scholarly journals A molecular model of the mitochondrial genome segregation machinery in Trypanosoma brucei

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anneliese Hoffmann ◽  
Sandro Käser ◽  
Martin Jakob ◽  
Simona Amodeo ◽  
Camille Peitsch ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Mitochondrial Genome ◽  
Trypanosoma Brucei ◽  
De Novo ◽  
Molecular Model ◽  
Super Resolution ◽  
Stimulated Emission ◽  
Kinetoplast Dna ◽  
Exclusion Zone ◽  
Super Resolution Microscopy

AbstractIn almost all eukaryotes mitochondria maintain their own genome. Despite the discovery more than 50 years ago still very little is known about how the genome is properly segregated during cell division. The protozoan parasite Trypanosoma brucei contains a single mitochondrion with a singular genome the kinetoplast DNA (kDNA). Electron microscopy studies revealed the tripartite attachment complex (TAC) to physically connect the kDNA to the basal body of the flagellum and to ensure proper segregation of the mitochondrial genome via the basal bodies movement, during cell cycle. Using super-resolution microscopy we precisely localize each of the currently known unique TAC components. We demonstrate that the TAC is assembled in a hierarchical order from the base of the flagellum towards the mitochondrial genome and that the assembly is not dependent on the kDNA itself. Based on biochemical analysis the TAC consists of several non-overlapping subcomplexes suggesting an overall size of the TAC exceeding 2.8 mDa. We furthermore demonstrate that the TAC has an impact on mitochondrial organelle positioning however is not required for proper organelle biogenesis or segregation.Significance StatementMitochondrial genome replication and segregation are essential processes in most eukaryotic cells. While replication has been studied in some detail much less is known about the molecular machinery required distribute the replicated genomes. Using super-resolution microscopy in combination with molecular biology and biochemistry we show for the first time in which order the segregation machinery is assembled and that it is assembled de novo rather than in a semi conservative fashion in the single celled parasite Trypanosoma brucei. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the mitochondrial genome itself is not required for assembly to occur. It seems that the physical connection of the mitochondrial genome to cytoskeletal elements is a conserved feature in most eukaryotes, however the molecular components are highly diverse.Abbreviation(EZF)Exclusion zone filaments(ULF)Unilateral filament(TAC)tripartite attachment complex(OM)outer mitochondrial(IM)inner mitochondrial(BSF)bloodstream form(PCF)procyclic form(kDNA)kinetoplast DNA(gRNA)guide RNA(SBFSEM)Serial block face-scanning electron microscopy(Tet)tetracyclin(STED)Stimulated Emission Depletion

scholarly journals Characterization of the Novel Mitochondrial Genome Replication Factor MiRF172 in Trypanosoma brucei

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simona Amodeo ◽  
Martin Jakob ◽  
Torsten Ochsenreiter
Keyword(s):  
Mitochondrial Genome ◽  
Trypanosoma Brucei ◽  
Super Resolution ◽  
Genome Replication ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Replication Factor ◽  
Summary Statement ◽  
Super Resolution Microscopy ◽  
Novel Protein

AbstractThe unicellular parasite Trypanosoma brucei harbors one individual mitochondrial organelle with a singular genome the kinetoplast DNA or kDNA. The kDNA largely consists of concatenated minicircles and a few maxicircles that are also interlocked into the kDNA disc. More than 30 proteins involved in kDNA replication have been described, however several mechanistic questions are only poorly understood. Here, we describe and characterize MiRF172, a novel mitochondrial genome replication factor, which is essential for proper cell growth and kDNA maintenance. Using super-resolution microscopy, we localize MiRF172 to the antipodal sites of the kDNA. We demonstrate that depletion of MiRF172 leads to continuous loss of mini- and maxicircles during the cell division cycle. Detailed analysis suggests that MiRF172 is likely involved in the reattachment of replicated minicircles to the kDNA disc. Furthermore, we provide evidence that the localization of the replication factor MiRF172 not only depends on the kDNA itself, but also on the mitochondrial genome segregation machinery suggesting a tight interaction between the two essential entities.Summary StatementMiRF172 is a novel protein involved in the reattachment of replicated minicircles in Trypanosoma brucei, which requires the mitochondrial segregation machinery for proper localization.

scholarly journals Comparing Super-Resolution Microscopy Techniques to Analyze Chromosomes

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 1903
Author(s):  
Ivona Kubalová ◽  
Alžběta Němečková ◽  
Klaus Weisshart ◽  
Eva Hřibová ◽  
Veit Schubert
Keyword(s):  
Single Molecule ◽  
Imaging Techniques ◽  
Chromatin Condensation ◽  
Super Resolution ◽  
Stimulated Emission ◽  
Wide Field ◽  
Structured Illumination Microscopy ◽  
Metaphase Chromosomes ◽  
Localization Microscopy ◽  
Super Resolution Microscopy

The importance of fluorescence light microscopy for understanding cellular and sub-cellular structures and functions is undeniable. However, the resolution is limited by light diffraction (~200–250 nm laterally, ~500–700 nm axially). Meanwhile, super-resolution microscopy, such as structured illumination microscopy (SIM), is being applied more and more to overcome this restriction. Instead, super-resolution by stimulated emission depletion (STED) microscopy achieving a resolution of ~50 nm laterally and ~130 nm axially has not yet frequently been applied in plant cell research due to the required specific sample preparation and stable dye staining. Single-molecule localization microscopy (SMLM) including photoactivated localization microscopy (PALM) has not yet been widely used, although this nanoscopic technique allows even the detection of single molecules. In this study, we compared protein imaging within metaphase chromosomes of barley via conventional wide-field and confocal microscopy, and the sub-diffraction methods SIM, STED, and SMLM. The chromosomes were labeled by DAPI (4′,6-diamidino-2-phenylindol), a DNA-specific dye, and with antibodies against topoisomerase IIα (Topo II), a protein important for correct chromatin condensation. Compared to the diffraction-limited methods, the combination of the three different super-resolution imaging techniques delivered tremendous additional insights into the plant chromosome architecture through the achieved increased resolution.

scholarly journals MINSTED fluorescence localization and nanoscopy

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Weber ◽  
Marcel Leutenegger ◽  
Stefan Stoldt ◽  
Stefan Jakobs ◽  
Tiberiu S. Mihaila ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Standard Deviation ◽  
Super Resolution ◽  
Diffraction Limit ◽  
Stimulated Emission ◽  
Far Field ◽  
Inner Membrane ◽  
Mitochondrial Inner Membrane ◽  
Molecular Scale ◽  
Localization Precision ◽  
Super Resolution Microscopy

AbstractWe introduce MINSTED, a fluorophore localization and super-resolution microscopy concept based on stimulated emission depletion (STED) that provides spatial precision and resolution down to the molecular scale. In MINSTED, the intensity minimum of the STED doughnut, and hence the point of minimal STED, serves as a movable reference coordinate for fluorophore localization. As the STED rate, the background and the required number of fluorescence detections are low compared with most other STED microscopy and localization methods, MINSTED entails substantially less fluorophore bleaching. In our implementation, 200–1,000 detections per fluorophore provide a localization precision of 1–3 nm in standard deviation, which in conjunction with independent single fluorophore switching translates to a ~100-fold improvement in far-field microscopy resolution over the diffraction limit. The performance of MINSTED nanoscopy is demonstrated by imaging the distribution of Mic60 proteins in the mitochondrial inner membrane of human cells.

scholarly journals Supramolecular Structures of the Dictyostelium Lamin NE81

Cells ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 162
Author(s):  
Marianne Grafe ◽  
Petros Batsios ◽  
Irene Meyer ◽  
Daria Lisin ◽  
Otto Baumann ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Nuclear Envelope ◽  
Model Organism ◽  
Super Resolution ◽  
Nuclear Lamina ◽  
Stimulated Emission ◽  
Structural Level ◽  
Animal Cells ◽  
Nuclear Lamins

Nuclear lamins are nucleus-specific intermediate filaments (IF) found at the inner nuclear membrane (INM) of the nuclear envelope (NE). Together with nuclear envelope transmembrane proteins, they form the nuclear lamina and are crucial for gene regulation and mechanical robustness of the nucleus and the whole cell. Recently, we characterized Dictyostelium NE81 as an evolutionarily conserved lamin-like protein, both on the sequence and functional level. Here, we show on the structural level that the Dictyostelium NE81 is also capable of assembling into filaments, just as metazoan lamin filament assemblies. Using field-emission scanning electron microscopy, we show that NE81 expressed in Xenopous oocytes forms filamentous structures with an overall appearance highly reminiscent of Xenopus lamin B2. The in vitro assembly properties of recombinant His-tagged NE81 purified from Dictyostelium extracts are very similar to those of metazoan lamins. Super-resolution stimulated emission depletion (STED) and expansion microscopy (ExM), as well as transmission electron microscopy of negatively stained purified NE81, demonstrated its capability of forming filamentous structures under low-ionic-strength conditions. These results recommend Dictyostelium as a non-mammalian model organism with a well-characterized nuclear envelope involving all relevant protein components known in animal cells.

scholarly journals Kinetoplast maxicircle DNA replication in Crithidia fasciculata and Trypanosoma brucei.

1995 ◽  
Vol 15 (12) ◽  
pp. 6794-6803 ◽  
Author(s):  
L R Carpenter ◽  
P T Englund
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Trypanosoma Brucei ◽  
Topoisomerase Ii ◽  
Repetitive Sequences ◽  
Variable Region ◽  
Kinetoplast Dna ◽  
Crithidia Fasciculata ◽  
Interstrand Cross Links ◽  
Replication Intermediates

Kinetoplast DNA, the mitochondrial DNA of trypanosomatids, is composed of several thousand minicircles and a few dozen maxicircles, all of which are topologically interlocked in a giant network. We have studied the replication of maxicircle DNA, using electron microscopy to analyze replication intermediates from both Crithidia fasciculata and Trypanosoma brucei. Replication intermediates were stabilized against branch migration by introducing DNA interstrand cross-links in vivo with 4,5',8-trimethylpsoralen and UV radiation. Electron microscopy of individual maxicircles resulting from a topoisomerase II decatenation of kinetoplast DNA networks revealed intact maxicircle theta structures. Analysis of maxicircle DNA linearized by restriction enzyme cleavage revealed branched replication intermediates derived from theta structures. Measurements of the linearized branched molecules in both parasites indicate that replication initiates in the variable region (a noncoding segment characterized by repetitive sequences) and proceeds unidirectionally, clockwise on the standard map.

scholarly journals Regulated protein stabilization underpins the functional interplay among basal body components in Trypanosoma brucei

2019 ◽  
Vol 295 (3) ◽  
pp. 729-742
Author(s):  
Kieu T. M. Pham ◽  
Ziyin Li
Keyword(s):  
Trypanosoma Brucei ◽  
Basal Body ◽  
Super Resolution ◽  
Specific Protein ◽  
Protein Stabilization ◽  
Structured Illumination ◽  
Human Parasite ◽  
Evolutionarily Conserved ◽  
Body Components ◽  
Super Resolution Microscopy

The basal body in the human parasite Trypanosoma brucei is structurally equivalent to the centriole in animals and functions in the nucleation of axonemal microtubules in the flagellum. T. brucei lacks many evolutionarily conserved centriolar protein homologs and constructs the basal body through unknown mechanisms. Two evolutionarily conserved centriole/basal body cartwheel proteins, TbSAS-6 and TbBLD10, and a trypanosome-specific protein, BBP65, play essential roles in basal body biogenesis in T. brucei, but how they cooperate in the regulation of basal body assembly remains elusive. Here using RNAi, endogenous epitope tagging, immunofluorescence microscopy, and 3D-structured illumination super-resolution microscopy, we identified a new trypanosome-specific protein named BBP164 and found that it has an essential role in basal body biogenesis in T. brucei. Further investigation of the functional interplay among BBP164 and the other three regulators of basal body assembly revealed that BBP164 and BBP65 are interdependent for maintaining their stability and depend on TbSAS-6 and TbBLD10 for their stabilization in the basal body. Additionally, TbSAS-6 and TbBLD10 are independent from each other and from BBP164 and BBP65 for maintaining their stability in the basal body. These findings demonstrate that basal body cartwheel proteins are required for stabilizing other basal body components and uncover that regulation of protein stability is an unusual control mechanism for assembly of the basal body in T. brucei.

scholarly journals pIgR and PECAM-1 bind to pneumococcal adhesins RrgA and PspC mediating bacterial brain invasion

2017 ◽  
Vol 214 (6) ◽  
pp. 1619-1630 ◽  
Author(s):  
Federico Iovino ◽  
Joo-Yeon Engelen-Lee ◽  
Matthijs Brouwer ◽  
Diederik van de Beek ◽  
Arie van der Ende ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pneumococcal Meningitis ◽  
Case Fatality ◽  
Super Resolution ◽  
Stimulated Emission ◽  
Brain Invasion ◽  
Immunoglobulin Receptor ◽  
Platelet Endothelial Cell Adhesion ◽  
Lower Extent ◽  
Super Resolution Microscopy ◽  
The Brain

Streptococcus pneumoniae is the main cause of bacterial meningitis, a life-threating disease with a high case fatality rate despite treatment with antibiotics. Pneumococci cause meningitis by invading the blood and penetrating the blood–brain barrier (BBB). Using stimulated emission depletion (STED) super-resolution microscopy of brain biopsies from patients who died of pneumococcal meningitis, we observe that pneumococci colocalize with the two BBB endothelial receptors: polymeric immunoglobulin receptor (pIgR) and platelet endothelial cell adhesion molecule (PECAM-1). We show that the major adhesin of the pneumococcal pilus-1, RrgA, binds both receptors, whereas the choline binding protein PspC binds, but to a lower extent, only pIgR. Using a bacteremia-derived meningitis model and mutant mice, as well as antibodies against the two receptors, we prevent pneumococcal entry into the brain and meningitis development. By adding antibodies to antibiotic (ceftriaxone)-treated mice, we further reduce the bacterial burden in the brain. Our data suggest that inhibition of pIgR and PECAM-1 has the potential to prevent pneumococcal meningitis.

scholarly journals Molecular resolution imaging by post-labeling expansion single-molecule localization microscopy (Ex-SMLM)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fabian U. Zwettler ◽  
Sebastian Reinhard ◽  
Davide Gambarotto ◽  
Toby D. M. Bell ◽  
Virginie Hamel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Single Molecule ◽  
Super Resolution ◽  
Reference Structure ◽  
Positional Error ◽  
Localization Microscopy ◽  
Resolution Imaging ◽  
Endogenous Proteins ◽  
Super Resolution Microscopy ◽  
Single Molecule Localization Microscopy

AbstractExpansion microscopy (ExM) enables super-resolution fluorescence imaging of physically expanded biological samples with conventional microscopes. By combining expansion microscopy (ExM) with single-molecule localization microscopy (SMLM) it is potentially possible to approach the resolution of electron microscopy. However, current attempts to combine both methods remained challenging because of protein and fluorophore loss during digestion or denaturation, gelation, and the incompatibility of expanded polyelectrolyte hydrogels with photoswitching buffers. Here we show that re-embedding of expanded hydrogels enables dSTORM imaging of expanded samples and demonstrate that post-labeling ExM resolves the current limitations of super-resolution microscopy. Using microtubules as a reference structure and centrioles, we demonstrate that post-labeling Ex-SMLM preserves ultrastructural details, improves the labeling efficiency and reduces the positional error arising from linking fluorophores into the gel thus paving the way for super-resolution imaging of immunolabeled endogenous proteins with true molecular resolution.

scholarly journals Expansion stimulated emission depletion microscopy (ExSTED)

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mengfei Gao ◽  
Riccardo Maraspini ◽  
Oliver Beutel ◽  
Amin Zehtabian ◽  
Britta Eickholt ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Excited State ◽  
Optical Resolution ◽  
Super Resolution ◽  
Stimulated Emission ◽  
High Fidelity ◽  
Sted Microscopy ◽  
Structural Details ◽  
Stimulated Emission Depletion ◽  
Conventional Microscopy ◽  
Super Resolution Microscopy

AbstractStimulated emission depletion (STED) microscopy is routinely used to resolve the ultra-structure of cells with a ∼10-fold higher resolution compared to diffraction limited imaging. While STED microscopy is based on preparing the excited state of fluorescent probes with light, the recently developed expansion microscopy (ExM) provides sub-diffraction resolution by physically enlarging the sample before microscopy. Expansion of fixed cells by crosslinking and swelling of hydrogels easily enlarges the sample ∼4-fold and hence increases the effective optical resolution by this factor. To overcome the current limits of these complimentary approaches, we here combined ExM with STED (ExSTED) and demonstrate an increase in resolution of up to 30-fold compared to conventional microscopy (<10 nm lateral and ∼50 nm isotropic). While the increase in resolution is straight forward, we found that high fidelity labelling via multi-epitopes is required to obtain emitter densities that allow to resolve ultra-structural details with ExSTED. Our work provides a robust template for super resolution microscopy of entire cells in the ten nanometer range.

scholarly journals Nano-scale size holes in ER sheets provide an alternative to tubules for highly-curved membranes

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lena K. Schroeder ◽  
Andrew E. S. Barentine ◽  
Sarah Schweighofer ◽  
David Baddeley ◽  
Joerg Bewersdorf ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Analytical Modeling ◽  
High Spatial Resolution ◽  
Super Resolution ◽  
Living Cells ◽  
Stimulated Emission ◽  
Fast Time ◽  
Nano Scale ◽  
Scale Size ◽  
Curved Membranes ◽  
Super Resolution Microscopy

AbstractThe endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is composed of interconnected membrane sheets and tubules. Super-resolution microscopy recently revealed densely packed, rapidly moving ER tubules, highlighting the importance of revisiting classical views of ER structure with high spatial resolution in living cells. Using live-cell Stimulated Emission Depletion (STED) microscopy, we show highly dynamic, subdiffraction-sized holes in ER sheets. Holes coexist with uniform sheet regions and are distinct from tubular ER structures. The curvature-stabilizing reticulon protein Rtn4 localizes to these holes and the ER luminal tether Climp63 controls their diameter and mobility. Analytical modeling demonstrates that holes in ER sheets can serve as reservoirs for curvature-stabilizing proteins to support ER tubule extension and retraction, thus providing an explanation for how the ER locally alters its morphology on fast time-scales.One Sentence SummaryDynamic nano-scale sized holes are prominent features of ER sheets that serve as reservoirs for curvature-stabilizing proteins to support ER tubule extension and retraction.

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