only to disappear within 4 min. Thus, formation and later removal of actin filaments are prominent features of growing bristles. These transient snarls and internal bundles can be stabilized by culturing elongating bristles with jasplakinolide, a membrane-permeant inhibitor of actin filament depolymerization, resulting in enormous numbers of internal bundles and uncross-linked filaments. Examination of bundle disassembly in mutant bristles shows that plasma membrane association and cross-bridging adjacent actin filaments together inhibits depolymerization. Thus, highly cross-bridged and membrane-bound actin filaments turn over slowly and persist, whereas poorly cross-linked filaments turnover more rapidly. We argue that the selection of stable bundles relative to poorly cross-bridged filaments can account for the size, shape, number, and location of the longitudinal actin bundles in bristles. As a result, filament turnover plays an important role in regulating cytoskeleton assembly and consequently cell shape.

scholarly journals Actin-membrane interaction in fibroblasts: what proteins are involved in this association?

1984 ◽  
Vol 99 (1) ◽  
pp. 95s-103s ◽  
Author(s):  
P Mangeat ◽  
K Burridge
Keyword(s):  
Plasma Membrane ◽  
Actin Filaments ◽  
Stress Fiber ◽  
Membrane Interaction ◽  
Microfilament Bundles ◽  
The Family ◽  
Form Part ◽  
Membrane Attachment ◽  
A Chain ◽  
And Function

In this review we discuss some of the proteins for which a role in linking actin to the fibroblast plasma membrane has been suggested. We focus on the family of proteins related to erythrocyte spectrin, proteins that have generally been viewed as having an organization and a function in actin-membrane attachment similar to those of erythrocyte spectrin. Experiments in which we precipitated the nonerythrocyte spectrin within living fibroblasts have led us to question this supposed similarity of organization and function of the nonerythrocyte and erythrocyte spectrins. Intracellular precipitation of fibroblast spectrin does not affect the integrity of the major actin-containing structures, the stress fiber microfilament bundles. Unexpectedly, however, we found that the precipitation of spectrin results in a condensation and altered distribution of the vimentin class of intermediate filaments in most cells examined. Although fibroblast spectrin may have a role in the attachment of some of the cortical, submembranous actin, it is surprising how little the intracellular immunoprecipitation of the spectrin affects the cells. Several proteins have been found concentrated at the ends of stress fibers, where the actin filaments terminate at focal contacts. Two of these proteins, alpha-actinin and fimbrin, have properties that suggest that they are not involved in the attachment of the ends of the bundles to the membrane but are more probably involved in the organization and cross-linking of the filaments within the bundles. On the other hand, vinculin and talin are two proteins that interact with each other and may form part of a chain of attachments between the ends of the microfilament bundles and the focal contact membrane. Their role in this attachment, however, has not been established and further work is needed to examine their interaction with actin and to identify any other components with which they may interact, particularly in the plasma membrane.

scholarly journals The polymerization of actin: II. how nonfilamentous actin becomes nonrandomly distributed in sperm: evidence for the association of this actin with membranes

1976 ◽  
Vol 69 (1) ◽  
pp. 51-72 ◽  
Author(s):  
LG Tilney
Keyword(s):  
Plasma Membrane ◽  
Nuclear Envelope ◽  
Thin Section ◽  
Actin Filaments ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Mature Sperm ◽  
Vacuole Membrane ◽  
Other Substances ◽  
Associated Proteins ◽  
Basal Half

At an early stage in spermiogenesis the acrosomal vacuole and other organelles including ribosomes are located at the basal end of the cell. From here actin must be transported to its future location at the anterior end of the cell. At no stage in the accumulation of actin in the periacrosomal region is the actin sequestered in a membrane-bounded compartment such as a vacuole or vesicle. Since filaments are not present in the periacrosomal region during the accumulation of the actin even though the fixation of these cells is sufficiently good to distinguish actin filaments in thin section, the actin must accumulate in the nonfilamentous state. The membranes in the periacrosomal region, specifically a portion of the nuclear envelope and the basal half of the acrosomal vacuole membrane, become specialized morphologically in advance of the accumulation of actin in this region. My working hypothesis is that the actin in combination with other substances binds to these specialized membranes and to itself and thus can accumulate in the periacrosmoal region by being trapped on these specialized membranes. Diffusion would then be sufficient to move these substances to this region. In support of this hypothesis are experiments in which I treated mature sperm with detergents, glycols, and hypotonic media, which solubilize or lift away the plasma membrane. The actin and its associated proteins remain attached to these specialized membranes. Thus actin can be nonrandomly distributed in cells in a nonfilamentous state presumably by its association with specialized membranes.

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