FLAGELLAR MOTION AND FINE STRUCTURE OF THE FLAGELLAR APPARATUS IN CHLAMYDOMONAS

The biflagellate alga Chlamydomonas reinhardi was studied with the light and electron microscopes to determine the behavior of flagella in the living cell and the structure of the basal apparatus of the flagella. During normal forward swimming the flagella beat synchronously in the same plane, as in the human swimmer's breast stroke. The form of beat is like that of cilia. Occasionally cells swim backward with the flagella undulating and trailing the cell. Thus the same flagellar apparatus produces two types of motion. The central pair of fibers of both flagella appear to lie in the same plane, which coincides with the plane of beat. The two basal bodies lie in a V configuration and are joined at the top by a striated fiber and at the bottom by two smaller fibers. From the area between the basal bodies four bands of microtubules, each containing four tubules, radiate in an X-shaped pattern, diverge, and pass under the cell membrane. Details of the complex arrangement of tubules near the basal bodies are described. It seems probable that the connecting fibers and the microtubules play structural roles and thereby maintain the alignment of the flagellar apparatus. The relation of striated fibers and microtubules to cilia and flagella is reviewed, particularly in phytoflagellates and protozoa. Structures observed in the transitional region between the basal body and flagellar shaft are described and their occurrence is reviewed. Details of structure of the flagellar shaft and flagellar tip are described, and the latter is reviewed in detail.     

Evidence for axonemal distortion during the flagellar beat of Chlamydomonas

In order to understand the working mechanism that governs the flagellar beat it is essential to know if the axoneme undergoes distortion during the course of the beat cycle. The rapid fixation method employed by Mitchell was able to preserve the waveform of Chlamydomonas flagella much as it appears during normal flagellar beating [Mitchell, Cell Motil Cytoskeleton 2003;56:120-129]. This conservation of the waveform suggests that the stress responsible for the production of bending is also trapped by the fixation procedure. Longitudinal sections of these well-preserved flagella were used to document variations in the relative axonemal diameter. Sections aligned to the plane of bending, showing both the central pair microtubules and outer doublets, were examined for this purpose. Micrographs were selected that continuously showed both the outer doublets and the central pair from a straight region to a curved region of the flagellum. Axoneme diameters measured from these select micrographs showed an increase in relative diameter that averaged 39 nm greater at the crest of the bent region. This constituted a 24% increase in the axoneme diameter in the bends. The transverse stress acting across the axoneme during bending was calculated from the Geometric Clutch computer model for a simulated Chlamydomonas-like flagellar beat. If we assume that this is representative of the transverse stress acting in a real flagellum, then the Young's modulus of the intact axoneme is approximately 0.02 MPa. The possibility that the distortion of the axoneme during the beat could play a significant role in regulating dynein function is discussed.     

Hyperactivation is the mode conversion from constant-curvature beating to constant-frequency beating under a constant rate of microtubule sliding

Flagellar beating of hyperactivated golden hamster spermatozoa was analyzed in detail using digital image analysis and was compared to that of nonhyperactivated (activated) spermatozoa in order to understand the change in flagellar beating during hyperactivation and the active microtubule sliding that brought about the change in flagellar beating. Hyperactivated flagellar beating, which was characterized by a sharp bend in the proximal midpiece and low beat frequency, was able to alter the waveform with little change in beat frequency (constant-frequency beating), whereas activated flagellar beating, which was characterized by a slight bend in the proximal midpiece and high beat frequency, was able to alter beat frequency with little change in the waveform (constant-curvature beating). These results demonstrate that flagellar beating of hyperactivated and activated spermatozoa were essentially different modes and that hyperactivation was the mode conversion from constant-curvature beating to constant-frequency beating. Detailed analysis of flagellar bends revealed that the increase in curvature in the proximal midpiece during hyperactivation was due to the increase in total length of microtubule sliding in a nearly straight region between bends, while the rate of microtubule sliding remained almost constant.     

Bend propagation drives central pair rotation in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii flagella

Regulation of motile 9+2 cilia and flagella depends on interactions between radial spokes and a central pair apparatus. Although the central pair rotates during bend propagation in flagella of many organisms and rotation correlates with a twisted central pair structure, propulsive forces for central pair rotation and twist are unknown. Here we compared central pair conformation in straight, quiescent flagella to that in actively beating flagella using wild-type Chlamydomonas reinhardtii and mutants that lack radial spoke heads. Twists occur in quiescent flagella in both the presence and absence of spoke heads, indicating that spoke--central pair interactions are not needed to generate torque for twisting. Central pair orientation in propagating bends was also similar in wild type and spoke head mutant strains, thus orientation is a passive response to bend formation. These results indicate that bend propagation drives central pair rotation and suggest that dynein regulation by central pair--radial spoke interactions involves passive central pair reorientation to changes in bend plane.     

Digital image analysis of the flagellar beat of activated and hyperactivated suncus spermatozoa

The flagellar beat of hyperactivated Suncus spermatozoa was analyzed by digital imaging and was compared to that of the nonhyperactivated (activated) spermatozoa in order to examine the function of the accessory fibers during the flagellar beat and the sliding filament mechanism inducing the motility of the hyperactivated spermatozoa. Unusual large and long characteristics of the accessory fibers were involved in generating the gently curved bends and a low beat frequency. Examination of the motility parameters of the flagellar beat of the activated and hyperactivated spermatozoa attached to a slide glass by their heads revealed that there were two beating modes: a frequency-curvature dependent mode in the activated flagellar beat and a nearly constant frequency mode in the hyperactivated flagellar beat. The hyperactivated flagellar beat was characterized by sharp bends in the proximal midpiece and a low beat frequency. The sharp bends in the proximal midpiece were induced by the increase in the total length of the microtubule sliding at the flagellar base. The rate of microtubule sliding (sliding velocity) in the axoneme remained almost constant in the flagellar beat of both the activated and hyperactivated spermatozoa. Comparison of the sliding velocity in Suncus, golden hamster, monkey, and sea urchin sperm flagella with their stiffness suggests that the sliding velocity is determined by the stiffness at the flagellar base and that the same sliding microtubule system functions in both mammalian and echinoderm spermatozoa.     

Flagellar motility contributes to cytokinesis in Trypanosoma brucei and is modulated by an evolutionarily conserved dynein regulatory system

The flagellum of Trypanosoma brucei is a multifunctional organelle with critical roles in motility and other aspects of the trypanosome life cycle. Trypanin is a flagellar protein required for directional cell motility, but its molecular function is unknown. Recently, a trypanin homologue in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii was reported to be part of a dynein regulatory complex (DRC) that transmits regulatory signals from central pair microtubules and radial spokes to axonemal dynein. DRC genes were identified as extragenic suppressors of central pair and/or radial spoke mutations. We used RNA interference to ablate expression of radial spoke (RSP3) and central pair (PF16) components individually or in combination with trypanin. Both rsp3 and pf16 single knockdown mutants are immotile, with severely defective flagellar beat. In the case of rsp3, this loss of motility is correlated with the loss of radial spokes, while in the case of pf16 the loss of motility correlates with an aberrant orientation of the central pair microtubules within the axoneme. Genetic interaction between trypanin and PF16 is demonstrated by the finding that loss of trypanin suppresses the pf16 beat defect, indicating that the DRC represents an evolutionarily conserved strategy for dynein regulation. Surprisingly, we discovered that four independent mutants with an impaired flagellar beat all fail in the final stage of cytokinesis, indicating that flagellar motility is necessary for normal cell division in T. brucei. These findings present the first evidence that flagellar beating is important for cell division and open the opportunity to exploit enzymatic activities that drive flagellar beat as drug targets for the treatment of African sleeping sickness.     

Two anti-radial spoke monoclonal antibodies inhibit Chlamydomonas axonemal motility by different mechanisms

In the 9 + 2 axoneme, radial spokes are structural components attached to the A-tubules of the nine outer doublet microtubules. They protrude toward the central pair microtubule complex with which they have transient but regular interactions for the normal flagellar motility to occur. Flagella of Chlamydomonas mutants deficient in entire radial spokes or spoke heads are paralyzed. In this study the importance of two radial spoke proteins in the flagellar movement is exemplified by the potent inhibitory action of two monoclonal antibodies on the axonemal motility of demembranated-reactivated Chlamydomonas models. We show that one of these proteins is localized on the stalk of the radial spokes, whereas the other is a component of the head of the same structure and most likely correspond to radial spoke protein 2 and 1, respectively. Fine motility analysis by videomicrography further indicates that these two anti-radial spoke protein antibodies at low concentration affect motility of demembranated-reactivated Chlamydomonas by changing the flagellar waveform without modifying axonemal beat frequency. They also modify wave amplitude differently during motility inhibition. This brings more direct evidence for the involvement of both radial spoke stalk and head in the fine tuning of the waveform during flagellar motility.     

Kinematics of hamster sperm during penetration of the cumulus cell matrix

During capacitation, mammalian spermatozoa gain the ability to penetrate the cumulus cell matrix (CCM). The role of hyperactivated motility for this capacity is uncertain. In the present study, hamster sperm were observed during penetration and progression through the CCM, and flagellar beat patterns were quantitated by characterization of the underlying flagellar bends. Small numbers of sperm were added to cumulus masses slightly compressed on a slide (150 μm depth), and penetration was videorecorded using interference contrast optics. During penetration of the cumulus surface, sperm did not generate the large flagellar bends and asymmetric beats that are hallmarks of hyperactivation in low viscosity media. Instead, they entered slowly using high-frequency, low-amplitude sinusoidal flagellar motions. Within the CCM, sperm continued to move slowly, and they exhibited three distinct patterns of motility. The first was sinusoidal, produced by alternating, propagated bends: principal bends (PB) moved the head away from the beat midline, with the convex edge of the head leading, and reverse bends (RB) had the opposite curvature. The second pattern was asymmetric and sinusoidal: an extreme RB developed in the distal flagellum, was propagated distally, and was followed by a PB of less curvature. The third motility pattern was a hatchet-like stroke of the sperm head which resulted when an extreme, nonpropagated PB developed slowly in the proximal midpiece, and was released rapidly. In this mode there were no reverse bends, and sperm did not progress. There were subpopulations of capacitating sperm in free-swimming medium which had these same bend types and motility patterns, suggesting that qualitative flagellar movement may not change during CCM penetration. Sperm velocity in the CCM was not strongly correlated with flagellar beat kinematics, suggesting local heterogeneity in cumulus mechanical resistance and/or differences in interaction of the matrix with the surfaces of individual sperm. An effective viscosity of the cumulus near its border was estimated to be of the order of 1–4 P.     

Basal bodies and associated structures are not required for normal flagellar motion or phototaxis in the green alga Chlorogonium elongatum

The interphase flagellar apparatus of the green alga Chlorogonium elongatum resembles that of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii in the possession of microtubular rootlets and striated fibers. However, Chlorogonium, unlike Chlamydomonas, retains functional flagella during cell division. In dividing cells, the basal bodies and associated structures are no longer present at the flagellar bases, but have apparently detached and migrated towards the cell equator before the first mitosis. The transition regions remain with the flagella, which are now attached to a large apical mitochondrion by cross-striated filamentous components. Both dividing and nondividing cells of Chlorogonium propagate asymmetrical ciliary-type waveforms during forward swimming and symmetrical flagellar-type waveforms during reverse swimming. High-speed cinephotomicrographic analysis indicates that waveforms, beat frequency, and flagellar coordination are similar in both cell types. This indicates that basal bodies, striated fibers, and microtubular rootlets are not required for the initiation of flagellar beat, coordination of the two flagella, or determination of flagellar waveform. Dividing cells display a strong net negative phototaxis comparable to that of nondividing cells; hence, none of these structures are required for the transmission or processing of the signals involved in phototaxis, or for the changes in flagellar beat that lead to phototactic turning. Therefore, all of the machinery directly involved in the control of flagellar motion is contained within the axoneme and/or transition region. The timing of formation and the positioning of the newly formed basal structures in each of the daughter cells suggests that they play a significant role in cellular morphogenesis.     

Use of a novel Chlamydomonas mutant to demonstrate that flagellar glycoprotein movements are necessary for the expression of gliding motility

As an alternative to swimming through liquid medium by the coordinated bending activity of its two flagella, Chlamydomonas can exhibit whole cell gliding motility through the interaction of its flagellar surfaces with a solid substrate. The force transduction occurring at the flagellar surface can be visualized as the saltatory movements of polystyrene microspheres. Collectively, gliding motility and polystyrene microsphere movements are referred to as flagellar surface motility. The principal concanavalin A binding, surface-exposed glycoproteins of the Chlamydomonas reinhardtii flagellar surface are a pair of glycoproteins migrating with apparent molecular weight of 350 kDa. It has been hypothesized that these glycoproteins move within the plane of the flagellar membrane during the expression of flagellar surface motility. A novel mutant cell line of Chlamydomonas (designated L-23) that exhibits increased binding of concanavalin A to the flagellar surface has been utilized in order to restrict the mobility of the concanavalin A-binding flagellar glycoproteins. Under all conditions where the lateral mobility of the flagellar concanavalin A binding glycoproteins is restricted, the cells are unable to express whole cell gliding motility or polystyrene microsphere movements. Conversely, whenever cells can redistribute their concanavalin A binding glycoproteins in the plane of the flagellar membrane, they express flagellar surface motility. Since the 350 kDa glycoproteins are the major surface-exposed flagellar proteins, it is likely that most of the signal being followed using fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-concanavalin A is attributable to these high molecular weight glycoproteins.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Bending motion of Chlamydomonas axonemes after extrusion of central- pair microtubules

Relatively little is known about the functions of central-pair microtubules (Tamm, S. L., and G. A. Horridge, 1970, Proc. Roy. Soc. Lond. B, 175: 219-233; Omoto, C. K., and C. Kung, 1979, Nature (Lond.). 279:532-534) and radial spokes (Warner, F. D., and P. Satir, 1974, J. Cell Biol., 63:35-63), although a sliding microtubule mechanism has been established for the flagellar movement (Summers, K. E., and I. R. Gibbons, 1971, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA., 68:3092-3096). In the present report, an attempt was made to determine the functions of central-pair microtubules in flagellar motility. Central-pair microtubules were found to extrude from the tips of elastase-digested axonemes of demembranated Chlamydomonas flagella after the addition of ATP. The length of the extruded central-pair microtubules was approximately 70-100% that of the axoneme. After extrusion, axonemes continued to swim slowly backwards in the reactivation medium, with a trailing central pair attached like a tail to the flagellar tip. During bending movement of the axonemes, partially extruded central pairs rotated counterclockwise about the axoneme axis, as viewed from the distal end (Kamiya, R., 1982, Cell Motil. [Suppl.]:169-173). Axonemes swam backwards with a symmetric waveform and a beat frequency of approximately 10 Hz in the reactivation medium containing 10(-9)-10(-4) M Ca ions. Even at a lower Ca++ concentration, no ciliary-type swimming was noted on the axonemes.     

Dissecting the axoneme interactome: the mammalian orthologue of Chlamydomonas PF6 interacts with sperm-associated antigen 6, the mammalian orthologue of Chlamydomonas PF16

The axoneme central apparatus is thought to control flagellar/ciliary waveform and maintain the structural integrity of the axoneme, but proteins involved in these processes have not been fully elucidated. Moreover the network of interactions among them that allows these events to take place in a compact space has not been defined. PF6, a component of the Chlamydomonas central apparatus, is localized to the 1a projection of the C1 microtubule. Mutations in the Chlamydomonas PF6 gene result in flagellar paralysis. We characterized human and murine orthologues of PF6. The murine Pf6 gene is expressed in a pattern consistent with a role in flagella and cilia, and the PF6 protein is indeed localized to the central apparatus of the sperm flagellar axoneme. We discovered that a portion of PF6 associates with the mammalian orthologue of Chlamydomonas PF16 (sperm-associated antigen 6 (SPAG6)), another central apparatus protein that is localized to the C1 microtubule in algae. A fragment of PF6 corresponding to the PF6 domain that interacts with SPAG6 in yeast two-hybrid assays and colocalizes with SPAG6 in transfected cells was missing from epididymal sperm of SPAG6-deficient mice. SPAG6 binds to the mammalian orthologue of PF20, which in Chlamydomonas is located in bridges connecting the C2 and C1 microtubules. Thus, PF6, SPAG6, and PF20 form a newly identified network that links together components of the axoneme central apparatus and presumably participates in its dynamic regulation of ciliary and flagellar beat.     

Organization of the flagellar apparatus and associate cytoplasmic microtubules in the quadriflagellate alga Polytomella agilis

The organization of microtubular systems in the quadriflagellate unicell Polytomella agilis has been reconstructed by electron microscopy of serial sections, and the overall arrangement confirmed by immunofluorescent staining using antiserum directed against chick brain tubulin. The basal bodies of the four flagella are shown to be linked in two pairs of short fibers. Light microscopy of swimming cells indicates that the flagella beat in two synchronous pairs, with each pair exhibiting a breast-stroke-like motion. Two structurally distinct flagellar rootlets, one consisting of four microtubules in a 3 over 1 pattern and the other of a striated fiber over two microtubules, terminate between adjacent basal bodies. These rootlets diverge from the basal body region and extend toward the cell posterior, passing just beneath the plasma membrane. Near the anterior part of the cell, all eight rootlets serve as attachment sites for large numbers of cytoplasmic microtubules which occur in a single row around the circumference of the cell and closely parallel the cell shape. It is suggested that the flagellar rootless may function in controlling the patterning and the direction of cytoplasmic microtubule assembly. The occurrence of similar rootlet structures in other flagellates is briefly reviewed.     

Reconstruction of the projection periodicity and surface architecture of the flagellar central pair complex

The substructure of central pair microtubule-associated components has been analyzed by comparing thin section and freeze-etch images of Chlamydomonas flagellar axonemes. The longitudinal periodicity of central pair projections that were previously described from cross-sectional image averages was determined from thin sections of axonemes isolated from either wild type or central pair assembly-defective strains. All projections directed toward one quadrant of the central pair repeat at 32 nm, while those in the other three quadrants all show 16-nm spacing. The surface architecture of these projections as seen in rapid-freeze deep-etch images of central pair complexes includes elements that form circumferentially oriented fibers around most of the central pair. This appearance changes dramatically along the lateral edge of the C1 microtubule where material is arranged in rows of separate particles that may play a unique role in spoke-mediated regulation of flagellar dynein activity.     

The role of cortical orientation in the control of the direction of ciliary beat in Paramecium

The swimming behavior of many ciliate protozoans depends on graded changes in the direction of the ciliary effective stroke in response to depolarizing stimuli (i.e., the avoiding reaction of Paramecium). We investigated the problem of whether the directional response of cilia with a variable plane of beat is related to the polarity of the cell as a whole or to the orientation of the cortical structures themselves. To do this, we used a stock of Paramecium aurelia with part of the cortex reversed 180 degrees. We determined the relation of the orientation of the kineties (ciliary rows) to the direction of beat in these mosaic paramecia by cinemicrography of particle movements near living cells and by scanning electron microscopy of instantaneously fixed material. We found that the cilia of the inverted rows always beat in the direction opposite to that of normally oriented cilia during both forward and backward swimming. In addition, metachronal waves of ciliary coordination were present on the inverted patch, travelling in the direction opposite to those on the normal cortex. The reference point for the directional response of Paramecium cilia to stimuli thus resides within the cilia or their immediate cortical surroundings.     

Abnormal basal-body number, location, and orientation in a striated fiber-defective mutant of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

We describe a mutant of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii in which basal body associated striated fibers are absent or incomplete. Basal body spacing, angle, and relative rotational orientation are abnormal and extremely variable. Abnormal partitioning of cellular contents at cytokinesis is also evident. Mating, maintenance of flagellar length equality, and backward swimming response are normal. Genetic analysis indicates mutation of a new Mendelian gene--vfl-3--linked to the centromere of Chromosome VI.     

Flagellar quiescence in Chlamydomonas: Characterization and defective quiescence in cells carrying sup-pf-1 and sup-pf-2 outer dynein arm mutations

Chlamydomonas reinhardtii can use their flagella for two distinct types of movement: swimming through liquid or gliding on a solid substrate. Cells switching from swimming to gliding motility undergo a reversible flagellar quiescence. This phenomenon appears to involve the outer dynein arms, since mutants having altered outer arm beta and gamma dyneins (sup-pf-1 and sup-pf-2) show a diminished ability to quiesce. Sup-pf-1 and sup-pf-2 were originally isolated as gain-of-function mutations that suppress the flagellar paralysis resulting from radial spoke or central pair defects. Defective quiescence is also a gain-of-function phenomenon, as cells completely lacking outer arm heavy chains show a normal quiescence phenotype. These data suggest that regulation of outer arm dynein activity is essential for flagellar quiescence and furthermore that regulation of quiescence involves a signal transduction pathway that shares elements with the radial spoke/central pair system.     

Flagellar movement of human spermatozoa

Flagellar movement of human spermatozoa held by their heads with a micropipette was recorded by means of a video-strobe system. Spermatozoa were studied in normal Hanks' solution, Hanks' solution with increased viscosity, cervical mucus, and hyaluronic acid. When flagellar movement in normal Hanks' solution was observed from the direction parallel to the beating plane, segments of the flagellum in focus did not lie on a straight line but on two diverging dashed lines. The distance between the two dashed lines was about 20% of the bend amplitude in the major beating plane. These observations indicate that flagellar beating of human spermatozoa in normal Hanks' solution is not planar. In contrast, segments of the flagellum in focus lay on a straight line when the spermatozoa were observed in Hanks' solution with increased viscosity, cervical mucus, or hyaluronic acid. In normal Hanks' solution, free swimming spermatozoa rotated constantly around their longitudinal axes with a frequency similar to the beat frequency, whereas little or no rotation of spermatozoa occurred in Hanks' solution with increased viscosity, in cervical mucus, or in hyaluronic acid. We conclude that human spermatozoa in normal Hanks' solution beat with a conical helical waveform having an elliptical cross section, the semiaxes of which have a ratio of 0.2. The three-dimensional geometry of the flagellar movement is responsible for the rotation of the sperm around their longitudinal axes.     

Intrinsic difference in beat frequency between the two flagella of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

The flagellar beat frequency of the biflagellated green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii was measured by fast Fourier transform analysis of the light intensity fluctuation in microscope images of swimming cells. Live cells had a mean beat frequency of 48-53 Hz at 20 degrees C. However, detergent-extracted "cell models," when reactivated in the presence of 1 mM ATP, appeared to have two different beat frequencies of about 30 and 45 Hz. Measurements in cell models in which only one of the two flagella was beating indicated that the lower and higher frequencies most likely represented the beat frequency of the flagellum nearer to the eyespot (the cis-flagellum) and that of the flagellum farther from it (the trans-flagellum), respectively. In live cells also, the trans-flagellum beat at a frequency about 30% higher than that of the cis-flagellum when the cells were rendered uniflagellated by mechanical treatment, whereas both flagella beat at the frequency of the cis-flagellum under normal conditions. These observations suggest that the two flagella of Chlamydomonas have different intrinsic beat frequencies but that they are somehow synchronized when beating together on a live swimming cell.