NEDD4L regulates convergent extension movements in Xenopus embryos via Disheveled-mediated non-canonical Wnt signaling

During the early vertebrate body plan formation, convergent extension (CE) of dorsal mesoderm and neurectoderm is coordinated by the evolutionarily conserved non-canonical Wnt/PCP signaling. Disheveled (Dvl), a key mediator of Wnt/PCP signaling, is essential for the medial–lateral polarity formation in the cells undergoing convergent extension movements. NEDD4L, a highly conserved HECT type E3 ligase, has been reported to regulate the stability of multiple substrates including Dvl2. Here we demonstrate that NEDD4L is required for the cellular polarity formation and convergent extension in the early Xenopus embryos. Depletion of NEDD4L in early Xenopus embryos results in the loss of mediolateral polarity of the convergent-extending mesoderm cells and the shortened body axis, resembling those defects caused by the disruption of non-canonical Wnt signaling. Depletion of xNEDD4L also blocks the elongation of the animal explants in response to endogenous mesoderm inducing signals and partially compromises the expression of Brachyury. Importantly, reducing Dvl2 expression can largely rescue the cellular polarity and convergent extension defects in NEDD4L-depleted embryos and explants. Together with the data that NEDD4L reduces Dvl2 protein expression in the frog embryos, our findings suggest that regulation of Dvl protein levels by NEDD4L is essential for convergent extension during early Xenopus embryogenesis.     

Coordination of cell polarity during Xenopus gastrulation

Cell polarity is an essential feature of animal cells contributing to morphogenesis. During Xenopus gastrulation, it is known that chordamesoderm cells are polarized and intercalate each other allowing anterior-posterior elongation of the embryo proper by convergent extension (CE). Although it is well known that the cellular protrusions at both ends of polarized cells exert tractive force for intercalation and that PCP pathway is known to be essential for the cell polarity, little is known about what triggers the cell polarization and what the polarization causes to control intracellular events enabling the intercalation that leads to the CE. In our research, we used EB3 (end-binding 3), a member of +TIPs that bind to the plus end of microtubule (MT), to visualize the intracellular polarity of chordamesoderm cells during CE to investigate the trigger of the establishment of cell polarity. We found that EB3 movement is polarized in chordamesoderm cells and that the notochord-somite tissue boundary plays an essential role in generating the cell polarity. This polarity was generated before the change of cell morphology and the polarized movement of EB3 in chordamesoderm cells was also observed near the boundary between the chordamesoderm tissue and na?ve ectoderm tissue or lateral mesoderm tissues induced by a low concentration of nodal mRNA. These suggest that definitive tissue separation established by the distinct levels of nodal signaling is essential for the chordamesodermal cells to acquire mediolateral cell polarity.     

Murine Dishevelled 3 Functions in Redundant Pathways with Dishevelled 1 and 2 in Normal Cardiac Outflow Tract,Cochlea, and Neural Tube Development

Dishevelled (Dvl) proteins are important signaling components of both the canonical β-catenin/Wnt pathway, which controls cell proliferation and patterning, and the planar cell polarity (PCP) pathway, which coordinates cell polarity within a sheet of cells and also directs convergent extension cell (CE) movements that produce narrowing and elongation of the tissue. Three mammalian Dvl genes have been identified and the developmental roles of Dvl1 and Dvl2 were previously determined. Here, we identify the functions of Dvl3 in development and provide evidence of functional redundancy among the three murine Dvls. Dvl3 ^−/− mice died perinatally with cardiac outflow tract abnormalities, including double outlet right ventricle and persistent truncus arteriosis. These mutants also displayed a misorientated stereocilia in the organ of Corti, a phenotype that was enhanced with the additional loss of a single allele of the PCP component Vangl2/Ltap (LtapLp/+). Although neurulation appeared normal in both Dvl3 ^−/− and LtapLp/+ mutants, Dvl3 ^+/−;LtapLp/+ combined mutants displayed incomplete neural tube closure. Importantly, we show that many of the roles of Dvl3 are also shared by Dvl1 and Dvl2. More severe phenotypes were observed in Dvl3 mutants with the deficiency of another Dvl, and increasing Dvl dosage genetically with Dvl transgenes demonstrated the ability of Dvls to compensate for each other to enable normal development. Interestingly, global canonical Wnt signaling appeared largely unaffected in the double Dvl mutants, suggesting that low Dvl levels are sufficient for functional canonical Wnt signals. In summary, we demonstrate that Dvl3 is required for cardiac outflow tract development and describe its importance in the PCP pathway during neurulation and cochlea development. Finally, we establish several developmental processes in which the three Dvls are functionally redundant.     

Cadherin-11 Mediates Contact Inhibition of Locomotion during Xenopus Neural Crest Cell Migration

Collective cell migration is an essential feature both in embryonic development and cancer progression. The molecular mechanisms of these coordinated directional cell movements still need to be elucidated. The migration of cranial neural crest (CNC) cells during embryogenesis is an excellent model for collective cell migration in vivo. These highly motile and multipotent cells migrate directionally on defined routes throughout the embryo. Interestingly, local cell-cell interactions seem to be the key force for directionality. CNC cells can change their migration direction by a repulsive cell response called contact inhibition of locomotion (CIL). Cell protrusions collapse upon homotypic cell-cell contact and internal repolarization leads to formation of new protrusions toward cell-free regions. Wnt/PCP signaling was shown to mediate activation of small RhoGTPase RhoA and inhibition of cell protrusions at the contact side. However, the mechanism how a cell recognizes the contact is poorly understood. Here, we demonstrate that Xenopus cadherin-11 (Xcad-11) mediated cell-cell adhesion is necessary in CIL for directional and collective migration of CNC cells. Reduction of Xcad-11 adhesive function resulted in higher invasiveness of CNC due to loss of CIL. Additionally, transplantation analyses revealed that CNC migratory behaviour in vivo is non-directional and incomplete when Xcad-11 adhesive function is impaired. Blocking Wnt/PCP signaling led to similar results underlining the importance of Xcad-11 in the mechanism of CIL and directional migration of CNC.     

An SEM study of cellular morphology,contact, and arrangement,as related to gastrulation inXenopus laevis

Summary Cellular morphology, contact, and arrangement in the late blastula and in various stages of gastrulation ofXenopus were examined by SEM of specimens dissected after fixation or fractured in amyl acetate. The prospective ectoderm of the blastocoel roof consists of several layers of interdigitating cells connected by numerous small protrusions which may function in the decrease in number of cell layers observed during ectodermal epiboly. During gastrulation, prospective mesoderm is regionally differentiated by cellular morphology and arrangement into preinvolution mesoderm, the mesodermal involution zone, and involuted mesoderm. The involuted anterodorsal (head), lateral, and ventral mesoderm consists of a stream of loosely-packed, irregularly shaped cells having large extensions of the cell body attached locally to other cells by small protrusions. Involuted posterodorsal mesoderm (chordamesoderm) consists of elongated cells arranged in palisade fashion and connected by similar protrusions. Involuted mesodermal cells in all regions are attached to the overlying prospective ectodermal cells by numerous small protrusions along the entire interface between the two cell layers. Suprablastoporal endodermal cells involute as an epithelial sheet, changing in shape in the process, to form the roof of the archenteron. Bottle cell morphology, arrangement, and position with respect to the mesodermal cell stream is described. Evidence presented here and elsewhere suggests that involution of mesoderm and of the archenteron roof inXenopus is dependent primarily upon the relative movement of the mesodermal cell stream and of the overlying ectoderm.     

Functional Consequences of Wnt-induced Dishevelled 2 Phosphorylation in Canonical and Noncanonical Wnt Signaling

Dishevelled (Dvl) proteins are intracellular effectors of Wnt signaling that have essential roles in both canonical and noncanonical Wnt pathways. It has long been known that Wnts stimulate Dvl phosphorylation, but relatively little is known about its functional significance. We have previously reported that both Wnt3a and Wnt5a induce Dvl2 phosphorylation that is associated with an electrophoretic mobility shift and loss of recognition by monoclonal antibody 10B5. In the present study, we mapped the 10B5 epitope to a 16-amino acid segment of human Dvl2 (residues 594–609) that contains four Ser/Thr residues. Alanine substitution of these residues (P4m) eliminated the mobility shift induced by either Wnt3a or Wnt5a. The Dvl2 P4m mutant showed a modest increase in canonical Wnt/β-catenin signaling activity relative to wild type. Consistent with this finding, Dvl2 4Pm preferentially localized to cytoplasmic puncta. In contrast to wild-type Dvl2, however, the P4m mutant was unable to rescue Wnt3a-dependent neurite outgrowth in TC-32 cells following suppression of endogenous Dvl2/3. Earlier work has implicated casein kinase 1δ/ϵ as responsible for the Dvl mobility shift, and a CK1δ in vitro kinase assay confirmed that Ser⁵⁹⁴, Thr⁵⁹⁵, and Ser⁵⁹⁷ of Dvl2 are CK1 targets. Alanine substitution of these three residues was sufficient to abrogate the Wnt-dependent mobility shift. Thus, we have identified a cluster of Ser/Thr residues in the C-terminal domain of Dvl2 that are Wnt-induced phosphorylation (WIP) sites. Our results indicate that phosphorylation at the WIP sites reduces Dvl accumulation in puncta and attenuates β-catenin signaling, whereas it enables noncanonical signaling that is required for neurite outgrowth.     

A PTK7/Ror2 Co-Receptor Complex Affects Xenopus Neural Crest Migration

Neural crest cells are a highly migratory pluripotent cell population that generates a wide array of different cell types and failure in their migration can result in severe birth defects and malformation syndromes. Neural crest migration is controlled by various means including chemotaxis, repellent guidance cues and cell-cell interaction. Non-canonical Wnt PCP (planar cell polarity) signaling has previously been shown to control cell-contact mediated neural crest cell guidance. PTK7 (protein tyrosine kinase 7) is a transmembrane pseudokinase and a known regulator of Wnt/PCP signaling, which is expressed in Xenopus neural crest cells and required for their migration. PTK7 functions as a Wnt co-receptor; however, it remains unclear by which means PTK7 affects neural crest migration. Expressing fluorescently labeled proteins in Xenopus neural crest cells we find that PTK7 co-localizes with the Ror2 Wnt-receptor. Further, co-immunoprecipitation experiments demonstrate that PTK7 interacts with Ror2. The PTK7/Ror2 interaction is likely relevant for neural crest migration, because Ror2 expression can rescue the PTK7 loss of function migration defect. Live cell imaging of explanted neural crest cells shows that PTK7 loss of function affects the formation of cell protrusions as well as cell motility. Co-expression of Ror2 can rescue these defects. In vivo analysis demonstrates that a kinase dead Ror2 mutant cannot rescue PTK7 loss of function. Thus, our data suggest that Ror2 can substitute for PTK7 and that the signaling function of its kinase domain is required for this effect.     

Planar cell polarity proteins differentially regulate extracellular matrix organization and assembly during zebrafish gastrulation

Zebrafish gastrulation cell movements occur in the context of dynamic changes in extracellular matrix (ECM) organization and require the concerted action of planar cell polarity (PCP) proteins that regulate cell elongation and mediolateral alignment. Data obtained using Xenopus laevis gastrulae have shown that integrin–fibronectin interactions underlie the formation of polarized cell protrusions necessary for PCP and have implicated PCP proteins themselves as regulators of ECM. By contrast, the relationship between establishment of PCP and ECM assembly/remodeling during zebrafish gastrulation is unclear. We previously showed that zebrafish embryos carrying a null mutation in the four-pass transmembrane PCP protein vang-like 2 (vangl2) exhibit increased matrix metalloproteinase activity and decreased immunolabeling of fibronectin. These data implicated for the first time a core PCP protein in the regulation of pericellular proteolysis of ECM substrates and raised the question of whether other zebrafish PCP proteins also impact ECM organization. In Drosophila melanogaster, the cytoplasmic PCP protein Prickle binds Van Gogh and regulates its function. Here we report that similar to vangl2, loss of zebrafish prickle1a decreases fibronectin protein levels in gastrula embryos. We further show that Prickle1a physically binds Vangl2 and regulates both the subcellular distribution and total protein level of Vangl2. These data suggest that the ability of Prickle1a to impact fibronectin organization is at least partly due to effects on Vangl2. In contrast to loss of either Vangl2 or Prickle1a function, we find that glypican4 (a Wnt co-receptor) and frizzled7 mutant gastrula embryos with disrupted non-canonical Wnt signaling exhibit the opposite phenotype, namely increased fibronectin assembly. Our data show that glypican4 mutants do not have decreased proteolysis of ECM substrates, but instead have increased cell surface cadherin protein expression and increased intercellular adhesion. These data indicate that Wnt/Glypican4/Frizzled signaling regulates ECM assembly through effects on cadherin-mediated cell cohesion. Together, our results demonstrate that zebrafish Vangl2/Prickle1a and non-canonical Wnt/Frizzled signaling have opposing effects on ECM organization underlying PCP and gastrulation cell movements.     

The Wnt Signaling Antagonist Dapper1 Accelerates Dishevelled2 Degradation via Promoting Its Ubiquitination and Aggregate-induced Autophagy

Autophagy is a regulated process that sequesters and transports cytoplasmic materials such as protein aggregates via autophagosomes to lysosomes for degradation. Dapper1 (Dpr1), an interacting protein of Dishevelled (Dvl), antagonizes Wnt signaling by promoting Dishevelled degradation via lysosomes. However, the mechanism is unclear. Here, we show that Dpr1 promotes the von Hippel-Lindau tumor suppressor (VHL)-mediated ubiquitination of Dvl2 and its autophagic degradation. Knockdown of Dpr1 decreases the interaction between Dvl2 and pVHL, resulting in reduced ubiquitination of Dvl2. Dpr1-mediated autophagic degradation of Dvl2 depends on Dvl2 aggregation. Moreover, the aggregate-prone proteins Dvl2, p62, and the huntingtin mutant Htt103Q promote autophagy in a Dpr1-dependent manner. These protein aggregates enhance the Beclin1-Vps34 interaction and Atg14L puncta formation, indicating that aggregated proteins stimulate autophagy initiation. Ubiquitination is not essential for the aggregate-induced autophagy initiation as inhibition of the ubiquitin-activation E1 enzyme activity did not block the aggregate-induced Atg14L puncta formation. Our findings suggest that Dpr1 promotes the ubiquitination of Dvl2 by pVHL and mediates the protein aggregate-elicited autophagy initiation.     

Dishevelled genes mediate a conserved mammalian PCP pathway to regulate convergent extension during neurulation

The planar cell polarity (PCP) pathway is conserved throughout evolution, but it mediates distinct developmental processes. In Drosophila, members of the PCP pathway localize in a polarized fashion to specify the cellular polarity within the plane of the epithelium, perpendicular to the apicobasal axis of the cell. In Xenopus and zebrafish, several homologs of the components of the fly PCP pathway control convergent extension. We have shown previously that mammalian PCP homologs regulate both cell polarity and polarized extension in the cochlea in the mouse. Here we show, using mice with null mutations in two mammalian Dishevelled homologs, Dvl1 and Dvl2, that during neurulation a homologous mammalian PCP pathway regulates concomitant lengthening and narrowing of the neural plate, a morphogenetic process defined as convergent extension. Dvl2 genetically interacts with Loop-tail, a point mutation in the mammalian PCP gene Vangl2, during neurulation. By generating Dvl2 BAC (bacterial artificial chromosome) transgenes and introducing different domain deletions and a point mutation identical to the dsh1 allele in fly, we further demonstrated a high degree of conservation between Dvl function in mammalian convergent extension and the PCP pathway in fly. In the neuroepithelium of neurulating embryos, Dvl2 shows DEP domain-dependent membrane localization, a pre-requisite for its involvement in convergent extension. Intriguing, the Loop-tail mutation that disrupts both convergent extension in the neuroepithelium and PCP in the cochlea does not disrupt Dvl2 membrane distribution in the neuroepithelium, in contrast to its drastic effect on Dvl2 localization in the cochlea. These results are discussed in light of recent models on PCP and convergent extension.     

Independent mutations in mouse Vangl2 that cause neural tube defects in looptail mice impair interaction with members of the Dishevelled family

Mammalian Vangl1 and Vangl2 are highly conserved membrane proteins that have evolved from a single ancestral protein Strabismus/Van Gogh found in Drosophila. Mutations in the Vangl2 gene cause a neural tube defect (craniorachischisis) characteristic of the looptail (Lp) mouse. Studies in model organisms indicate that Vangl proteins play a key developmental role in establishing planar cell polarity (PCP) and in regulating convergent extension (CE) movements during embryogenesis. The role of Vangl1 in these processes is virtually unknown, and the molecular function of Vangl1 and Vangl2 in PCP and CE is poorly understood. Using a yeast two-hybrid system, glutathione S-transferase pull-down and co-immunoprecipitation assays, we show that both mouse Vangl1 and Vangl2 physically interact with the three members of the cytoplasmic Dishevelled (Dvl) protein family. This interaction is shown to require both the predicted cytoplasmic C-terminal half of Vangl1/2 and a portion of the Dvl protein containing PDZ and DIX domains. In addition, we show that the two known Vangl2 loss-of-function mutations identified in two independent Lp alleles associated with neural tube defects impair binding to Dvl1, Dvl2, and Dvl3. These findings suggest a molecular mechanism for the neural tube defect seen in Lp mice. Our observations indicate that Vangl1 biochemical properties parallel those of Vangl2 and that Vangl1 might, therefore, participate in PCP and CE either in concert with Vangl2 or independently of Vangl2 in discrete cell types.     

Planar Cell Polarity Enables Posterior Localization of Nodal Cilia and Left-Right Axis Determination during Mouse and Xenopus Embryogenesis

Left-right asymmetry in vertebrates is initiated in an early embryonic structure called the ventral node in human and mouse, and the gastrocoel roof plate (GRP) in the frog. Within these structures, each epithelial cell bears a single motile cilium, and the concerted beating of these cilia produces a leftward fluid flow that is required to initiate left-right asymmetric gene expression. The leftward fluid flow is thought to result from the posterior tilt of the cilia, which protrude from near the posterior portion of each cell''s apical surface. The cells, therefore, display a morphological planar polarization. Planar cell polarity (PCP) is manifested as the coordinated, polarized orientation of cells within epithelial sheets, or as directional cell migration and intercalation during convergent extension. A set of evolutionarily conserved proteins regulates PCP. Here, we provide evidence that vertebrate PCP proteins regulate planar polarity in the mouse ventral node and in the Xenopus gastrocoel roof plate. Asymmetric anterior localization of VANGL1 and PRICKLE2 (PK2) in mouse ventral node cells indicates that these cells are planar polarized by a conserved molecular mechanism. A weakly penetrant Vangl1 mutant phenotype suggests that compromised Vangl1 function may be associated with left-right laterality defects. Stronger functional evidence comes from the Xenopus GRP, where we show that perturbation of VANGL2 protein function disrupts the posterior localization of motile cilia that is required for leftward fluid flow, and causes aberrant expression of the left side-specific gene Nodal. The observation of anterior-posterior PCP in the mouse and in Xenopus embryonic organizers reflects a strong evolutionary conservation of this mechanism that is important for body plan determination.     

A Highlights from MBoC Selection: Involvement of p114-RhoGEF and Lfc in Wnt-3a– and Dishevelled-Induced RhoA Activation and Neurite Retraction in N1E-115 Mouse Neuroblastoma Cells

The Wnt-induced planar cell polarity (PCP) signaling pathway is essential for polarized cell migration and morphogenesis. Dishevelled (Dvl) and its binding protein Daam1 mediate RhoA activation in this pathway. WGEF, a member of the Rho-guanine nucleotide exchange factor (Rho-GEF) family, was shown to play a role in Wnt-induced RhoA activation in Xenopus embryos. However, it has remained unknown which member(s) of a Rho-GEF family are involved in Wnt/Dvl-induced RhoA activation in mammalian cells. Here we identified p114-RhoGEF and Lfc (also called GEF-H1) as the Rho-GEFs responsible for Wnt-3a–induced RhoA activation in N1E-115 mouse neuroblastoma cells. We screened for Rho-GEF–silencing short-hairpin RNAs (shRNAs) that are capable of suppressing Dvl-induced neurite retraction in N1E-115 cells and found that p114-RhoGEF and Lfc shRNAs, but not WGEF shRNA, suppressed Dvl- and Wnt-3a–induced neurite retraction. p114-RhoGEF and Lfc shRNAs also inhibited Dvl- and Wnt-3a–induced RhoA activation, and p114-RhoGEF and Lfc proteins were capable of binding to Dvl and Daam1. Additionally, the Dvl-binding domains of p114-RhoGEF and Lfc inhibited Dvl-induced neurite retraction. Our results suggest that p114-RhoGEF and Lfc are critically involved in Wnt-3a– and Dvl-induced RhoA activation and neurite retraction in N1E-115 cells.     

Morphogenetic movements driving neural tube closure in Xenopus require myosin IIB

Vertebrate neural tube formation involves two distinct morphogenetic events — convergent extension (CE) driven by mediolateral cell intercalation, and bending of the neural plate driven largely by cellular apical constriction. However, the cellular and molecular biomechanics of these processes are not understood. Here, using tissue-targeting techniques, we show that the myosin IIB motor protein complex is essential for both these processes, as well as for conferring resistance to deformation to the neural plate tissue. We show that myosin IIB is required for actin-cytoskeletal organization in both superficial and deep layers of the Xenopus neural plate. In the superficial layer, myosin IIB is needed for apical actin accumulation, which underlies constriction of the neuroepithelial cells, and that ultimately drive neural plate bending, whereas in the deep neural cells myosin IIB organizes a cortical actin cytoskeleton, which we describe for the first time, and that is necessary for both normal neural cell cortical tension and shape and for autonomous CE of the neural tissue. We also show that myosin IIB is required for resistance to deformation (“stiffness”) in the neural plate, indicating that the cytoskeleton-organizing roles of this protein translate in regulation of the biomechanical properties of the neural plate at the tissue-level.     

Paraxial protocadherin coordinates cell polarity during convergent extension via Rho A and JNK

Convergent extension movements occur ubiquitously in animal development. This special type of cell movement is controlled by the Wnt/planar cell polarity (PCP) pathway. Here we show that Xenopus paraxial protocadherin (XPAPC) functionally interacts with the Wnt/PCP pathway in the control of convergence and extension (CE) movements in Xenopus laevis. XPAPC functions as a signalling molecule that coordinates cell polarity of the involuting mesoderm in mediolateral orientation and thus selectively promotes convergence in CE movements. XPAPC signals through the small GTPases Rho A and Rac 1 and c-jun N-terminal kinase (JNK). Loss of XPAPC function blocks Rho A-mediated JNK activation. Despite common downstream components, XPAPC and Wnt/PCP signalling are not redundant, and the activity of both, XPAPC and PCP signalling, is required to coordinate CE movements.     

Disheveled mediated planar cell polarity signaling is required in the second heart field lineage for outflow tract morphogenesis

Disheveled (Dvl) is a key regulator of both the canonical Wnt and the planar cell polarity (PCP) pathway. Previous genetic studies in mice indicated that outflow tract (OFT) formation requires Dvl1 and 2, but it was unclear which pathway was involved and whether Dvl1/2-mediated signaling was required in the second heart field (SHF) or the cardiac neural crest (CNC) lineage, both of which are critical for OFT development. In this study, we used Dvl1/2 null mice and a set of Dvl2 BAC transgenes that function in a pathway-specific fashion to demonstrate that Dvl1/2-mediated PCP signaling is essential for OFT formation. Lineage-specific gene-ablation further indicated that Dvl1/2 function is dispensable in the CNC, but required in the SHF for OFT lengthening to promote cardiac looping. Mutating the core PCP gene Vangl2 and non-canonical Wnt gene Wnt5a recapitulated the OFT morphogenesis defects observed in Dvl1/2 mutants. Consistent with genetic interaction studies suggesting that Wnt5a signals through the PCP pathway, Dvl1/2 and Wnt5a mutants display aberrant cell packing and defective actin polymerization and filopodia formation specifically in SHF cells in the caudal splanchnic mesoderm (SpM), where Wnt5a and Dvl2 are co-expressed specifically. Our results reveal a critical role of PCP signaling in the SHF during early OFT lengthening and cardiac looping and suggest that a Wnt5a→ Dvl PCP signaling cascade may regulate actin polymerization and protrusive cell behavior in the caudal SpM to promote SHF deployment, OFT lengthening and cardiac looping.     

The PTK7 and ROR2 Protein Receptors Interact in the Vertebrate WNT/Planar Cell Polarity (PCP) Pathway

The non-canonical WNT/planar cell polarity (WNT/PCP) pathway plays important roles in morphogenetic processes in vertebrates. Among WNT/PCP components, protein tyrosine kinase 7 (PTK7) is a tyrosine kinase receptor with poorly defined functions lacking catalytic activity. Here we show that PTK7 associates with receptor tyrosine kinase-like orphan receptor 2 (ROR2) to form a heterodimeric complex in mammalian cells. We demonstrate that PTK7 and ROR2 physically and functionally interact with the non-canonical WNT5A ligand, leading to JNK activation and cell movements. In the Xenopus embryo, Ptk7 functionally interacts with Ror2 to regulate protocadherin papc expression and morphogenesis. Furthermore, we show that Ptk7 is required for papc activation induced by Wnt5a. Interestingly, we find that Wnt5a stimulates the release of the tagged Ptk7 intracellular domain, which can translocate into the nucleus and activate papc expression. This study reveals novel molecular mechanisms of action of PTK7 in non-canonical WNT/PCP signaling that may promote cell and tissue movements.     

Nodal dependent differential localisation of dishevelled-2 demarcates regions of differing cell behaviour in the visceral endoderm

The anterior visceral endoderm (AVE), a signalling centre within the simple epithelium of the visceral endoderm (VE), is required for anterior-posterior axis specification in the mouse embryo. AVE cells migrate directionally within the VE, thereby properly positioning the future anterior of the embryo and orientating the primary body axis. AVE cells consistently come to an abrupt stop at the border between the anterior epiblast and extra-embryonic ectoderm, which represents an end-point to their proximal migration. Little is known about the underlying basis for this barrier and how surrounding cells in the VE respond to or influence AVE migration. We use high-resolution 3D reconstructions of protein localisation patterns and time-lapse microscopy to show that AVE cells move by exchanging neighbours within an intact epithelium. Cell movement and mixing is restricted to the VE overlying the epiblast, characterised by the enrichment of Dishevelled-2 (Dvl2) to the lateral plasma membrane, a hallmark of Planar Cell Polarity (PCP) signalling. AVE cells halt upon reaching the adjoining region of VE overlying the extra-embryonic ectoderm, which displays reduced neighbour exchange and in which Dvl2 is excluded specifically from the plasma membrane. Though a single continuous sheet, these two regions of VE show distinct patterns of F-actin localisation, in cortical rings and an apical shroud, respectively. We genetically perturb PCP signalling and show that this disrupts the localisation pattern of Dvl2 and F-actin and the normal migration of AVE cells. In Nodal null embryos, membrane localisation of Dvl2 is reduced, while in mutants for the Nodal inhibitor Lefty1, Dvl2 is ectopically membrane localised, establishing a role for Nodal in modulating PCP signalling. These results show that the limits of AVE migration are determined by regional differences in cell behaviour and protein localisation within an otherwise apparently uniform VE. In addition to coordinating global cell movements across epithelia (such as during convergence extension), PCP signalling in interplay with TGFβ signalling can demarcate regions of differing behaviour within epithelia, thereby modulating the movement of cells within them.