Morphogenesis of Drosophila ovarian ring canals

Development ◽  
1994 ◽  
Vol 120 (7) ◽  
pp. 2015-2025 ◽  
Author(s):  
D.N. Robinson ◽  
K. Cant ◽  
L. Cooley
Keyword(s):  
Protein Assembly ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Filamentous Actin ◽  
Ring Canal ◽  
Ring Canals ◽  
Normal Ring ◽  
Egg Chambers ◽  
Cytoplasmic Bridges ◽  
Carboxy Terminal ◽  
Ordered Ring

We analyzed the structure of cytoplasmic bridges called ring canals in Drosophila egg chambers. Two mutations, hu-li tai shao (hts) and kelch, disrupt normal ring canal development. We raised antibodies against the carboxy-terminal tail of hts and found that they recognize a protein that localizes specifically to ring canals very early in ring canal assembly. Accumulation of filamentous actin on ring canals coincides with the appearance of the hts protein. kelch, which is localized to the ring canals hours after hts and actin, is necessary for maintaining a highly ordered ring canal rim since kelch mutant egg chambers have ring canals that are obstructed by disordered actin and hts. Anti-phosphotyrosine antibodies immunostain ring canals beginning early in the germarium before hts and actin and throughout egg chamber development. The use of antibody reagents to analyze the structure of wild-type and mutant ring canals has shown that ring canal development is a dynamic process of cytoskeletal protein assembly, possibly regulated by tyrosine phosphorylation of some ring canal components.

Src64 is required for ovarian ring canal morphogenesis during Drosophila oogenesis

Development ◽  
1998 ◽  
Vol 125 (15) ◽  
pp. 2883-2892 ◽  
Author(s):  
G.S. Dodson ◽  
D.J. Guarnieri ◽  
M.A. Simon
Keyword(s):  
Tyrosine Phosphorylation ◽  
Cellular Proliferation ◽  
Src Family Kinases ◽  
Nurse Cells ◽  
Loss Of Function ◽  
Filamentous Actin ◽  
Ring Canal ◽  
Specific Product ◽  
Ring Canals ◽  
Egg Chambers

The Src family of protein tyrosine kinases have been implicated as important regulators of cellular proliferation, differentiation and function. In order to understand further the role of Src family kinases, we have generated loss-of-function mutations in Src64, one of two Src family kinases known in Drosophila melanogaster. Animals with reduced Src64 function develop normally and are fully viable. However, Src64 female flies have reduced fertility, which is associated with the incomplete transfer of cytoplasm from nurse cells to the developing oocyte. Analysis of Src64 egg chambers showed defects in the ring canals that interconnect the oocyte and its 15 associated nurse cells. Src64 ring canals fail to accumulate the high levels of tyrosine phosphorylation that are normally present. Despite the reduced tyrosine phosphorylation, known ring canal components such as filamentous actin, a ring canal-specific product of the hu-li tai shao gene, and the kelch protein localize properly. However, Src64 ring canals are reduced in size and frequently degenerate. These results indicate that Src64 is required for the proper growth and stability of the ovarian ring canals.

scholarly journals HtsRC-mediated accumulation of F-actin regulates ring canal size during Drosophila melanogaster oogenesis

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julianne A. Gerdes ◽  
Katelynn M. Mannix ◽  
Andrew M. Hudson ◽  
Lynn Cooley
Keyword(s):  
Drosophila Melanogaster ◽  
Actin Cytoskeleton ◽  
Fruit Flies ◽  
Follicle Cells ◽  
Filamentous Actin ◽  
Ring Canal ◽  
High Fecundity ◽  
Ring Canals ◽  
Necessary And Sufficient ◽  
Female Germline

AbstractRing canals in the female germline of Drosophila melanogaster are supported by a robust filamentous actin (F-actin) cytoskeleton, setting them apart from ring canals in other species and tissues. Previous work has identified components required for the expansion of the ring canal actin cytoskeleton but has not identified the proteins responsible for F-actin recruitment or accumulation. Using a combination of CRISPR-Cas9 mediated mutagenesis and UAS-Gal4 overexpression, we show that HtsRC, a component specific to female germline ring canals, is both necessary and sufficient to drive F-actin accumulation. Absence of HtsRC in the germline resulted in ring canals lacking inner rim F-actin, while overexpression of HtsRC led to larger ring canals. HtsRC functions in combination with Filamin to recruit F-actin to ring-canal-like ectopic actin structures in somatic follicle cells. Finally, we present findings which indicate that HtsRC expression and robust female germline ring canal expansion are important for high fecundity in fruit flies but dispensable for their fertility, a result which is consistent with our understanding of HtsRC as a newly evolved gene specific to female germline ring canals.

scholarly journals HtsRC-Mediated Accumulation of F-Actin Regulates Ring Canal Size During Drosophila melanogaster Oogenesis

Genetics ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 216 (3) ◽  
pp. 717-734
Author(s):  
Julianne A. Gerdes ◽  
Katelynn M. Mannix ◽  
Andrew M. Hudson ◽  
Lynn Cooley
Keyword(s):  
Drosophila Melanogaster ◽  
Actin Cytoskeleton ◽  
Fruit Flies ◽  
Follicle Cells ◽  
Filamentous Actin ◽  
Ring Canal ◽  
High Fecundity ◽  
Ring Canals ◽  
Necessary And Sufficient ◽  
Female Germline

Ring canals in the female germline of Drosophila melanogaster are supported by a robust filamentous actin (F-actin) cytoskeleton, setting them apart from ring canals in other species and tissues. Previous work has identified components required for the expansion of the ring canal actin cytoskeleton, but has not identified the proteins responsible for F-actin recruitment or accumulation. Using a combination of CRISPR-Cas9 mediated mutagenesis and UAS-Gal4 overexpression, we show that HtsRC—a component specific to female germline ring canals—is both necessary and sufficient to drive F-actin accumulation. Absence of HtsRC in the germline resulted in ring canals lacking inner rim F-actin, while overexpression of HtsRC led to larger ring canals. HtsRC functions in combination with Filamin to recruit F-actin to ectopic actin structures in somatic follicle cells. Finally, we present findings that indicate that HtsRC expression and robust female germline ring canal expansion are important for high fecundity in fruit flies but dispensable for their fertility—a result that is consistent with our understanding of HtsRC as a newly evolved gene specific to female germline ring canals.

scholarly journals Formation of the Drosophila Ovarian Ring Canal Inner Rim Depends on cheerio

Genetics ◽  
1997 ◽  
Vol 145 (4) ◽  
pp. 1063-1072 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas N Robinson ◽  
Tracy A Smith-Leiker ◽  
Nicholas S Sokol ◽  
Andrew M Hudson ◽  
Lynn Cooley
Keyword(s):  
Mature Oocyte ◽  
Cleavage Furrow ◽  
Intercellular Bridge ◽  
Filamentous Actin ◽  
Ring Canal ◽  
Membrane Stabilization ◽  
Critical Function ◽  
Ring Canals ◽  
New Gene ◽  
Mutant Cells

In Drosophila oogenesis, the development of a mature oocyte depends on having properly developed ring canals that allow cytoplasm transport from the nurse cells to the oocyte. Ring canal assembly is a step-wise process that transforms an arrested cleavage furrow into a stable intercellular bridge by the addition of several proteins. Here we describe a new gene we named cheerio that provides a critical function for ring canal assembly. Mutants in cheerio fail to localize ring canal inner rim proteins including filamentous actin, the ring canal-associated products from the hu-li tai shao (hts) gene, and kelch. Since hts and kelch are present but unlocalized in cheerio mutant cells, cheerio is likely to function upstream from each of them. Examination of mutants in cheerio places it in the pathway of ring canal assembly between cleavage furrow arrest and localization of hts and actin filaments. Furthermore, this mutant reveals that the inner rim cytoskeleton is required for expansion of the ring canal opening and for plasma membrane stabilization.

Assembly of ring canals in the male germ line from structural components of the contractile ring

1996 ◽  
Vol 109 (12) ◽  
pp. 2779-2788 ◽  
Author(s):  
G.R. Hime ◽  
J.A. Brill ◽  
M.T. Fuller
Keyword(s):  
Germ Cells ◽  
Germ Line ◽  
Structural Components ◽  
Filamentous Actin ◽  
Ring Canal ◽  
Contractile Ring ◽  
Male Germ Line ◽  
Vesicular Structure ◽  
Ring Canals ◽  
Males And Females

Stable intercellular bridges called ring canals form following incomplete cytokinesis, and interconnect mitotically or meiotically related germ cells. We show that ring canals in Drosophila melanogaster males are surprisingly different from those previously described in females. Mature ring canal walls in males lack actin and appear to derive directly from structural proteins associated with the contractile ring. Ring canal assembly in males, as in females, initiates during cytokinesis with the appearance of a ring of phosphotyrosine epitopes at the site of the contractile ring. Following constriction, actin and myosin II disappear. However, at least four proteins present at the contractile ring remain: the three septins (Pnut, Sep1 and Sep2) and anillin. In sharp contrast, in ovarian ring canals, septins have not been detected, anillin is lost from mature ring canals and filamentous actin is a major component. In both males and females, a highly branched vesicular structure, termed the fusome, interconnects developing germ cells via the ring canals and is thought to coordinate mitotic germ cell divisions. We show that, in males, unlike females, the fusome persists and enlarges following cessation of the mitotic divisions, developing additional branches during meiosis. During differentiation, the fusome and its associated ring canals localize to the distal tip of the elongating spermatids.

scholarly journals Actin-dependent regulation of the cardiac Na+/Ca2+ exchanger

2006 ◽  
Vol 290 (3) ◽  
pp. C691-C701 ◽  
Author(s):  
Madalina Condrescu ◽  
John P. Reeves
Keyword(s):  
Chinese Hamster Ovary Cells ◽  
Chinese Hamster ◽  
Cytochalasin D ◽  
Lag Phase ◽  
Cell Contact ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Filamentous Actin ◽  
Surface Distribution ◽  
Reverse Mode ◽  
Hydrophilic Domain

In the present study, the bovine cardiac Na+/Ca2+ exchanger (NCX1.1) was expressed in Chinese hamster ovary cells. The surface distribution of the exchanger protein, externally tagged with the hemagglutinin (HA) epitope, was associated with underlying actin filaments in regions of cell-to-cell contact and also along stress fibers. After we treated cells with cytochalasin D, NCX1.1 protein colocalized with patches of fragmented filamentous actin (F-actin). In contrast, an HA-tagged deletion mutant of NCX1.1 that was missing much of the exchanger's central hydrophilic domain Δ(241–680) did not associate with F-actin. In cells expressing the wild-type exchanger, cytochalasin D inhibited allosteric Ca2+ activation of NCX activity as shown by prolongation of the lag phase of low Ca2+ uptake after initiation of the reverse (i.e., Ca2+ influx) mode of NCX activity. Other agents that perturbed F-actin structure (methyl-β-cyclodextrin, latrunculin B, and jasplakinolide) also increased the duration of the lag phase. In contrast, when reverse-mode activity was initiated after allosteric Ca2+ activation, both cytochalasin D and methyl-β-cyclodextrin (Me-β-CD) stimulated NCX activity by ∼70%. The activity of the Δ(241–680) mutant, which does not require allosteric Ca2+ activation, was also stimulated by cytochalasin D and Me-β-CD. The increased activity after these treatments appeared to reflect an increased amount of exchanger protein at the cell surface. We conclude that wild-type NCX1.1 associates with the F-actin cytoskeleton, probably through interactions involving the exchanger's central hydrophilic domain, and that this association interferes with allosteric Ca2+ activation.

Purification and characterization of a nonpolymerizing long-pitch actin dimer

2006 ◽  
Vol 84 (5) ◽  
pp. 695-702 ◽  
Author(s):  
Braden Sweeting ◽  
John F. Dawson
Keyword(s):  
Critical Concentration ◽  
Dnase I ◽  
Actin Binding ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Filamentous Actin ◽  
Rhodamine Phalloidin ◽  
Fold Reduction ◽  
Crystallization Conditions ◽  
Self Association ◽  
Pointed End

Atomic resolution structures of filamentous actin have not been obtained owing to the self-association of actin under crystallization conditions. Obtaining short filamentous actin complexes of defined lengths is therefore a highly desirable goal. Here we report the production and isolation of a long-pitch actin dimer employing chemical crosslinking between wild-type actin and Q41C/C374A mutant actin. The Q41C/C374A mutant actin possessed altered polymerization properties, with a 2-fold reduction in the rate of elongation and an increased critical concentration relative to wild-type actin. The Q41C/C374A mutant actin also displayed an increase in the IC50 for DNase I, a pointed-end actin-binding protein. The long-pitch dimer was bound by DNase I to prevent polymerization and purified. It was found that each actin dimer is bound by 2 DNase I molecules, 1 likely bound to each of the actin protomers. The long-pitch dimer bound by DNase I did not form short F actin structures, as assessed by the binding of rhodamine–phalloidin.

Significance of C-terminal cysteine modifications to the biological activity of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae a-factor mating pheromone

1991 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 3603-3612
Author(s):  
S Marcus ◽  
G A Caldwell ◽  
D Miller ◽  
C B Xue ◽  
F Naider ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Saccharomyces Cerevisiae ◽  
Biological Activity ◽  
Methyl Ester ◽  
Total Synthesis ◽  
Biologically Active ◽  
Structural Genes ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Mating Pheromone ◽  
Carboxy Terminal

We have undertaken total synthesis of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae a-factor (NH2-YIIKGVFWDPAC[S-farnesyl]-COOCH3) and several Cys-12 analogs to determine the significance of S-farnesylation and carboxy-terminal methyl esterification to the biological activity of this lipopeptide mating pheromone. Replacement of either the farnesyl group or the carboxy-terminal methyl ester by a hydrogen atom resulted in marked reduction but not total loss of bioactivity as measured by a variety of assays. Moreover, both the farnesyl and methyl ester groups could be replaced by other substituents to produce biologically active analogs. The bioactivity of a-factor decreased as the number of prenyl units on the cysteine sulfur decreased from three to one, and an a-factor analog having the S-farnesyl group replaced by an S-hexadecanyl group was more active than an S-methyl a-factor analog. Thus, with two types of modifications, a-factor activity increased as the S-alkyl group became bulkier and more hydrophobic. MATa cells having deletions of the a-factor structural genes (mfal1 mfa2 mutants) were capable of mating with either sst2 or wild-type MAT alpha cells in the presence of exogenous a-factor, indicating that it is not absolutely essential for MATa cells to actively produce a-factor in order to mate. Various a-factor analogs were found to partially restore mating to these strains as well, and their relative activities in the mating restoration assay were similar to their activities in the other assays used in this study. Mating was not restored by addition of exogenous a-factor to a cross of a wild-type MAT alpha strain and a MATaste6 mutant, indicating a role of the STE6 gene product in mating in addition to its secretion of a-factor.

Apoptosis in late stage Drosophila nurse cells does not require genes within the H99 deficiency

Development ◽  
1998 ◽  
Vol 125 (6) ◽  
pp. 1075-1082 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Foley ◽  
L. Cooley
Keyword(s):  
Dna Fragmentation ◽  
Late Stage ◽  
Expression Patterns ◽  
Nuclear Material ◽  
Nurse Cells ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Negative Regulators ◽  
Egg Chambers ◽  
Positive Regulators ◽  
Egg Chamber

We have determined that nurse cells are cleared from the Drosophila egg chamber by apoptosis. DNA fragmentation begins in nurse cells at stage 12, following the completion of cytoplasm transfer from the nurse cells to the oocyte. During stage 13, nurse cells increasingly contain highly fragmented DNA and disappear from the egg chamber concomitantly with the formation of apoptotic vesicles containing highly fragmented nuclear material. In dumpless mutant egg chambers that fail to complete cytoplasm transport from the nurse cells, DNA fragmentation is markedly delayed and begins during stage 13, when the majority of cytoplasm is lost from the nurse cells. These data suggest the presence of cytoplasmic factors in nurse cells that inhibit the initiation of DNA fragmentation. In addition, we have examined the ovarian expression patterns of regulatory genes implicated in Drosophila apoptosis. The positive regulators, reaper (rpr), head involution defective (hid) and grim, as well as the negative regulators, DIAP1 and DIAP2, are transcribed during oogenesis. However, germline clones homozygous for the deficiency Df(3)H99, which deletes rpr, hid and grim, undergo oogenesis in a manner morphologically indistinguishable from wild type, indicating that genes within this region are not necessary for apoptosis in nurse cells.

scholarly journals Significance of C-terminal cysteine modifications to the biological activity of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae a-factor mating pheromone.

1991 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 3603-3612 ◽  
Author(s):  
S Marcus ◽  
G A Caldwell ◽  
D Miller ◽  
C B Xue ◽  
F Naider ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Saccharomyces Cerevisiae ◽  
Biological Activity ◽  
Methyl Ester ◽  
Total Synthesis ◽  
Biologically Active ◽  
Structural Genes ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Mating Pheromone ◽  
Carboxy Terminal

We have undertaken total synthesis of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae a-factor (NH2-YIIKGVFWDPAC[S-farnesyl]-COOCH3) and several Cys-12 analogs to determine the significance of S-farnesylation and carboxy-terminal methyl esterification to the biological activity of this lipopeptide mating pheromone. Replacement of either the farnesyl group or the carboxy-terminal methyl ester by a hydrogen atom resulted in marked reduction but not total loss of bioactivity as measured by a variety of assays. Moreover, both the farnesyl and methyl ester groups could be replaced by other substituents to produce biologically active analogs. The bioactivity of a-factor decreased as the number of prenyl units on the cysteine sulfur decreased from three to one, and an a-factor analog having the S-farnesyl group replaced by an S-hexadecanyl group was more active than an S-methyl a-factor analog. Thus, with two types of modifications, a-factor activity increased as the S-alkyl group became bulkier and more hydrophobic. MATa cells having deletions of the a-factor structural genes (mfal1 mfa2 mutants) were capable of mating with either sst2 or wild-type MAT alpha cells in the presence of exogenous a-factor, indicating that it is not absolutely essential for MATa cells to actively produce a-factor in order to mate. Various a-factor analogs were found to partially restore mating to these strains as well, and their relative activities in the mating restoration assay were similar to their activities in the other assays used in this study. Mating was not restored by addition of exogenous a-factor to a cross of a wild-type MAT alpha strain and a MATaste6 mutant, indicating a role of the STE6 gene product in mating in addition to its secretion of a-factor.

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