Dimples, pores, star-rings, and thin rings on growing nuclear envelopes: evidence for structural intermediates in nuclear pore complex assembly

1997 ◽  
Vol 110 (4) ◽  
pp. 409-420 ◽  
Author(s):  
M.W. Goldberg ◽  
C. Wiese ◽  
T.D. Allen ◽  
K.L. Wilson
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Pore Complex ◽  
Wheat Germ Agglutinin ◽  
Wheat Germ ◽  
Nuclear Pore ◽  
Nuclear Pore Complexes ◽  
Complex Assembly ◽  
Egg Extracts ◽  
High Concentrations ◽  
Pore Complexes ◽  
Xenopus Egg Extracts

We used field emission in-lens scanning electron microscopy to examine newly-assembled, growing nuclear envelopes in Xenopus egg extracts. Scattered among nuclear pore complexes were rare ‘dimples’ (outer membrane depressions, 5–35 nm diameter), more abundant holes (pores) with a variety of edge geometries (35–45 nm diameter; 3.3% of structures), pores containing one to eight triangular ‘star-ring’ subunits (2.1% of total), and more complicated structures. Neither mature complexes, nor these novel structures, formed when wheat germ agglutinin (which binds O-glycosylated nucleoporins) was added at high concentrations (>500 microg/ml) directly to the assembly reaction; low concentrations (10 microg/ml) had no effect. However at intermediate concentrations (50–100 microg/ml), wheat germ agglutinin caused a dramatic, sugar-reversible accumulation of ‘empty’ pores, and other structures; this effect correlated with the lectin-induced precipitation of a variable proportion of each major Xenopus wheat-germ-agglutinin-binding nucleoporin. Another inhibitor, dibromo-BAPTA (5,5′-dibromo-1,2-bis[o-aminophenoxylethane-N,N,N′,N′-tetraacetic acid), had different effects depending on its time of addition to the assembly reaction. When 1 mM dibromo-BAPTA was added at time zero, no pore-related structures formed. However, when dibromo-BAPTA was added to growing nuclei 40–45 minutes after initiating assembly, star-rings and other structures accumulated, suggesting that dibromo-BAPTA can inhibit multiple stages in pore complex assembly. We propose that assembly begins with the formation and stabilization of a hole (pore) through the nuclear envelope, and that dimples, pores, star-rings, and thin rings are structural intermediates in nuclear pore complex assembly.

The diverse roles of the Nup93/Nic96 complex proteins – structural scaffolds of the nuclear pore complex with additional cellular functions

2014 ◽  
Vol 395 (5) ◽  
pp. 515-528 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin Vollmer ◽  
Wolfram Antonin
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Pore Complex ◽  
Nuclear Membrane ◽  
Building Blocks ◽  
Transport Processes ◽  
Nuclear Pore ◽  
Nuclear Pore Complexes ◽  
Cellular Functions ◽  
Complex Assembly ◽  
Essential Function ◽  
Pore Complexes

Abstract Nuclear pore complexes mediate the transport between the cell nucleoplasm and cytoplasm. These 125 MDa structures are among the largest assemblies found in eukaryotes, built from proteins organized in distinct subcomplexes that act as building blocks during nuclear pore complex biogenesis. In this review, we focus on one of these subcomplexes, the Nup93 complex in metazoa and its yeast counterpart, the Nic96 complex. We discuss its essential function in nuclear pore complex assembly as a linker between the nuclear membrane and the central part of the pore and its various roles in nuclear transport processes and beyond.

scholarly journals Piecing together nuclear pore complex assembly during interphase

2009 ◽  
Vol 185 (3) ◽  
pp. 377-379 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Rexach
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Envelope ◽  
Nuclear Pore Complex ◽  
Supramolecular Structures ◽  
Nuclear Pore ◽  
Nuclear Pore Complexes ◽  
Assembly Process ◽  
Nuclear Pores ◽  
Complex Assembly ◽  
Cell Biol ◽  
Pore Complexes

All nucleocytoplasmic traffic of macromolecules occurs through nuclear pore complexes (NPCs), which function as stents in the nuclear envelope to keep nuclear pores open but gated. Three studies in this issue (Flemming, D., P. Sarges, P. Stelter, A. Hellwig, B. Böttcher, and E. Hurt. 2009. J. Cell Biol. 185:387–395; Makio, T., L.H. Stanton, C.-C. Lin, D.S. Goldfarb, K. Weis, and R.W. Wozniak. 2009. J. Cell Biol. 185:459–491; Onishchenko, E., L.H. Stanton, A.S. Madrid, T. Kieselbach, and K. Weis. 2009. J. Cell Biol. 185:475–491) further our understanding of the NPC assembly process by reporting what happens when the supply lines of key proteins that provide a foundation for building these marvelous supramolecular structures are disrupted.

Nuclear envelope assembly in Xenopus extracts visualized by scanning EM reveals a transport-dependent ‘envelope smoothing’ event

1997 ◽  
Vol 110 (13) ◽  
pp. 1489-1502 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Wiese ◽  
M.W. Goldberg ◽  
T.D. Allen ◽  
K.L. Wilson
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Envelope ◽  
Nuclear Pore ◽  
Nuclear Pore Complexes ◽  
Transmission Electron ◽  
Egg Extracts ◽  
Nuclear Envelope Assembly ◽  
Attachment Proteins ◽  
Scanning Em ◽  
Pore Complexes ◽  
Xenopus Egg Extracts

We analyzed the pathway of nuclear envelope assembly in Xenopus egg extracts using field emission in-lens scanning electron microscopy. The binding, fusion, and flattening of vesicles onto the chromatin surface were visualized in detail. The first nuclear pore complexes assembled in flattened patches of nuclear envelope, before the chromatin was fully enclosed by membranes. Confirming previous transmission electron microscope observations, two morphologically distinct types of vesicles contributed to the nuclear membranes: ribosome-carrying (‘rough’) vesicles, many of which bound directly to chromatin, and ‘smooth’ vesicles, which appeared to associate primarily with other nuclear vesicles or membrane patches. The presence of ribosomes, an outer nuclear membrane marker, on many chromatin-binding vesicles suggested that chromatin-attachment proteins integral to the inner membrane were present on vesicles that also carried markers of the outer membrane and endoplasmic reticulum. Chromatin-associated vesicles also carried pore membrane proteins, since pore complexes formed when these vesicles were incubated with cytosol. A change in nuclear envelope morphology termed ‘envelope smoothing’ occurred 5–15 minutes after enclosure. Nuclear envelopes that were assembled in extracts depleted of wheat-germ-agglutinin-binding nucleoporins, and therefore unable to form functional pore complexes, remained wrinkled, suggesting that ‘smoothing’ required active nuclear transport. Lamins accumulated with time when nuclei were enclosed and had functional pore complexes, whereas lamins were not detected on nuclei that lacked functional pore complexes. Very low levels of lamins were detected on nuclear intermediates whose surfaces were substantially covered with patches of pore-complex-containing envelope, suggesting that pore complexes might be functional before enclosure.

scholarly journals The nucleoporin Nup50 activates the Ran guanyl-nucleotide exchange factor RCC1 to promote mitotic NPC assembly

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guillaume Holzer ◽  
Paola De Magistris ◽  
Cathrin Gramminger ◽  
Ruchika Sachdev ◽  
Adriana Magalska ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Pore ◽  
Nuclear Pore Complexes ◽  
Nucleotide Exchange ◽  
Exchange Factor ◽  
Nucleotide Exchange Factor ◽  
Egg Extracts ◽  
Importin Α ◽  
Pore Complexes ◽  
Xenopus Egg Extracts

During mitotic exit, thousands of nuclear pore complexes (NPCs) assemble concomitant with the nuclear envelope to build a transport-competent nucleus. We show here that Nup50 plays a crucial role in NPC assembly that is independent of its well-established function in nuclear transport. RNAi-mediated downregulation in cells or immunodepletion of the protein in Xenopus egg extracts interferes with NPC assembly. We define a conserved central region of 46 residues in Nup50 that is crucial for Nup153 and MEL28/ELYS binding, and NPC interaction. Surprisingly, neither NPC interaction nor binding of Nup50 to importin α, β, the GTPase Ran or chromatin is crucial for its function in the assembly process. Instead, we discovered that an N-terminal fragment of Nup50 can stimulate the Ran guanine exchange factor RCC1 and NPC assembly, indicating that Nup50 acts via the Ran system in mitotic NPC reformation. In support of this conclusion, Nup50 mutants defective in RCC1 binding and stimulation cannot replace the wild type protein in in vitro NPC assembly assays.

scholarly journals Nup53 Is Required for Nuclear Envelope and Nuclear Pore Complex Assembly

2008 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 1753-1762 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa A. Hawryluk-Gara ◽  
Melpomeni Platani ◽  
Rachel Santarella ◽  
Richard W. Wozniak ◽  
Iain W. Mattaj
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Envelope ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Nuclear Pore ◽  
Nuclear Pore Complexes ◽  
Egg Extracts ◽  
Multiple Copies ◽  
Xenopus Egg ◽  
Pore Complexes ◽  
Xenopus Egg Extracts

Transport across the nuclear envelope (NE) is mediated by nuclear pore complexes (NPCs). These structures are composed of various subcomplexes of proteins that are each present in multiple copies and together establish the eightfold symmetry of the NPC. One evolutionarily conserved subcomplex of the NPC contains the nucleoporins Nup53 and Nup155. Using truncation analysis, we have defined regions of Nup53 that bind to neighboring nucleoporins as well as those domains that target Nup53 to the NPC in vivo. Using this information, we investigated the role of Nup53 in NE and NPC assembly using Xenopus egg extracts. We show that both events require Nup53. Importantly, the analysis of Nup53 fragments revealed that the assembly activity of Nup53 depleted extracts could be reconstituted using a region of Nup53 that binds specifically to its interacting partner Nup155. On the basis of these results, we propose that the formation of a Nup53–Nup155 complex plays a critical role in the processes of NPC and NE assembly.

scholarly journals The nucleoporins Nup170p and Nup157p are essential for nuclear pore complex assembly

2009 ◽  
Vol 185 (3) ◽  
pp. 459-473 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tadashi Makio ◽  
Leslie H. Stanton ◽  
Cheng-Chao Lin ◽  
David S. Goldfarb ◽  
Karsten Weis ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Saccharomyces Cerevisiae ◽  
Nuclear Pore Complex ◽  
Nuclear Membrane ◽  
Essential Role ◽  
Nuclear Transport ◽  
Nuclear Pore ◽  
Nuclear Pore Complexes ◽  
Complex Assembly ◽  
Cytoplasmic Face ◽  
Pore Complexes

We have established that two homologous nucleoporins, Nup170p and Nup157p, play an essential role in the formation of nuclear pore complexes (NPCs) in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. By regulating their synthesis, we showed that the loss of these nucleoporins triggers a decrease in NPCs caused by a halt in new NPC assembly. Preexisting NPCs are ultimately lost by dilution as cells grow, causing the inhibition of nuclear transport and the loss of viability. Significantly, the loss of Nup170p/Nup157p had distinct effects on the assembly of different architectural components of the NPC. Nucleoporins (nups) positioned on the cytoplasmic face of the NPC rapidly accumulated in cytoplasmic foci. These nup complexes could be recruited into new NPCs after reinitiation of Nup170p synthesis, and may represent a physiological intermediate. Loss of Nup170p/Nup157p also caused core and nucleoplasmically positioned nups to accumulate in NPC-like structures adjacent to the inner nuclear membrane, which suggests that these nucleoporins are required for formation of the pore membrane and the incorporation of cytoplasmic nups into forming NPCs.

scholarly journals The Three Fungal Transmembrane Nuclear Pore Complex Proteins of Aspergillus nidulans Are Dispensable in the Presence of an Intact An-Nup84-120 Complex

2009 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 616-630 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hui-Lin Liu ◽  
Colin P.C. De Souza ◽  
Aysha H. Osmani ◽  
Stephen A. Osmani
Keyword(s):  
High Temperature ◽  
Nuclear Envelope ◽  
Aspergillus Nidulans ◽  
Nuclear Pore Complex ◽  
Mitotic Spindle ◽  
Spindle Pole ◽  
Nuclear Pore ◽  
Nuclear Pore Complexes ◽  
Spindle Pole Bodies ◽  
Pore Complexes

In Aspergillus nidulans nuclear pore complexes (NPCs) undergo partial mitotic disassembly such that 12 NPC proteins (Nups) form a core structure anchored across the nuclear envelope (NE). To investigate how the NPC core is maintained, we affinity purified the major core An-Nup84-120 complex and identified two new fungal Nups, An-Nup37 and An-ELYS, previously thought to be vertebrate specific. During mitosis the An-Nup84-120 complex locates to the NE and spindle pole bodies but, unlike vertebrate cells, does not concentrate at kinetochores. We find that mutants lacking individual An-Nup84-120 components are sensitive to the membrane destabilizer benzyl alcohol (BA) and high temperature. Although such mutants display no defects in mitotic spindle formation, they undergo mitotic specific disassembly of the NPC core and transient aggregation of the mitotic NE, suggesting the An-Nup84-120 complex might function with membrane. Supporting this, we show cells devoid of all known fungal transmembrane Nups (An-Ndc1, An-Pom152, and An-Pom34) are viable but that An-ndc1 deletion combined with deletion of individual An-Nup84-120 components is either lethal or causes sensitivity to treatments expected to destabilize membrane. Therefore, the An-Nup84-120 complex performs roles, perhaps at the NPC membrane as proposed previously, that become essential without the An-Ndc1 transmembrane Nup.

scholarly journals A nanobody suite for yeast scaffold nucleoporins provides details of the nuclear pore complex structure

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah A. Nordeen ◽  
Kasper R. Andersen ◽  
Kevin E. Knockenhauer ◽  
Jessica R. Ingram ◽  
Hidde L. Ploegh ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Pore Complex ◽  
Binding Sites ◽  
Complex Structure ◽  
Constitutive Expression ◽  
Nuclear Pore ◽  
Nuclear Pore Complexes ◽  
Modular Assembly ◽  
High Affinity ◽  
Ring Complex ◽  
Pore Complexes

AbstractNuclear pore complexes (NPCs) are the main conduits for molecular exchange across the nuclear envelope. The NPC is a modular assembly of ~500 individual proteins, called nucleoporins or nups. Most scaffolding nups are organized in two multimeric subcomplexes, the Nup84 or Y complex and the Nic96 or inner ring complex. Working in S. cerevisiae, and to study the assembly of these two essential subcomplexes, we here develop a set of twelve nanobodies that recognize seven constituent nucleoporins of the Y and Nic96 complexes. These nanobodies all bind specifically and with high affinity. We present structures of several nup-nanobody complexes, revealing their binding sites. Additionally, constitutive expression of the nanobody suite in S. cerevisiae detect accessible and obstructed surfaces of the Y complex and Nic96 within the NPC. Overall, this suite of nanobodies provides a unique and versatile toolkit for the study of the NPC.

scholarly journals Isolation of the yeast nuclear pore complex.

1993 ◽  
Vol 123 (4) ◽  
pp. 771-783 ◽  
Author(s):  
M P Rout ◽  
G Blobel
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Image Reconstruction ◽  
Nuclear Pore Complex ◽  
Sedimentation Coefficient ◽  
Nuclear Pore ◽  
Nuclear Pore Complexes ◽  
Negative Stain ◽  
Negative Stain Electron Microscopy ◽  
Pore Complexes

Nuclear pore complexes (NPCs) have been isolated from the yeast Saccharomyces. Negative stain electron microscopy of the isolated NPCs and subsequent image reconstruction revealed the octagonal symmetry and many of the ultrastructural features characteristic of vertebrate NPCs. The overall dimensions of the yeast NPC, both in its isolated form as well as in situ, are smaller than its vertebrate counterpart. However, the diameter of the central structures are similar. The isolated yeast NPC has a sedimentation coefficient of approximately 310 S and an M(r) of approximately 66 MD. It retains all but one of the eight known NPC proteins. In addition it contains as many as 80 uncharacterized proteins that are candidate NPC proteins.

scholarly journals Targeting and function in mRNA export of nuclear pore complex protein Nup153.

1996 ◽  
Vol 134 (5) ◽  
pp. 1141-1156 ◽  
Author(s):  
R Bastos ◽  
A Lin ◽  
M Enarson ◽  
B Burke
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Pore Complex ◽  
Protein Import ◽  
Nucleocytoplasmic Transport ◽  
Nuclear Pore ◽  
Nuclear Pore Complexes ◽  
Terminal Domain ◽  
General Decline ◽  
Complex Protein ◽  
Pore Complexes ◽  
And Function

Nup153 is a large (153 kD) O-linked glyco-protein which is a component of the basket structure located on the nucleoplasmic face of nuclear pore complexes. This protein exhibits a tripartite structure consisting of a zinc finger domain flanked by large (60-70 kD) NH2- and COOH-terminal domains. When full-length human Nup153 is expressed in BHK cells, it accumulates appropriately at the nucleoplasmic face of the nuclear envelope. Targeting information for Nup153 resides in the NH2-terminal domain since this region of the molecule can direct an ordinarily cytoplasmic protein, pyruvate kinase, to the nuclear face of the nuclear pore complex. Overexpression of Nup153 results in the dramatic accumulation of nuclear poly (A)+ RNA, suggesting an inhibition of RNA export from the nucleus. This is not due to a general decline in nucleocytoplasmic transport or to occlusion or loss of nuclear pore complexes since nuclear protein import is unaffected. While overexpression of certain Nup153 constructs was found to result in the formation of unusual intranuclear membrane arrays, this structural phenotype could not be correlated with the effects on poly (A)+ RNA distribution. The RNA trafficking defect was, however, dependent upon the Nup153 COOH-terminal domain which contains most of the XFXFG repeats. It is proposed that this region of Nup153, lying within the distal ring of the nuclear basket, represents a docking site for mRNA molecules exiting the nucleus.

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