10 nm filaments in normal and transformed cells.

An antibody was raised against an electrophoretically homogeneous protein from cultured fibroblasts and shown to be directed against 10 nm filaments. The antiserum did not stain microtubules or actin microfilaments. The distribution of 10 nm filaments in normal cells was studied during growth, spreading, locomotion, mitosis, and after treatment with colchicine and cytochalasin B. The 58,000 dalton subunit protein is apparently all polymerized in the filaments which are insoluble in nonionic detergent. The distribution of 10 nm filaments is altered by colchicine treatments which disrupt microtubules. The organization of 10 nm filaments is altered in transformed cells.     

Rings of intermediate (100 A) filament bundles in the perinuclear region of vascular endothelial cells. Their mobilization by colcemid and mitosis

Vascular endothelial cells cultured from guinea pig aorta or portal vein contain naturally occurring bundles of 100 A (diameter) filaments that completely encircle the nucleus. These rings are phase lucent and birefringent when examined with the light microscope. Perinuclear bundles of 100 A filaments were also seen in endothelial cells in vivo, indicating that they are a normal cytoplasmic component. These filaments did not decorate with S-1, and were not disrupted by glyceination. With these cells, experiments were designed to answer the following questions: (a) does Colcemid have an effect on these naturally occuring bundles? And (b) do these filaments remain during cell division? Endothelial cells grown in the presence of Colcemid were followed over 24 h. The perinuclear ring coiled into a juxtanuclear cap that consisted of disorganized arrays of 100 A filaments. This "coiling" effect was not blocked by cycloheximide, an inhibitor of protein synthesis. In another experiment, dividing cells were examined. During division the bundle of filaments is passively pulled in half into the daughter cells. These bundles did not disappear during the mitosis when mitotic spindle microtubules assemble. These studies suggest that Colcemid may exert a direct effect on 100 A filaments, independent of microtubules. Since these filaments do not disappear during mitosis, it is possible that in these cells the 100 A filaments and tubulin do not share a common pool of precursor proteins.     

Localization of myosin II to chromosome arms and spindle fibers in PtK1 cells: a possible role for an actomyosin system in mitosis

Summary. The enzymes of importance in moving chromosomes are called motor proteins and include dynein, kinesin, and possibly myosin II. These three molecules are all included in the category of ATPases, in that they have the ability to convert chemical energy into mechanical energy. Both dynein and kinesin have been documented as molecules that “walk” along microtubules in the mitotic spindle, carrying cargo such as chromosomes. Myosin II, analogous to the muscle contraction system, transiently interacts along actin filaments and associates with kinetochore microtubules. In this paper we present evidence that a third ATPase, myosin II, may act as a “thruster” to propel chromosomes during the mitotic process. Double-label immunocytochemistry to actin and myosin II shows that myosin II is localized on chromosome arms at the beginning of mitosis and remains localized to the chromosomes throughout mitosis. Specific staining of myosin II is relegated to the outside of chromosomes with the highest density of staining occurring between the spindle poles and the chromosomes. This specific localization could account for the movement of chromosomes during mitosis, since they segregate towards the spindle poles, along kinetochore microtubules containing actin filaments, after aligning at the equatorial region of the cell at metaphase. We conclude from this study that there is an actomyosin system present in the mitotic spindle and that myosin is attached to chromosome arms and may act as a thruster in moving chromosomes during the mitotic process. Correspondence and reprints: Department of Biological Sciences, University of Denver, 2190 E Iliff Avenue, Denver, CO 80208, U.S.A.     

Intermediate filaments of the vimentin-type and the cytokeratin-type are distributed differently during mitosis

Immunofluorescence microscopy has been used to follow the rearrangement of intermediate-sized filaments during mitosis in rat kangaroo PtK2 cells. These epithelial cells express two different intermediate filament systems: the keratin-related tonofilament-like arrays typical of epithelial cells, and the vimentin-type filaments characteristic of mesenchymal cells in vivo, and of many established cell lines. The two filament systems do not appear to depolymerize extensively during mitosis, but show differences in their organization and display which may indicate different functions. The most striking rearrangements have been seen with the vimentin filaments, and in particular in prometaphase a transient cage-like structure of vimentin fibers surrounding the developing spindle is formed. In metaphase, this cage disappears, and vimentin fibers are found in an elliptical band surrounding the chromosomes and the interzone. In telophase, these bands separate, usually breaking first on the side closest to where the cleavage furrow has started to form. Double label experiments with tubulin and vimentin antibodies have indicated that the microtubules and the chromosomes are contained within the thick crescents of vimentin filaments and suggest that the vimentin intermediate filaments may be involved in the orientation of the spindle and/or the chromosomes during mitosis. In contrast, extensive arrays of cytokeratin filaments are present throughout mitosis on the substrate-attached side of the cell and also in other cellular areas, although they are usually not present in the spindle region. Thus the cytokeratin filaments probably continue to play a cytoskeletal role during mitosis and may be responsible for the flat shape that certain epithelial cells such as PtK2 cells continue to maintain during mitosis.     

The actin-binding ERM protein Moesin binds to and stabilizes microtubules at the cell cortex

Ezrin, Radixin, and Moesin (ERM) proteins play important roles in many cellular processes including cell division. Recent studies have highlighted the implications of their metastatic potential in cancers. ERM’s role in these processes is largely attributed to their ability to link actin filaments to the plasma membrane. In this paper, we show that the ERM protein Moesin directly binds to microtubules in vitro and stabilizes microtubules at the cell cortex in vivo. We identified two evolutionarily conserved residues in the FERM (4.1 protein and ERM) domains of ERMs that mediated the association with microtubules. This ERM–microtubule interaction was required for regulating spindle organization in metaphase and cell shape transformation after anaphase onset but was dispensable for bridging actin filaments to the metaphase cortex. These findings provide a molecular framework for understanding the complex functional interplay between the microtubule and actin cytoskeletons mediated by ERM proteins in mitosis and have broad implications in both physiological and pathological processes that require ERMs.     

EB-family proteins: Functions and microtubule interaction mechanisms

Microtubules are polymers of tubulin protein, one of the key components of cytoskeleton. They are polar filaments whose plus-ends usually oriented toward the cell periphery are more dynamic than their minus-ends, which face the center of the cell. In cells, microtubules are organized into a network that is being constantly rebuilt and renovated due to stochastic switching of its individual filaments from growth to shrinkage and back. Because of these dynamics and their mechanical properties, microtubules take part in various essential processes, from intracellular transport to search and capture of chromosomes during mitosis. Microtubule dynamics are regulated by many proteins that are located on the plus-ends of these filaments. One of the most important and abundant groups of plus-end-interacting proteins are EB-family proteins, which autonomously recognize structures of the microtubule growing plus-ends, modulate their dynamics, and recruit multiple partner proteins with diverse functions onto the microtubule plus-ends. In this review, we summarize the published data about the properties and functions of EB-proteins, focusing on analysis of their mechanism of interaction with the microtubule growing ends.     

Nuclear envelope breakdown requires overcoming the mechanical integrity of the nuclear lamina

In prophase cells, lamin B1 is the major component of the nuclear lamina, a filamentous network underlying the nucleoplasmic side of the nuclear membrane, whereas lamin A/C is dissociated from the scaffold. In vivo fluorescence microscopy studies have shown that, during the G2/M transition, the first gap in the nuclear envelope (NE) appears before lamin B1 disassembly and is caused by early spindle microtubules impinging on the NE. This result suggests that the mechanical tearing of the NE by microtubules plays a central role to the progression of mitosis. To investigate whether this microtubule-induced NE deformation is sufficient for NE breakdown, we assess the mechanical resilience of a reconstituted lamin B1 network. Quantitative rheological methods demonstrate that human lamin B1 filaments form stiff networks that can resist much greater deformations than those caused by microtubules impinging on the NE. Moreover, lamin B1 networks possess an elastic stiffness, which increases under tension, and an exceptional resilience against shear deformations. These results demonstrate that both mechanical tearing of the lamina and biochemical modification of lamin B1 filaments are required for NE breakdown.     

The nucleoskeleton as a genome-associated dynamic 'network of networks'

In the cytosol, actin polymers, intermediate filaments and microtubules can anchor to cell surface adhesions and interlink to form intricate networks. This cytoskeleton is anchored to the nucleus through LINC (links the nucleoskeleton and cytoskeleton) complexes that span the nuclear envelope and in turn anchor to networks of filaments in the nucleus. The metazoan nucleoskeleton includes nuclear pore-linked filaments, A-type and B-type lamin intermediate filaments, nuclear mitotic apparatus (NuMA) networks, spectrins, titin, 'unconventional' polymers of actin and at least ten different myosin and kinesin motors. These elements constitute a poorly understood 'network of networks' that dynamically reorganizes during mitosis and is responsible for genome organization and integrity.     

Novel nuclear and cytoplasmic proteins detected by anti-Zoothamnium arbuscula (Protozoa) spasmin 1 antibody in mammalian cells are dependent on the cell cycle

Spasmin is a calcium-binding protein that is the major component of calcium-induced contractile filaments, called spasmoneme, found in vorticellid ciliates. Such filaments have not been observed in any organisms other than green algae. To determine whether calcium-induced contractile filaments resembling spasmoneme are present in higher eukaryotes, we performed immunofluorescence imaging of an anti-Zoothamnium arbuscula (protozoa, ciliophora) spasmin 1 polyclonal antibody in HeLa cells. In the cytoplasm, ubiquitous antigens seemed to be co-localized with microtubules at interphase, but not throughout mitosis. In the nucleus, areas linked to the nuclear envelope contained a number of hot spots. These regions were unclear during condensation of the replicated chromosomes, but became clearly visible again at cytokinesis. Immunoblotting analysis identified localized antigens during different phases of the cell cycle, including a 68/71 kDa cytoplasmic protein and a 55 kDa nuclear protein in interphase, and a 55/70 kDa protein in mitosis. The anti-spasmin 1 antibody recognized antigens in both hamster kidney BHK21 cells and Human lung cancer A-549 cells. These results suggest that novel spasmin-like proteins could be common in mammalian cells.     

Different distributions of microtubules, desmin filaments and isomyosins during the onset of cardiac hypertrophy in the rat

To elucidate the role of the cytoskeleton in the development of adult heart, microtubules and intermediate filaments of desmin were studied in young and adult rat heart myocytes during the onset of growth, after mechanical overloading induced by aortic stenosis. Such overloading is known to cause heart hypertrophy by stimulating overall protein synthesis, and to initiate a shift in myosin isozymes. For this study, we used double immunolabelling of isolated myocytes with specific antibodies raised against tubulin, desmin, and the two main isomyosins V1 and V3. Whereas desmin remained unchanged, tubulin was redistributed in arrays parallel to the long axis of the myocytes, and was densest around the nuclei. Alterations in the microtubule pattern were observed very early after aortic stenosis, during the onset of heart growth; they were transitory, and did not occur simultaneously in all myocytes. Chronological examination of myocytes labelling with both antitubulin and anti V3 myosin clearly suggested that the transitory alteration in the microtubule pattern was an early event preceding the change in the expression of the myosin gene. Results, observed in young rats, in which mitosis is stimulated by overloading, and in adult rats, exhibiting no mitosis, showed that microtubules are involved in the development of cells in which mitosis does not occur. This work provides the first evidence of a correlation in functional adult heart, between the reorganization of cytoplasmic microtubules and the onset of growth.     

Cordycepin rapidly collapses the intermediate filament networks into juxtanuclear caps in fibroblasts and epidermal cells

The nucleoside analog 3'-deoxyadenosine (cordycepin) rapidly collapses the intermediate filaments into juxtanuclear caps in interphase fibroblasts and keratinocytes. A minimum of 80 micrograms/ml cordycepin or 20 micrograms/ml cordycepin in combination with 2 micrograms/ml of the deaminase inhibitor erythro-9-(2-hydroxy-3-nonyl)adenosine (EHNA) to inhibit its degradation is required to see these effects. This is the same concentration required for cordycepin to arrest cells at the onset of mitosis and depolymerize the microtubules to small asters. Cordycepin enters the cells rapidly and is phosphorylated to 3'-dATP with a concomitant drop in ATP levels. However, the direct reduction of ATP levels does not mimic the same rapid effects of cordycepin on either the intermediate filaments or microtubules. In addition, similar effects are not produced by a variety of other adenosine analogs with alterations in the 2'- and 3'-ribose positions. Although other pharmacological reagents result in alterations of the fibroblastic intermediate filaments, cordycepin is unusual because of the rapidity with which the fibroblastic intermediate filaments collapse into the juxtanuclear caps. The juxtanuclear caps have a morphology different from that of the perinuclear bundles of intermediate filaments that arise after long-term depolymerization of the microtubules. The keratin fibers in the epidermal cells retract to a perinuclear ring when treated with cordycepin.     

De novo synthesis and specific assembly of keratin filaments in nonepithelial cells after microinjection of mRNA for epidermal keratin

Poly(A)+ RNA isolated from bovine muzzle epidermis was microinjected into nonepithelial cells containing only intermediate-sized filaments of the vimentin type. In recipient cells keratin polypeptides are synthesized and assemble into intermediate-sized filaments at multiple dispersed sites. We describe the time course and the pattern of de novo assembly of keratin filaments within living cells. These filaments were indistinguishable, by immunofluorescence and immunoelectron microscopic criteria, from keratin filament arrays present in true epithelial cells. The presence of extended keratin fibril meshworks in these injected cells is compatible with cell growth and mitosis. Double immunolabeling revealed that newly assembled keratin was not codistributed with microfilament bundles, microtubules or vimentin filaments. We suggest that assembly mechanisms exist which in vivo sort out newly synthesized cytokeratin polypeptides from vimentin.     

Centrosome separation: respective role of microtubules and actin filaments

In mammalian cells, the separation of centrosomes is a prerequisite for bipolar mitotic spindle assembly. We have investigated the respective contribution of the two cytoskeleton components, microtubules and actin filaments, in this process. Distances between centrosomes have been measured during cell cycle progression in Xenopus laevis XL2 cultured cells in the presence or absence of either network. We considered two stages in centrosome separation: the splitting stage, when centrosomes start to move apart (minimum distance of 1 microm), and the elongation stage (from 1 to 7 microm). In interphase, depolymerisation of microtubules by nocodazole significantly inhibited the splitting stage, while the elongation stage was, on the contrary, facilitated. In mitosis, while nocodazole treatment completely blocked spindle assembly, in prophase, we observed that 55% of the centrosomes separated, versus 94% in the control. Upon actin depolymerisation by latrunculin, splitting of the interphase centrosome was blocked, and cells entered mitosis with unseparated centrosomes. Cells compensated for this separation delay by increasing the length of both prophase and prometaphase stages to allow for centrosome separation until a minimal distance was reached. Then the cells passed through anaphase, performing proper chromosome separation, but cytokinesis did not occur, and binuclear cells were formed. Our results clearly show that the actin microfilaments participate in centrosome separation at the G2/M transition and work in synergy with the microtubules to accelerate centrosome separation during mitosis.     

Localization of actin filaments on mitotic apparatus in tobacco BY-2 cells

Actin filaments are among the major components of the cytoskeleton, and participate in various cellular dynamic processes. However, conflicting results had been obtained on the localization of actin filaments on the mitotic apparatus and their participation in the process of chromosome segregation. We demonstrated by using rhodamine-phalloidin staining, the localization of actin filaments on the mitotic spindles of tobacco BY-2 cells when the cells were treated with cytochalasin D. At prophase, several clear spots were observed at or near the kinetochores of the chromosomes. At anaphase, the actin filaments that appeared to be pulling chromosomes toward the division poles were demonstrated. However, as there was a slight possibility that these results might have been the artifacts of cytochalasin D treatment or the phalloidin staining, we analyzed the localization of actin filaments at the mitotic apparatus immunologically. We cloned a novel BY-2 -type actin cDNA and prepared a BY-2 actin antibody. The fluorescence of the anti-BY-2 actin antibody was clearly observed at the mitotic apparatus in both non-treated and cytochalasin D-treated BY-2 cells during mitosis. The facts that similar results were obtained in both actin staining with rhodamine-phalloidin and immunostaining with actin antibody strongly indicate the participation of actin in the organization of the spindle body or in the process of chromosome segregation. Furthermore, both filamentous actin and spindle bodies disappeared in the cells treated with propyzamide, which depolymerizes microtubules, supporting the notion that actin filaments are associated with microtubules organizing the spindle body.Hiroshi Yasuda and Katsuhiro Kanda contributed equally.     

Cell cycle-dependent phosphorylation and microtubule binding of tau protein stably transfected into Chinese hamster ovary cells.

Tau protein, a neuronal microtubule-associated protein, is phosphorylated in situ and hyperphosphorylated when aggregated into the paired helical filaments of Alzheimer's disease. To study the phosphorylation of tau protein in vivo, we have stably transfected htau40, the largest human tau isoform, into Chinese hamster ovary cells. The distribution and phosphorylation of tau was monitored by gel shift, autoradiography, immunofluorescence, and immunoblotting, using the antibodies Tau-1, AT8, AT180, and PHF-1, which are sensitive to the phosphorylation of Ser202, Thr205, Thr231, Ser235, Ser396, and Ser404 and are used in the diagnosis of Alzheimer tau. In interphase cells, tau becomes phosphorylated to some extent, partly at these sites; most of the tau is associated with microtubules. In mitosis, the above Ser/Thr-Pro sites become almost completely phosphorylated, causing a pronounced shift in M(r) and an antibody reactivity similar to that of Alzheimer tau. Moreover, a substantial fraction of tau is found in the cytoplasm detached from microtubules. Autoradiographs of metabolically labeled Chinese hamster ovary cells in interphase and mitosis confirmed that tau protein is more highly phosphorylated during mitosis. The understanding of tau phosphorylation under physiological conditions might help elucidate possible mechanisms for the hyperphosphorylation in Alzheimer's disease.     

RNA processing bodies, peroxisomes, Golgi bodies, mitochondria, and endoplasmic reticulum tubule junctions frequently pause at cortical microtubules

Organelle motility, essential for cellular function, is driven by the cytoskeleton. In plants, actin filaments sustain the long-distance transport of many types of organelles, and microtubules typically fine-tune the motile behavior. In shoot epidermal cells of Arabidopsis thaliana seedlings, we show here that a type of RNA granule, the RNA processing body (P-body), is transported by actin filaments and pauses at cortical microtubules. Interestingly, removal of microtubules does not change the frequency of P-body pausing. Similarly, we show that Golgi bodies, peroxisomes, and mitochondria all pause at microtubules, and again the frequency of pauses is not appreciably changed after microtubules are depolymerized. To understand the basis for pausing, we examined the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), whose overall architecture depends on actin filaments. By the dual observation of ER and microtubules, we find that stable junctions of tubular ER occur mainly at microtubules. Removal of microtubules reduces the number of stable ER tubule junctions, but those remaining are maintained without microtubules. The results indicate that pausing on microtubules is a common attribute of motile organelles but that microtubules are not required for pausing. We suggest that pausing on microtubules facilitates interactions between the ER and otherwise translocating organelles in the cell cortex.     

Force generation by cellular motors

Cell motility processes in non-muscle cells depend on the activity of motor proteins that bind to either microtubules or actin filaments. From presently available data it must be concluded that the driving force is generated by transient interaction of the respective motors with microtubules or actin filaments which then activates the binding and hydrolysis of ATP. This reaction results in an abrupt discharge of the motor molecule, the direction of which is determined by the spatial orientation of its binding to the helical and polar vehicle. The latter is thereby propelled in its length direction and simultaneously undergoes an axial rotation, while the expelled motor exerts an oppositely directed current in the surrounding fluid, comparable to jet propulsion. Force production, propulsion velocities and energy requirements known from in vitro studies comply with those derived from the theory. The theory opens new ways for the understanding of cellular activities such as particle transport, mitosis and morphodynamics.     

Microtubles and actin filaments in teleost visual cone elongation and contraction

Teleost retinal cones contract in light and elongate in darkness. This paper describes the disposition of microtubules and cytoplasmic filaments in cone cells of 2 species of fish (Haemulon sciurus and Lutjanus griseus). In Haemulon, the neck-like “myoid” region of the cone changes in length from 5 μ to 75 μ. Maximal observed rates of elongation and contraction are comparable to that of chromosome movement in mitosis (2–3 μ/min). Microtubules presumably participate in cone elongation, since numerous longitudinal microtubules are present in the myoid region, and colchicine blocks dark-induced elongation. Myoid shortening, on the other hand, appears to be an active contractile process. Disruption of microtubules in dark-adapted cones does not produce myoid shortening in the absence of light, and light-induced myoid shortening is blocked by cytochalasin-B. Cone cells possess longitudinally-oriented thin filaments which bind myosin subfragment-1 to form arrowhead complexes typical of muscle actin. Myoid thin filaments are clearly observed in negatively stained preparations of isolated cones which have been disrupted with detergent after attachment to grids. These myoid filaments are not, however, generally preserved by conventional fixation, though bundles of thin filaments are preserved in other regions of the cell. Thus, actin filaments are poorly retained by fixation in precisely the region of the cone cell where contraction occurs. Cone cells also possess longitudinally-oriented thick filaments 130–160Å in diameter. That these thick filaments may be myosin is suggested by the presence of side-arms with approximately 150 Å periodicity. The linear organization of the contractile apparatus of the retinal cone cell makes this cell a promising model for morphological characterization of the disposition of actin and myosin filaments during contraction in a nonmuscle cell.     

Gas7b (Growth Arrest Specific Protein 7b) Regulates Neuronal Cell Morphology by Enhancing Microtubule and Actin Filament Assembly

Neurons undergo several morphological changes as a part of normal neuron maturation process. Alzheimer disease is associated with increased neuroproliferation and impaired neuronal maturation. In this study, we demonstrated that Gas7b (growth arrest specific protein 7b) expression in a neuronal cell line, Neuro 2A, induces cell maturation by facilitating formation of dendrite-like processes and/or filopodia projections and that Gas7b co-localizes with neurite microtubules. Molecular analysis was performed to evaluate whether Gas7b associates with actin filaments and microtubules, and the data revealed two novel roles of Gas7b in neurite outgrowth: we showed that Gas7b enhances bundling of several microtubule filaments and connects microtubules with actin filaments. These results suggest that Gas7b governs neural cell morphogenesis by enhancing the coordination between actin filaments and microtubules. We conclude that lower neuronal Gas7b levels may impact Alzheimer disease progression.