Stage-specific polypeptides and villin expression during the intestinal epithelium substitution of the metamorphosing amphibian

The amphibian intestinal epithelium provides an excellent aid to study the developmental pattern of protein synthesis during cell life. The metamorphosing tissue demonstrates a kaleidoscope of cell degeneration, proliferation and differentiation. These events occur at specific period in a synchronized cell population. Two-dimensional gel electrophoresis, together with histological studies, has been used to examine the changes in the patterns of protein synthesis during intestinal epithelium substitution in metamorphosing Alytes obstetricians larvae. Of the approximately 280 polypeptides detected by this method, 24 show major changes in their patterns of synthesis. Five polypeptides are only synthesized during the larval period and are characteristic of the primary epithelium. Six polypeptides are characteristic of the secondary intestinal epithelium, as they are only detected in the newly-metamorphosed juvenile. Four polypeptides of Mr 81,000, 78,000, 42,000 (pI, 5.1 and 6.2) are characteristic of the epithelium crisis, as they are only detected during climax. They may represent molecular markers of growing stem cells. On the other hand, two polypeptides, of Mr 66,500 and 63,500, are not synthesized during this critical period, but are synthesized before and after metamorphosis. Seven polypeptides show changes in the relative rate of their synthesis during metamorphosis of the intestinal epithelium. Among them, the protein of Mr 105,000 which presents two isoelectric variants (pI 5.5 and 5.55) is immunologically related to villin. Expression of this protein has been studied using immunoblotting of cell extracts onto nitrocellulose and immunodetection in tissue sections. The protein is localized in the brush border of primary and secondary epithelium.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)