scholarly journals Dynamics of the Actin Cytoskeleton at Adhesion Complexes

Biology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 52
Author(s):  
Nicholas M. Cronin ◽  
Kris A. DeMali

The shape of cells is altered to allow cells to adapt to their changing environments, including responding to internally generated and externally applied force. Force is sensed by cell surface adhesion proteins that are enriched in sites where cells bind to the extracellular matrix (focal adhesions) and neighboring cells (cell–cell or adherens junctions). Receptors at these adhesion sites stimulate intracellular signal transduction cascades that culminate in dramatic changes in the actin cytoskeleton. New actin filaments form, and/or new and existing filaments can be cleaved, branched, or bundled. Here, we discuss the actin cytoskeleton and its functions. We will examine the current understanding for how the actin cytoskeleton is tethered to adhesion sites. Finally, we will highlight recent studies describing how the actin cytoskeleton at these adhesion sites is remodeled in response to force.

1992 ◽  
Vol 102 (4) ◽  
pp. 753-762
Author(s):  
G.H. Nuckolls ◽  
L.H. Romer ◽  
K. Burridge

Talin is believed to be one of the key proteins involved in linking actin filaments to extracellular matrix receptors in focal adhesions. Our strategy for studying the function of talin has been to inactivate talin in living fibroblasts in tissue culture through the microinjection of affinity-purified, polyclonal anti-talin antibodies. The effect of the injected anti-talin antibodies on cell spreading was found to depend on how recently the cells had been plated. Cells that were in the process of spreading on a fibronectin substratum, and which had newly developed focal adhesions, were induced to round up and to disassemble many of the adhesions. However, if fibroblasts were allowed to spread completely before they were microinjected with the anti-talin antibody, focal adhesions remained intact and the flat morphology of the cells was unaffected. The percentage of cells that were able to maintain a spread morphology despite the injection of anti-talin antibodies increased during the first few hours after plating on fibronectin substrata. Fibroblasts that were allowed to spread completely before microinjection with the anti-talin antibody retained both intact focal adhesions and a flat, well-spread morphology, but failed to migrate effectively. Our experiments do not directly address the role of talin in mature focal adhesions, but they indicate that talin is essential for the spreading and migration of fibroblasts on fibronectin as well as for the development and initial maintenance of focal adhesions on this substratum.


2004 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 416-420 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Zaidel-Bar ◽  
M. Cohen ◽  
L. Addadi ◽  
B. Geiger

The adhesion of cells to the extracellular matrix is a dynamic process, mediated by a series of cell-surface and matrix-associated molecules that interact with each other in a spatially and temporally regulated manner. These interactions play a major role in tissue formation, cellular migration and the induction of adhesion-mediated transmembrane signals. In this paper, we show that the formation of matrix adhesions is a hierarchical process, consisting of several sequential molecular events. One of the earliest steps in surface recognition is mediated, in some cells, by a 1 μm-thick cell-surface hyaluronan coat, which precedes the establishment of stable, cytoskeleton-associated adhesions. The earliest forms of these integrin-mediated contacts are dot-shaped FXs (focal complexes), which are formed under the protrusive lamellipodium of migrating cells. These adhesions recruit, sequentially, different anchor proteins that are involved in binding the actin cytoskeleton to the membrane. Conspicuous in its absence from FXs is zyxin, which is recruited to these sites only on retraction of the leading edge and the transformation of the FXs into a focal adhesion. Continuing application of force to focal adhesions results in the formation of fibrillar adhesions and reorganization of the extracellular matrix. The formation of these adhesions depends on actomyosin contractility and matrix pliability.


1997 ◽  
Vol 137 (2) ◽  
pp. 399-416 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathryn R. Ayscough ◽  
Joel Stryker ◽  
Navin Pokala ◽  
Miranda Sanders ◽  
Phil Crews ◽  
...  

We report that the actin assembly inhibitor latrunculin-A (LAT-A) causes complete disruption of the yeast actin cytoskeleton within 2–5 min, suggesting that although yeast are nonmotile, their actin filaments undergo rapid cycles of assembly and disassembly in vivo. Differences in the LAT-A sensitivities of strains carrying mutations in components of the actin cytoskeleton suggest that tropomyosin, fimbrin, capping protein, Sla2p, and Srv2p act to increase actin cytoskeleton stability, while End3p and Sla1p act to decrease stability. Identification of three LAT-A resistant actin mutants demonstrated that in vivo effects of LAT-A are due specifically to impairment of actin function and implicated a region on the three-dimensional actin structure as the LAT-A binding site. LAT-A was used to determine which of 19 different proteins implicated in cell polarity development require actin to achieve polarized localization. Results show that at least two molecular pathways, one actindependent and the other actin-independent, underlie polarity development. The actin-dependent pathway localizes secretory vesicles and a putative vesicle docking complex to sites of cell surface growth, providing an explanation for the dependence of polarized cell surface growth on actin function. Unexpectedly, several proteins that function with actin during cell polarity development, including an unconventional myosin (Myo2p), calmodulin, and an actin-interacting protein (Bud6/Aip3p), achieved polarized localization by an actin-independent pathway, revealing interdependence among cell polarity pathways. Finally, transient actin depolymerization caused many cells to abandon one bud site or mating projection and to initiate growth at a second site. Thus, actin filaments are also required for maintenance of an axis of cell polarity.


2020 ◽  
Vol 68 (12) ◽  
pp. 863-870
Author(s):  
Bohee Jang ◽  
Ayoung Kim ◽  
Jisun Hwang ◽  
Hyun-Kuk Song ◽  
Yunjeon Kim ◽  
...  

The extracellular matrix (ECM) offers a structural basis for regulating cell functions while also acting as a collection point for bioactive molecules and connective tissue cells. To perform pathological functions under a pathological condition, the involved cells need to regulate the ECM to support their altered functions. This is particularly common in the development of cancer. The ECM has been recognized as a key driver of cancer development and progression, and ECM remodeling occurs at all stages of cancer progression. Thus, cancer cells need to change the ECM to support relevant cell surface adhesion receptor–mediated cell functions. In this context, it is interesting to examine how cancer cells regulate ECM remodeling, which is critical to tumor malignancy and metastatic progression. Here, we review how the cell surface adhesion receptor, syndecan, regulates ECM remodeling as cancer progresses, and explore how this can help us better understand ECM remodeling under these pathological conditions


2020 ◽  
Vol 295 (32) ◽  
pp. 11303-11315
Author(s):  
Pei-Wen Chen ◽  
Neil Billington ◽  
Ben Y. Maron ◽  
Jeffrey A. Sload ◽  
Krishna Chinthalapudi ◽  
...  

The Arf GTPase-activating protein (Arf GAP) with SH3 domain, ankyrin repeat and PH domain 1 (ASAP1) establishes a connection between the cell membrane and the cortical actin cytoskeleton. The formation, maintenance, and turnover of actin filaments and bundles in the actin cortex are important for cell adhesion, invasion, and migration. Here, using actin cosedimentation, polymerization, and depolymerization assays, along with total internal reflection fluorescence (TIRF), confocal, and EM analyses, we show that the N-terminal N-BAR domain of ASAP1 directly binds to F-actin. We found that ASAP1 homodimerization aligns F-actin in predominantly unipolar bundles and stabilizes them against depolymerization. Furthermore, the ASAP1 N-BAR domain moderately reduced the spontaneous polymerization of G-actin. The overexpression of the ASAP1 BAR–PH tandem domain in fibroblasts induced the formation of actin-filled projections more effectively than did full-length ASAP1. An ASAP1 construct that lacked the N-BAR domain failed to induce cellular projections. Our results suggest that ASAP1 regulates the dynamics and the formation of higher-order actin structures, possibly through direct binding to F-actin via its N-BAR domain. We propose that ASAP1 is a hub protein for dynamic protein–protein interactions in mechanosensitive structures, such as focal adhesions, invadopodia, and podosomes, that are directly implicated in oncogenic events. The effect of ASAP1 on actin dynamics puts a spotlight on its function as a central signaling molecule that regulates the dynamics of the actin cytoskeleton by transmitting signals from the plasma membrane.


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Damien Garbett ◽  
Anjali Bisaria ◽  
Changsong Yang ◽  
Dannielle G. McCarthy ◽  
Arnold Hayer ◽  
...  

Abstract Migrating cells move across diverse assemblies of extracellular matrix (ECM) that can be separated by micron-scale gaps. For membranes to protrude and reattach across a gap, actin filaments, which are relatively weak as single filaments, must polymerize outward from adhesion sites to push membranes towards distant sites of new adhesion. Here, using micropatterned ECMs, we identify T-Plastin, one of the most ancient actin bundling proteins, as an actin stabilizer that promotes membrane protrusions and enables bridging of ECM gaps. We show that T-Plastin widens and lengthens protrusions and is specifically enriched in active protrusions where F-actin is devoid of non-muscle myosin II activity. Together, our study uncovers critical roles of the actin bundler T-Plastin to promote protrusions and migration when adhesion is spatially-gapped.


2010 ◽  
Vol 30 (19) ◽  
pp. 4604-4615 ◽  
Author(s):  
Masahiro Tanji ◽  
Toshimasa Ishizaki ◽  
Saman Ebrahimi ◽  
Yuko Tsuboguchi ◽  
Taiko Sukezane ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT The small GTPase Rho regulates cell morphogenesis through remodeling of the actin cytoskeleton. While Rho is overexpressed in many clinical cancers, the role of Rho signaling in oncogenesis remains unknown. mDia1 is a Rho effector producing straight actin filaments. Here we transduced mouse embryonic fibroblasts from mDia1-deficient mice with temperature-sensitive v-Src and examined the involvement and mechanism of the Rho-mDia1 pathway in Src-induced oncogenesis. We showed that in v-Src-transduced mDia1-deficient cells, formation of actin filaments is suppressed, and v-Src in the perinuclear region does not move to focal adhesions upon a temperature shift. Consequently, membrane translocation of v-Src, v-Src-induced morphological transformation, and podosome formation are all suppressed in mDia1-deficient cells with impaired tyrosine phosphorylation. mDia1-deficient cells show reduced transformation in vitro as examined by focus formation and colony formation in soft agar and exhibit suppressed tumorigenesis and invasion when implanted in nude mice in vivo. Given overexpression of c-Src in various cancers, these findings suggest that Rho-mDia1 signaling facilitates malignant transformation and invasion by manipulating the actin cytoskeleton and targeting Src to the cell periphery.


1985 ◽  
Vol 100 (4) ◽  
pp. 1103-1114 ◽  
Author(s):  
W T Chen ◽  
E Hasegawa ◽  
T Hasegawa ◽  
C Weinstock ◽  
K M Yamada

The possible role of a 140K membrane-associated protein complex (140K) in fibronectin-cytoskeleton associations has been examined. The 140K was identified by the monoclonal antibody JG22E. Monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies to the 140K showed identical patterns of binding to the cell membranes of fixed and permeabilized chicken embryonic fibroblasts; localization was diffuse, but with marked concentration in cell-to-extracellular matrix contact sites. Correlative localization with interference reflection microscopy and double-label or triple-label immunofluorescence showed that 140K co-distributed with extracellular fibronectin fibrils and intracellular alpha-actinin in microfilament bundles at extracellular matrix contact sites but tended not to co-localize with tropomyosin present in bundles at sites farther from adhesion sites. In addition, binding of antibodies to 140K, alpha-actinin, and fibronectin was excluded from vinculin-rich focal adhesion sites at the cellular periphery. A progressive development of cell surface alpha-actinin-140K-fibronectin associations was observed in early spreading cells. The anti-140K monoclonal antibody JG22E inhibited the attachment and spreading of both normal and Rous sarcoma virus-transformed chicken embryonic fibroblasts to a fibronectin substratum. However, the anti-140K monoclonal antibody became a positive mediator of cell attachment and spreading if it was adsorbed or cross-linked to the substratum. Our results provide the first description of a membrane-associated protein complex that co-localizes with fibronectin and microfilament bundles, and they suggest that the 140K complex may be part of a cell surface linkage between fibronectin and the cytoskeleton.


Author(s):  
Javad Golji ◽  
Mohammad R. K. Mofrad

Focal adhesions are formed as a molecular glue linking cytoskeletal actin filaments to the extracellular matrix (ECM). They are formed at the site of mechanical stimulation (1) and involve and initial recruitment of talin and vinculin to ECM bound integrin molecules at the site of external stimulation. Talin recruitment and its force-induced activation and subsequent interaction with vinculin have been extensively studied (2–4). Vinculin is natively in an auto-inhibited conformation and its activation involves removal of a steric hindrance preventing binding of Vt with actin (5) (Figure 1). Several hypotheses have been put forth regarding vinculin activation and its subsequent interaction with actin: 1) vinculin activation requires only interaction with talin at domain 1 (D1) (6), 2) a simultaneous interaction with both actin and talin is necessary to achieve vinculin activation (7), 3) once activated vinculin interacts with actin via an electrostatic interaction between Vt and two regions on F-actin (5). Each of these hypotheses is evaluated through molecular dynamics simulation and analysis.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document