scholarly journals Spatial control of Cdc42 activation determines cell width in fission yeast

2011 ◽  
Vol 22 (20) ◽  
pp. 3801-3811 ◽  
Author(s):  
Felice D. Kelly ◽  
Paul Nurse

The fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe is a rod-shaped cell that grows by linear extension at the cell tips, with a nearly constant width throughout the cell cycle. This simple geometry makes it an ideal system for studying the control of cellular dimensions. In this study, we carried out a near-genome-wide screen for mutants wider than wild-type cells. We found 11 deletion mutants that were wider; seven of the deleted genes are implicated in the control of the small GTPase Cdc42, including the Cdc42 guanine nucleotide exchange factor (GEF) Scd1 and the Cdc42 GTPase-activating protein (GAP) Rga4. Deletions of rga4 and scd1 had additive effects on cell width, and the proteins localized independently of one another, with Rga4 located at the cell sides and Scd1 at the cell tips. Activated Cdc42 localization is altered in rga4Δ, scd1Δ, and scd2Δ mutants. Delocalization and ectopic retargeting experiments showed that the localizations of Rga4 and Scd1 are crucial for their roles in determining cell width. We propose that the GAP Rga4 and the GEF Scd1 establish a gradient of activated Cdc42 within the cellular tip plasma membrane, and it is this gradient that determines cell growth-zone size and normal cell width.

Cells ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (9) ◽  
pp. 2089 ◽  
Author(s):  
Iker Lamas ◽  
Nathalie Weber ◽  
Sophie G. Martin

The small GTPase Cdc42 is critical for cell polarization in eukaryotic cells. In rod-shaped fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe cells, active GTP-bound Cdc42 promotes polarized growth at cell poles, while inactive Cdc42-GDP localizes ubiquitously also along cell sides. Zones of Cdc42 activity are maintained by positive feedback amplification involving the formation of a complex between Cdc42-GTP, the scaffold Scd2, and the guanine nucleotide exchange factor (GEF) Scd1, which promotes the activation of more Cdc42. Here, we use the CRY2-CIB1 optogenetic system to recruit and cluster a cytosolic Cdc42 variant at the plasma membrane and show that this leads to its moderate activation also on cell sides. Surprisingly, Scd2, which binds Cdc42-GTP, is still recruited to CRY2-Cdc42 clusters at cell sides in individual deletion of the GEFs Scd1 or Gef1. We show that activated Cdc42 clusters at cell sides are able to recruit Scd1, dependent on the scaffold Scd2. However, Cdc42 activity is not amplified by positive feedback and does not lead to morphogenetic changes, due to antagonistic activity of the GTPase activating protein Rga4. Thus, the cell architecture is robust to moderate activation of Cdc42 at cell sides.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Patricia García ◽  
Pedro M. Coll ◽  
Francisco del Rey ◽  
M. Isabel Geli ◽  
Pilar Pérez ◽  
...  

AbstractCell polarity and morphogenesis are regulated by the small GTPase Cdc42. Even though major advances have been done in the field during the last years, the molecular details leading to its activation in particular cellular contexts are not completely understood. In fission yeast, the β(1,3)-glucanase Eng2 is a “moonlighting protein” with a dual function, acting as a hydrolase during spore dehiscence, and as component of the endocytic machinery in vegetative cells. Here, we report that Eng2 plays a role in Cdc42 activation during polarized growth through its interaction with the scaffold protein Scd2, which brings Cdc42 together with its guanine nucleotide exchange factor (GEF) Scd1. eng2Δ mutant cells have defects in activation of the bipolar growth (NETO), remaining monopolar during all the cell cycle. In the absence of Eng2 the accumulation of Scd1 and Scd2 at the poles is reduced, the levels of Cdc42 activation decrease, and the Cdc42 oscillatory behavior, associated with bipolar growth in wild type cells, is altered. Furthermore, overexpression of Eng2 partially rescues the growth and polarity defects of a cdc42-L160S mutant. Altogether, our work unveils a new factor regulating the activity of Cdc42, which could potentially link the polarity and endocytic machineries.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Iker Lamas ◽  
Nathalie Weber ◽  
Sophie G Martin

AbstractThe small GTPase Cdc42 is critical for cell polarization in eukaryotic cells. In rod-shaped fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe cells, active GTP-bound Cdc42 promotes polarized growth at cell poles, while inactive Cdc42-GDP localizes ubiquitously also along cell sides. Zones of Cdc42 activity are maintained by positive feedback amplification involving the formation of a complex between Cdc42-GTP, the scaffold Scd2 and the guanine nucleotide exchange factor (GEF) Scd1, which promotes the activation of more Cdc42. Here, we use the CRY2-CIB1 optogenetic system to recruit and cluster a cytosolic Cdc42 allele at the plasma membrane and show that this leads to its moderate activation also on cell sides. Surprisingly, activation of CRY2-Cdc42 does not individually depend on Scd1 or the GEF Gef1. We show that activated Cdc42 clusters at cell sides are able to recruit Scd1, dependent on the scaffold Scd2. However, Cdc42 activity is not amplified by positive feedback and does not lead to morphogenetic changes, due to antagonistic activity of the GTPase activating protein Rga4 on cell sides. Thus, the cell architecture is robust to moderate activation of Cdc42 at cell sides.


2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 823 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Becsky ◽  
Szuzina Gyulai-Nagy ◽  
Arpad Balind ◽  
Peter Horvath ◽  
Laszlo Dux ◽  
...  

Skeletal muscle is constantly renewed in response to injury, exercise, or muscle diseases. Muscle stem cells, also known as satellite cells, are stimulated by local damage to proliferate extensively and form myoblasts that then migrate, differentiate, and fuse to form muscle fibers. The transmembrane heparan sulfate proteoglycan syndecan-4 plays multiple roles in signal transduction processes, such as regulating the activity of the small GTPase Rac1 (Ras-related C3 botulinum toxin substrate 1) by binding and inhibiting the activity of Tiam1 (T-lymphoma invasion and metastasis-1), a guanine nucleotide exchange factor for Rac1. The Rac1-mediated actin remodeling is required for cell migration. Syndecan-4 knockout mice cannot regenerate injured muscle; however, the detailed underlying mechanism is unknown. Here, we demonstrate that shRNA-mediated knockdown of syndecan-4 decreases the random migration of mouse myoblasts during live-cell microscopy. Treatment with the Rac1 inhibitor NSC23766 did not restore the migration capacity of syndecan-4 silenced cells; in fact, it was further reduced. Syndecan-4 knockdown decreased the directional persistence of migration, abrogated the polarized, asymmetric distribution of Tiam1, and reduced the total Tiam1 level of the cells. Syndecan-4 affects myoblast migration via its role in expression and localization of Tiam1; this finding may facilitate greater understanding of the essential role of syndecan-4 in the development and regeneration of skeletal muscle.


F1000Research ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 1788 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angika Basant ◽  
Michael Glotzer

Cytokinesis in metazoan cells is mediated by an actomyosin-based contractile ring that assembles in response to activation of the small GTPase RhoA. The guanine nucleotide exchange factor that activates RhoA during cytokinesis, ECT-2, is highly regulated. In most metazoan cells, with the notable exception of the early Caenorhabditis elegans embryo, RhoA activation and furrow ingression require the centralspindlin complex. This exception is due to the existence of a parallel pathway for RhoA activation in C. elegans. Centralspindlin contains CYK-4 which contains a predicted Rho family GTPase-activating protein (GAP) domain. The function of this domain has been the subject of considerable debate. Some publications suggest that the GAP domain promotes RhoA activation (for example, Zhang and Glotzer, 2015; Loria, Longhini and Glotzer, 2012), whereas others suggest that it functions to inactivate the GTPase Rac1 (for example, Zhuravlev et al., 2017). Here, we review the mechanisms underlying RhoA activation during cytokinesis, primarily focusing on data in C. elegans. We highlight the importance of considering the parallel pathway for RhoA activation and detailed analyses of cyk-4 mutant phenotypes when evaluating the role of the GAP domain of CYK-4.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Norito Sasaki ◽  
Masano Shiraiwa ◽  
Miharu Maeda ◽  
Tomohiro Yorimitsu ◽  
Ken Sato ◽  
...  

AbstractSecretory proteins synthesized within the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) are exported via coat protein complex II (COPII)-coated vesicles. The formation of the COPII-coated vesicles is initiated by activation of the small GTPase, Sar1. cTAGE5 directly interacts with a guanine-nucleotide exchange factor (GEF), Sec12, and a GTPase-activating protein (GAP) of Sar1, Sec23. We have previously shown that cTAGE5 recruits Sec12 to the ER exit sites for efficient production of activated Sar1 for collagen secretion. However, the functional significance of the interaction between cTAGE5 and Sec23 has not been fully elucidated. In this study, we showed that cTAGE5 enhances the GAP activity of Sec23 toward Sar1. In addition, the interaction of cTAGE5 with Sec23 is necessary for collagen exit from the ER. Our data suggests that cTAGE5 acts as a Sar1 GTPase regulator for collagen secretion.


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Meng Shi ◽  
Bing Chen ◽  
Boon Kim Boh ◽  
Yan Zhou ◽  
Divyanshu Mahajan ◽  
...  

AbstractThe endosome-to-Golgi or endocytic retrograde trafficking pathway is an important post-Golgi recycling route. We made a novel discovery that the retrograde trafficking of cargos is inhibited and stimulated by the absence and presence, respectively, of amino acids (AAs), especially glutamine. By testing components of the AA-stimulated mTORC1 signaling pathway, we demonstrated that SLC38A9, v-ATPase and Ragulator, but not Rag GTPases and mTORC1, are essential for the AA-stimulated trafficking. Arl5, an ARF-like family small GTPase, interacts with Ragulator in an AA-regulated manner and both Arl5 and its effector, the Golgi-associated retrograde protein complex (GARP), are required for the AA-stimulated trafficking. We have therefore identified a mechanistic connection between the nutrient signaling and the retrograde trafficking pathway, whereby SLC38A9 and v-ATPase sense AA-sufficiency and Ragulator functions as a guanine nucleotide exchange factor to activate Arl5, which, together with GARP, a tethering factor, probably facilitates the endosome-to-Golgi trafficking.


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