scholarly journals Cofilin is a pH sensor for actin free barbed end formation: role of phosphoinositide binding

2008 ◽  
Vol 183 (5) ◽  
pp. 865-879 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Frantz ◽  
Gabriela Barreiro ◽  
Laura Dominguez ◽  
Xiaoming Chen ◽  
Robert Eddy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Actin Filament ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Ph Sensor ◽  
Ph Sensitive ◽  
Actin Binding ◽  
Filamentous Actin ◽  
Filament Dynamics ◽  
Ph Dependent ◽  
Dynamics Simulations

Newly generated actin free barbed ends at the front of motile cells provide sites for actin filament assembly driving membrane protrusion. Growth factors induce a rapid biphasic increase in actin free barbed ends, and we found both phases absent in fibroblasts lacking H+ efflux by the Na-H exchanger NHE1. The first phase is restored by expression of mutant cofilin-H133A but not unphosphorylated cofilin-S3A. Constant pH molecular dynamics simulations and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) reveal pH-sensitive structural changes in the cofilin C-terminal filamentous actin binding site dependent on His133. However, cofilin-H133A retains pH-sensitive changes in NMR spectra and severing activity in vitro, which suggests that it has a more complex behavior in cells. Cofilin activity is inhibited by phosphoinositide binding, and we found that phosphoinositide binding is pH-dependent for wild-type cofilin, with decreased binding at a higher pH. In contrast, phosphoinositide binding by cofilin-H133A is attenuated and pH insensitive. These data suggest a molecular mechanism whereby cofilin acts as a pH sensor to mediate a pH-dependent actin filament dynamics.

scholarly journals Myosin and gelsolin cooperate in actin filament severing and actomyosin motor activity

2020 ◽  
pp. jbc.RA120.015863
Author(s):  
Venukumar Vemula ◽  
Tamás Huber ◽  
Marko Ušaj ◽  
Beáta Bugyi ◽  
Alf Mansson
Keyword(s):  
Motor Activity ◽  
Actin Filament ◽  
Single Molecule ◽  
Actin Filaments ◽  
Actin Binding ◽  
In Vitro Motility Assay ◽  
Cooperative Effects ◽  
Myosin Motor ◽  
Filament Dynamics

Actin is a major intracellular protein with key functions in cellular motility, signaling and structural rearrangements. Its dynamic behavior, such as polymerisation and depolymerisation of actin filaments in response to intra- and extracellular cues, is regulated by an abundance of actin binding proteins. Out of these, gelsolin is one of the most potent for filament severing. However, myosin motor activity also fragments actin filaments through motor induced forces, suggesting that these two proteins could cooperate to regulate filament dynamics and motility. To test this idea, we used an in vitro motility assay, where actin filaments are propelled by surface-adsorbed heavy meromyosin (HMM) motor fragments. This allows studies of both motility and filament dynamics using isolated proteins. Gelsolin, at both nanomolar and micromolar Ca2+ concentration, appreciably enhanced actin filament severing caused by HMM-induced forces at 1 mM MgATP, an effect that was increased at higher HMM motor density. This finding is consistent with cooperativity between actin filament severing by myosin-induced forces and by gelsolin. We also observed reduced sliding velocity of the HMM-propelled filaments in the presence of gelsolin, providing further support of myosin-gelsolin cooperativity. Total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy based single molecule studies corroborated that the velocity reduction was a direct effect of gelsolin-binding to the filament and revealed different filament severing pattern of stationary and HMM propelled filaments. Overall, the results corroborate cooperative effects between gelsolin-induced alterations in the actin filaments and changes due to myosin motor activity leading to enhanced F-actin severing of possible physiological relevance.

scholarly journals Actin Depolymerizing Factor (ADF/Cofilin) Enhances the Rate of Filament Turnover: Implication in Actin-based Motility

1997 ◽  
Vol 136 (6) ◽  
pp. 1307-1322 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marie-France Carlier ◽  
Valérie Laurent ◽  
Jérôme Santolini ◽  
Ronald Melki ◽  
Dominique Didry ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Actin Filament ◽  
Atp Hydrolysis ◽  
Fold Increase ◽  
Actin Dynamics ◽  
Actin Binding ◽  
Actin Depolymerizing Factor ◽  
Filament Dynamics ◽  
Relevant Effect

Actin-binding proteins of the actin depolymerizing factor (ADF)/cofilin family are thought to control actin-based motile processes. ADF1 from Arabidopsis thaliana appears to be a good model that is functionally similar to other members of the family. The function of ADF in actin dynamics has been examined using a combination of physical–chemical methods and actin-based motility assays, under physiological ionic conditions and at pH 7.8. ADF binds the ADPbound forms of G- or F-actin with an affinity two orders of magnitude higher than the ATP- or ADP-Pi– bound forms. A major property of ADF is its ability to enhance the in vitro turnover rate (treadmilling) of actin filaments to a value comparable to that observed in vivo in motile lamellipodia. ADF increases the rate of propulsion of Listeria monocytogenes in highly diluted, ADF-limited platelet extracts and shortens the actin tails. These effects are mediated by the participation of ADF in actin filament assembly, which results in a change in the kinetic parameters at the two ends of the actin filament. The kinetic effects of ADF are end specific and cannot be accounted for by filament severing. The main functionally relevant effect is a 25-fold increase in the rate of actin dissociation from the pointed ends, while the rate of dissociation from the barbed ends is unchanged. This large increase in the rate-limiting step of the monomer-polymer cycle at steady state is responsible for the increase in the rate of actin-based motile processes. In conclusion, the function of ADF is not to sequester G-actin. ADF uses ATP hydrolysis in actin assembly to enhance filament dynamics.

scholarly journals TetraThymosinβ Is Required for Actin Dynamics in Caenorhabditis elegans and Acts via Functionally Different Actin-binding Repeats

2004 ◽  
Vol 15 (10) ◽  
pp. 4735-4748 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marleen Van Troys ◽  
Kanako Ono ◽  
Daisy Dewitte ◽  
Veronique Jonckheere ◽  
Natalie De Ruyck ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Caenorhabditis Elegans ◽  
Actin Filament ◽  
Actin Polymerization ◽  
Actin Dynamics ◽  
Actin Binding ◽  
In Vitro Assays ◽  
Filamentous Actin ◽  
Lethal Mutant ◽  
Interaction Sites

Generating specific actin structures via controlled actin polymerization is a prerequisite for eukaryote development and reproduction. We here report on an essential Caenorhabditis elegans protein tetraThymosinβ expressed in developing neurons and crucial during oocyte maturation in adults. TetraThymosinβ has four repeats, each related to the actin monomer-sequestering protein thymosinβ 4 and assists in actin filament elongation. For homologues with similar multirepeat structures, a profilin-like mechanism of ushering actin onto filament barbed ends, based on the formation of a 1:1 complex, is proposed to underlie this activity. We, however, demonstrate that tetraThymosinβ binds multiple actin monomers via different repeats and in addition also interacts with filamentous actin. All repeats need to be functional for attaining full activity in various in vitro assays. The activities on actin are thus a direct consequence of the repeated structure. In containing both G- and F-actin interaction sites, tetraThymosinβ may be reminiscent of nonhomologous multimodular actin regulatory proteins implicated in actin filament dynamics. A mutation that suppresses expression of tetraThymosinβ is homozygous lethal. Mutant organisms develop into adults but display a dumpy phenotype and fail to reproduce as their oocytes lack essential actin structures. This strongly suggests that the activity of tetraThymosinβ is of crucial importance at specific developmental stages requiring actin polymerization.

scholarly journals Myosin-gelsolin cooperativity in actin filament severing and actomyosin motor activity

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Venukumar Vemula ◽  
Tamas Huber ◽  
Marko Usaj ◽  
Beáta Bugyi ◽  
Alf Mansson
Keyword(s):  
Motor Activity ◽  
Actin Filament ◽  
Actin Filaments ◽  
Actin Binding ◽  
Cellular Motility ◽  
In Vitro Motility Assay ◽  
Cooperative Effects ◽  
In Vitro Motility ◽  
Filament Dynamics

AbstractActin is a major intracellular protein with key functions in cellular motility, signalling and structural rearrangements. Its dynamic behavior with actin filaments (F-actin) polymerising and depolymerising in response to intracellular changes, is controlled by actin-binding proteins (ABPs). Gelsolin is one of the most potent filament severing ABPs. However, myosin motors that interact with actin in the presence of ATP also produce actin filament fragmentation through motor induced shearing forces. To test the idea that gelsolin and myosin cooperate in these processes we used the in vitro motility assay, where actin filaments are propelled by surface-adsorbed heavy meromyosin (HMM) motor fragments. This allows studies of both motility and filament dynamics using isolated proteins. Gelsolin (5 nM) at very low [Ca2+] (free [Ca2+] ∼6.8 nM) appreciably enhanced actin filament severing caused by HMM-induced forces at 1 mM [MgATP], an effect that was increased at increased HMM motor density. This finding is consistent with cooperativity between actin filament severing by myosin-induced forces and by gelsolin. As further support of myosin-gelsolin cooperativity we observed reduced sliding velocity of the HMM propelled filaments in the presence of gelsolin. Overall, the results corroborate ideas for cooperative effects between gelsolin-induced alterations in the actin filaments and changes due to myosin motor activity, leading among other effects to enhanced F-actin severing of possible physiological relevance.

scholarly journals Osmotic stress and the yeast cytoskeleton: phenotype-specific suppression of an actin mutation.

1992 ◽  
Vol 118 (3) ◽  
pp. 561-571 ◽  
Author(s):  
S Chowdhury ◽  
K W Smith ◽  
M C Gustin
Keyword(s):  
Osmotic Stress ◽  
Actin Filament ◽  
Physiological Process ◽  
Actin Binding ◽  
Temperature Sensitive ◽  
Filamentous Actin ◽  
Cortical Actin ◽  
Yeast Saccharomyces Cerevisiae ◽  
Rhodamine Phalloidin ◽  
Diploid Cells

In the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, actin filaments function to direct cell growth to the emerging bud. Yeast has a single essential actin gene, ACT1. Diploid cells containing a single copy of ACT1 are osmosensitive (Osms), i.e., they fail to grow in high osmolarity media (D. Shortle, unpublished observations cited by Novick, P., and D. Botstein. 1985. Cell. 40:415-426). This phenotype suggests that an underlying physiological process involving actin is osmosensitive. Here, we demonstrate that this physiological process is a rapid and reversible change in actin filament organization in cells exposed to osmotic stress. Filamentous actin was stained using rhodamine phalloidin. Increasing external osmolarity caused a rapid loss of actin filament cables, followed by a slower redistribution of cortical actin filament patches. In the recovery phase, cables and patches were restored to their original levels and locations. Strains containing an act1-1 mutation are both Osms and temperature-sensitive (Ts) (Novick and Botstein, 1985). To identify genes whose products functionally interact with actin in cellular responses to osmotic stress, we have isolated extragenic suppressors which revert only the Osms but not the Ts phenotype of an act1-1 mutant. These suppressors identify three genes, RAH1-RAH3. Morphological and genetic properties of a dominant suppressor mutation suggest that the product of the wild-type allele, RAH3+, is an actin-binding protein that interacts with actin to allow reassembly of the cytoskeleton following osmotic stress.

scholarly journals αE-catenin actin-binding domain alters actin filament conformation and regulates binding of nucleation and disassembly factors

2013 ◽  
Vol 24 (23) ◽  
pp. 3710-3720 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott D. Hansen ◽  
Adam V. Kwiatkowski ◽  
Chung-Yueh Ouyang ◽  
HongJun Liu ◽  
Sabine Pokutta ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Actin Filament ◽  
Actin Filaments ◽  
Binding Domain ◽  
Actin Binding ◽  
Filamentous Actin ◽  
Filament Structure ◽  
Actin Binding Domain ◽  
Filament Bundles ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms ◽  
Cell Cell

The actin-binding protein αE-catenin may contribute to transitions between cell migration and cell–cell adhesion that depend on remodeling the actin cytoskeleton, but the underlying mechanisms are unknown. We show that the αE-catenin actin-binding domain (ABD) binds cooperatively to individual actin filaments and that binding is accompanied by a conformational change in the actin protomer that affects filament structure. αE-catenin ABD binding limits barbed-end growth, especially in actin filament bundles. αE-catenin ABD inhibits actin filament branching by the Arp2/3 complex and severing by cofilin, both of which contact regions of the actin protomer that are structurally altered by αE-catenin ABD binding. In epithelial cells, there is little correlation between the distribution of αE-catenin and the Arp2/3 complex at developing cell–cell contacts. Our results indicate that αE-catenin binding to filamentous actin favors assembly of unbranched filament bundles that are protected from severing over more dynamic, branched filament arrays.

scholarly journals Side-binding proteins modulate actin filament dynamics

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alvaro H. Crevenna ◽  
Marcelino Arciniega ◽  
Aurelie Dupont ◽  
Kaja Kowalska ◽  
Oliver Lange ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Actin Filament ◽  
Brownian Dynamics ◽  
Actin Polymerization ◽  
Actin Dynamics ◽  
Central Feature ◽  
Filament Dynamics ◽  
Filament Structure ◽  
The Rich ◽  
Dynamics Simulations ◽  
Pointed End

Actin filament dynamics govern many key physiological processes from cell motility to tissue morphogenesis. A central feature of actin dynamics is the capacity of the filament to polymerize and depolymerize at its ends in response to cellular conditions. It is currently thought that filament kinetics can be described by a single rate constant for each end. Here, using direct visualization of single actin filament elongation, we show that actin polymerization kinetics at both filament ends are strongly influenced by proteins that bind to the lateral filament surface. We also show that the less dynamic end, called the pointed-end, has a non-elongating state that dominates the observed filament kinetic asymmetry. Estimates of filament flexibility and Brownian dynamics simulations suggest that the observed kinetic diversity arises from structural alteration. Tuning filament kinetics by exploiting the natural malleability of the actin filament structure may be a ubiquitous mechanism to generate the rich variety of observed cellular actin dynamics.

scholarly journals Structure of the Lifeact–F-actin complex

PLoS Biology ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (11) ◽  
pp. e3000925 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander Belyy ◽  
Felipe Merino ◽  
Oleg Sitsel ◽  
Stefan Raunser
Keyword(s):  
Hypervariable Region ◽  
Binding Pocket ◽  
Actin Binding ◽  
Filamentous Actin ◽  
Activity Measurements ◽  
High Resolution Structure ◽  
D Loop ◽  
Hydrophobic Binding

Lifeact is a short actin-binding peptide that is used to visualize filamentous actin (F-actin) structures in live eukaryotic cells using fluorescence microscopy. However, this popular probe has been shown to alter cellular morphology by affecting the structure of the cytoskeleton. The molecular basis for such artefacts is poorly understood. Here, we determined the high-resolution structure of the Lifeact–F-actin complex using electron cryo-microscopy (cryo-EM). The structure reveals that Lifeact interacts with a hydrophobic binding pocket on F-actin and stretches over 2 adjacent actin subunits, stabilizing the DNase I-binding loop (D-loop) of actin in the closed conformation. Interestingly, the hydrophobic binding site is also used by actin-binding proteins, such as cofilin and myosin and actin-binding toxins, such as the hypervariable region of TccC3 (TccC3HVR) from Photorhabdus luminescens and ExoY from Pseudomonas aeruginosa. In vitro binding assays and activity measurements demonstrate that Lifeact indeed competes with these proteins, providing an explanation for the altering effects of Lifeact on cell morphology in vivo. Finally, we demonstrate that the affinity of Lifeact to F-actin can be increased by introducing mutations into the peptide, laying the foundation for designing improved actin probes for live cell imaging.

scholarly journals Modulation of Nuclear Localization of the Influenza Virus Nucleoprotein through Interaction with Actin Filaments

1999 ◽  
Vol 73 (3) ◽  
pp. 2222-2231 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Digard ◽  
Debra Elton ◽  
Konrad Bishop ◽  
Elizabeth Medcalf ◽  
Alan Weeds ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Influenza Virus ◽  
Nuclear Localization ◽  
Virus Genome ◽  
Actin Binding ◽  
Filamentous Actin ◽  
Nuclear Localization Signals ◽  
Infected Cells ◽  
Cytoplasmic Accumulation ◽  
High Level

ABSTRACT The influenza virus genome is transcribed in the nuclei of infected cells but assembled into progeny virions in the cytoplasm. This is reflected in the cellular distribution of the virus nucleoprotein (NP), a protein which encapsidates genomic RNA to form ribonucleoprotein structures. At early times postinfection NP is found in the nucleus, but at later times it is found predominantly in the cytoplasm. NP contains several sequences proposed to act as nuclear localization signals (NLSs), and it is not clear how these are overridden to allow cytoplasmic accumulation of the protein. We find that NP binds tightly to filamentous actin in vitro and have identified a cluster of residues in NP essential for the interaction. Complexes containing RNA, NP, and actin could be formed, suggesting that viral ribonucleoproteins also bind actin. In cells, exogenously expressed NP when expressed at a high level partitioned to the cytoplasm, where it associated with F-actin stress fibers. In contrast, mutants unable to bind F-actin efficiently were imported into the nucleus even under conditions of high-level expression. Similarly, nuclear import of NLS-deficient NP molecules was restored by concomitant disruption of F-actin binding. We propose that the interaction of NP with F-actin causes the cytoplasmic retention of influenza virus ribonucleoproteins.

scholarly journals Dynamics of Tpm1.8 domains on actin filaments with single molecule resolution

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ilina Bareja ◽  
Hugo Wioland ◽  
Miro Janco ◽  
Philip R. Nicovich ◽  
Antoine Jégou ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Actin Filament ◽  
Single Molecule ◽  
Actin Filaments ◽  
High Probability ◽  
Actin Binding ◽  
Single Molecule Level ◽  
Filament Dynamics ◽  
Kinetics Of ◽  
Insight Into

ABSTRACTTropomyosins regulate dynamics and functions of the actin cytoskeleton by forming long chains along the two strands of actin filaments that act as gatekeepers for the binding of other actin-binding proteins. The fundamental molecular interactions underlying the binding of tropomyosin to actin are still poorly understood. Using microfluidics and fluorescence microscopy, we observed the binding of fluorescently labelled tropomyosin isoform Tpm1.8 to unlabelled actin filaments in real time. This approach in conjunction with mathematical modeling enabled us to quantify the nucleation, assembly and disassembly kinetics of Tpm1.8 on single filaments and at the single molecule level. Our analysis suggests that Tpm1.8 decorates the two strands of the actin filament independently. Nucleation of a growing tropomyosin domain proceeds with high probability as soon as the first Tpm1.8 molecule is stabilised by the addition of a second molecule, ultimately leading to full decoration of the actin filament. In addition, Tpm1.8 domains are asymmetrical, with enhanced dynamics at the edge oriented towards the barbed end of the actin filament. The complete description of Tpm1.8 kinetics on actin filaments presented here provides molecular insight into actin-tropomyosin filament formation and the role of tropomyosins in regulating actin filament dynamics.

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