Comparative analysis of cytokinesis in budding yeast, fission yeast and animal cells

Cytokinesis is a temporally and spatially regulated process through which the cellular constituents of the mother cell are partitioned into two daughter cells, permitting an increase in cell number. When cytokinesis occurs in a polarized cell it can create daughters with distinct fates. In eukaryotes, cytokinesis is carried out by the coordinated action of a cortical actomyosin contractile ring and targeted membrane deposition. Recent use of model organisms with facile genetics and improved light-microscopy methods has led to the identification and functional characterization of many proteins involved in cytokinesis. To date, this analysis indicates that some of the basic components involved in cytokinesis are conserved from yeast to humans, although their organization into functional machinery that drives cytokinesis and the associated regulatory mechanisms bear species-specific features. Here, we briefly review the current status of knowledge of cytokinesis in the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe and animal cells, in an attempt to highlight both the common and the unique features. Although these organisms diverged from a common ancestor about a billion years ago, there are eukaryotes that are far more divergent. To evaluate the overall evolutionary conservation of cytokinesis, it will be necessary to include representatives of these divergent branches. Nevertheless, the three species discussed here provide substantial mechanistic diversity.     

Nuclear membrane: nuclear envelope PORosity in fission yeast meiosis

The fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe undergoes closed mitosis but 'virtual nuclear envelope breakdown' at anaphase of meiosis II, in which the nuclear envelope is structurally closed but functionally open.     

Cell polarization and cytokinesis in budding yeast

Asymmetric cell division, which includes cell polarization and cytokinesis, is essential for generating cell diversity during development. The budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae reproduces by asymmetric cell division, and has thus served as an attractive model for unraveling the general principles of eukaryotic cell polarization and cytokinesis. Polarity development requires G-protein signaling, cytoskeletal polarization, and exocytosis, whereas cytokinesis requires concerted actions of a contractile actomyosin ring and targeted membrane deposition. In this chapter, we discuss the mechanics and spatial control of polarity development and cytokinesis, emphasizing the key concepts, mechanisms, and emerging questions in the field.     

Evidence that a septin diffusion barrier is dispensable for cytokinesis in budding yeast

Septins are essential for cytokinesis in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, but their precise roles remain elusive. Currently, it is thought that before cytokinesis, the hourglass-shaped septin structure at the mother-bud neck acts as a scaffold for assembly of the actomyosin ring (AMR) and other cytokinesis factors. At the onset of cytokinesis, the septin hourglass splits to form a double ring that sandwiches the AMR and may function as diffusion barriers to restrict diffusible cytokinesis factors to the division site. Here, we show that in cells lacking the septin Cdc10 or the septin-associated protein Bud4, the septins form a ring-like structure at the mother-bud neck that fails to re-arrange into a double ring early in cytokinesis. Strikingly, AMR assembly and constriction, the localization of membrane-trafficking and extracellular-matrix-remodeling factors, cytokinesis, and cell-wall-septum formation all occur efficiently in cdc10Δ and bud4Δ mutants. Thus, diffusion barriers formed by the septin double ring do not appear to be critical for S. cerevisiae cytokinesis. However, an AMR mutation and a septin mutation have synergistic effects on cytokinesis and the localization of cytokinesis proteins, suggesting that tethering to the AMR and a septin diffusion barrier may function redundantly to localize proteins to the division site.     

Nuclear compartmentalization is abolished during fission yeast meiosis

In eukaryotic cells, the nuclear envelope partitions the nucleus from the cytoplasm. The fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe undergoes closed mitosis in which the nuclear envelope persists rather than being broken down, as in higher eukaryotic cells. It is therefore assumed that nucleocytoplasmic transport continues during the cell cycle. Here we show that nuclear transport is, in fact, abolished specifically during anaphase of the second meiotic nuclear division. During that time, both nucleoplasmic and cytoplasmic proteins disperse throughout the cell, reminiscent of the open mitosis of higher eukaryotes, but the architecture of the S. pombe nuclear envelope itself persists. This functional alteration of the nucleocytoplasmic barrier is likely induced by spore wall formation, because ectopic induction of sporulation signaling leads to premature dispersion of nucleoplasmic proteins. A photobleaching assay demonstrated that nuclear envelope permeability increases abruptly at the onset of anaphase of the second meiotic division. The permeability was not altered when sporulation was inhibited by blocking the trafficking of forespore-membrane vesicles from the endoplasmic reticulum to the Golgi. The evidence indicates that yeast gametogenesis produces vesicle transport-mediated forespore membranes by inducing nuclear envelope permeabilization.     

Nuclear export receptor Xpo1/Crm1 is physically and functionally linked to the spindle pole body in budding yeast

The spindle pole body (SPB) represents the microtubule organizing center in the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. It is a highly structured organelle embedded in the nuclear membrane, which is required to anchor microtubules on both sides of the nuclear envelope. The protein Spc72, a component of the SPB, is located at the cytoplasmic face of this organelle and serves as a receptor for the gamma-tubulin complex. In this paper we show that it is also a binding partner of the nuclear export receptor Xpo1/Crm1. Xpo1 binds its cargoes in a Ran-dependent fashion via a short leucine-rich nuclear export signal (NES). We show that binding of Spc72 to Xpo1 depends on Ran-GTP and a functional NES in Spc72. Mutations in this NES have severe consequences for mitotic spindle morphology in vivo. This is also the case for xpo1 mutants, which show a reduction in cytoplasmic microtubules. In addition, we find a subpopulation of Xpo1 localized at the SPB. Based on these data, we propose a functional link between Xpo1 and the SPB and discuss a role for this exportin in spindle biogenesis in budding yeast.     

Rho4 GTPase is involved in secretion of glucanases during fission yeast cytokinesis

Rho GTPases are regulators of signaling pathways that control actin organization and cell polarity processes in all eukaryotic cells. In Schizosaccharomyces pombe, Rho4p is involved in the regulation of septum degradation during cytokinesis. Here we show that Rho4p participates in the secretion of the glucanases Eng1p and Agn1p, which are responsible for the septum degradation. First, eng1+ or agn1+ overexpression suppressed the rho4delta multiseptation phenotype, and simultaneous overproduction of Rho4p and Eng1p or of Rho4p and Agn1p caused a dramatic lysis. Second, Rho4p was not necessary for Eng1p-mediated glucanase activity as measured in cell extracts; however, rho4delta cells have a lower level of (1,3)-beta-D-glucanase activity in the culture medium. Additionally, Eng1- or Agn1-green fluorescent protein did not properly localize to the septum in rho4delta cells grown at 37 degrees C. There was a decreased amount of these enzymes in the cell wall and in the culture medium of rho4delta cells at 37 degrees C. These results provide evidence that Rho4p is involved in the regulation of Eng1p and Agn1p secretion during cytokinesis.     

Bub2 regulation of cytokinesis and septation in budding yeast

Background  

The mitotic exit network (MEN) is required for events at the end of mitosis such as degradation of mitotic cyclins and cytokinesis. Bub2 and its binding partner Bfa1 act as a GTPase activating protein (GAP) to negatively regulate the MEN GTPase Tem1. The Bub2/Bfa1 checkpoint pathway is required to delay the cell cycle in response to mispositioned spindles. In addition to its role in mitotic exit, Tem1 is required for actomyosin ring contraction.     

Nuclear size control in fission yeast

Along-standing biological question is how a eukaryotic cell controls the size of its nucleus. We report here that in fission yeast, nuclear size is proportional to cell size over a 35-fold range, and use mutants to show that a 16-fold change in nuclear DNA content does not influence the relative size of the nucleus. Multi-nucleated cells with unevenly distributed nuclei reveal that nuclei surrounded by a greater volume of cytoplasm grow more rapidly. During interphase of the cell cycle nuclear growth is proportional to cell growth, and during mitosis there is a rapid expansion of the nuclear envelope. When the nuclear/cell (N/C) volume ratio is increased by centrifugation or genetic manipulation, nuclear growth is arrested while the cell continues to grow; in contrast, low N/C ratios are rapidly corrected by nuclear growth. We propose that there is a general cellular control linking nuclear growth to cell size.     

Actin depolymerization drives actomyosin ring contraction during budding yeast cytokinesis

Actin filaments and myosin II are evolutionarily conserved force-generating components of the contractile ring during cytokinesis. Here we show that in budding yeast, actin filament depolymerization plays a major role in actomyosin ring constriction. Cofilin mutation or chemically stabilizing actin filaments attenuate actomyosin ring constriction. Deletion of myosin II motor domain or the myosin regulatory light chain reduced the contraction rate and also the rate of actin depolymerization in the ring. We constructed a quantitative microscopic model of actomyosin ring constriction via filament sliding driven by both actin depolymerization and myosin II motor activity. Model simulations based on experimental measurements support the notion that actin depolymerization is the predominant mechanism for ring constriction. The model predicts invariability of total contraction time regardless of the initial ring size, as originally reported for C. elegans embryonic cells. This prediction was validated in yeast cells of different sizes due to different ploidies.     

The control of septum formation and cytokinesis in fission yeast

Our understanding of the control of cytokinesis is limited in comparison with our knowledge of the controls over the initiation of S phase or mitosis. Study of genetically tractable systems such as Schizosaccharomyces pombe are a useful way to address this problem, since mutants defective in regulation of cytokinesis have been identified. Cloning and analysis of the proteins they encode has begun to shed light upon how formation of the division septum is initiated and directed to the correct place in the cell. Some of these mutants may also be implicated in coordinating mitosis and cytokinesis.     

Isolation and characterization of new fission yeast cytokinesis mutants.

Schizosaccharomyces pombe is an excellent organism in which to study cytokinesis as it divides by medial fission using an F-actin contractile ring. To enhance our understanding of the cell division process, a large genetic screen was carried out in which 17 genetic loci essential for cytokinesis were identified, 5 of which are novel. Mutants identifying three genes, rng3(+), rng4(+), and rng5(+), were defective in organizing an actin contractile ring. Four mutants defective in septum deposition, septum initiation defective (sid)1, sid2, sid3, and sid4, were also identified and characterized. Genetic analyses revealed that the sid mutants display strong negative interactions with the previously described septation mutants cdc7-24, cdc11-123, and cdc14-118. The rng5(+), sid2(+), and sid3(+) genes were cloned and shown to encode Myo2p (a myosin heavy chain), a protein kinase related to budding yeast Dbf2p, and Spg1p, a GTP binding protein that is a member of the ras superfamily of GTPases, respectively. The ability of Spg1p to promote septum formation from any point in the cell cycle depends on the activity of Sid4p. In addition, we have characterized a phenotype that has not been described previously in cytokinesis mutants, namely the failure to reorganize actin patches to the medial region of the cell in preparation for septum formation.     

Dephosphorylation of Iqg1 by Cdc14 regulates cytokinesis in budding yeast

Cytokinesis separates cells by contraction of a ring composed of filamentous actin (F-actin) and type II myosin. Iqg1, an IQGAP family member, is an essential protein in Saccharomyces cerevisiae required for assembly and contraction of the actomyosin ring. Localization of F-actin to the ring occurs only after anaphase and is mediated by the calponin homology domain (CHD) of Iqg1, but the regulatory mechanisms that temporally restrict actin ring assembly are not well defined. We tested the hypothesis that dephosphorylation of four perfect cyclin-dependent kinase (Cdk) sites flanking the CHD promotes actin ring formation, using site-specific alanine mutants. Cells expressing the nonphosphorylatable iqg1-4A allele formed actin rings before anaphase and exhibited defects in myosin contraction and cytokinesis. The Cdc14 phosphatase is required for normal cytokinesis and acts on specific Cdk phosphorylation sites. Overexpression of Cdc14 resulted in premature actin ring assembly, whereas inhibition of Cdc14 function prevented actin ring formation. Cdc14 associated with Iqg1, dependent on several CHD-flanking Cdk sites, and efficiently dephosphorylated these sites in vitro. Of importance, the iqg1-4A mutant rescued the inability of cdc14-1 cells to form actin rings. Our data support a model in which dephosphorylation of Cdk sites around the Iqg1 CHD by Cdc14 is both necessary and sufficient to promote actin ring formation. Temporal control of actin ring assembly by Cdk and Cdc14 may help to ensure that cytokinesis onset occurs after nuclear division is complete.     

Rho1 directs formin-mediated actin ring assembly during budding yeast cytokinesis

In eukaryotic cells, dynamic rearrangement of the actin cytoskeleton is critical for cell division. In the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, three main structures constitute the actin cytoskeleton: cortical actin patches, cytoplasmic actin cables, and the actin-based cytokinetic ring. The conserved Arp2/3 complex and a WASP-family protein mediate actin patch formation, whereas the yeast formins (Bni1 and Bnr1) promote assembly of actin cables. However, the mechanism of actin ring formation is currently unclear. Here, we show that actin filaments are required for cytokinesis in S. cerevisiae, and that the actin ring is a highly dynamic structure that undergoes constant turnover. Assembly of the actin ring requires the formin-like proteins and profilin, but is not Arp2/3-mediated. Furthermore, the formin-dependent actin ring assembly pathway is regulated by the Rho-type GTPase Rho1 but not Cdc42. Finally, we show that the formins are not required for localization of Cyk1/Iqg1, an IQGAP-like protein previously shown to be required for actin ring formation, suggesting that formin-like proteins and Cyk1 act synergistically but independently in assembly of the actin ring.     

Mid2p stabilizes septin rings during cytokinesis in fission yeast

Septins are filament-forming proteins with a conserved role in cytokinesis. In the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe, septin rings appear to be involved primarily in cell-cell separation, a late stage in cytokinesis. Here, we identified a protein Mid2p on the basis of its sequence similarity to S. pombe Mid1p, Saccharomyces cerevisiae Bud4p, and Candida albicans Int1p. Like septin mutants, mid2delta mutants had delays in cell-cell separation. mid2delta mutants were defective in septin organization but not contractile ring closure or septum formation. In wild-type cells, septins assembled first during mitosis in a single ring and during septation developed into double rings that did not contract. In mid2delta cells, septins initially assembled in a single ring but during septation appeared in the cleavage furrow, forming a washer or disc structure. FRAP studies showed that septins are stable in wild-type cells but exchange 30-fold more rapidly in mid2delta cells. Mid2p colocalized with septins and required septins for its localization. A COOH-terminal pleckstrin homology domain of Mid2p was required for its localization and function. No genetic interactions were found between mid2 and the related gene mid1. Thus, these studies identify a new factor responsible for the proper stability and function of septins during cytokinesis.     

Assembly and architecture of precursor nodes during fission yeast cytokinesis

The contractile ring is essential for cytokinesis in most fungal and animal cells. In fission yeast, cytokinesis nodes are precursors of the contractile ring and mark the future cleavage site. However, their assembly and architecture have not been well described. We found that nodes are assembled stoichiometrically in a hierarchical order with two modules linked by the positional marker anillin Mid1. Mid1 first recruits Cdc4 and IQGAP Rng2 to form module I. Rng2 subsequently recruits the myosin-II subunits Myo2 and Rlc1. Mid1 then independently recruits the F-BAR protein Cdc15 to form module II. Mid1, Rng2, Cdc4, and Cdc15 are stable node components that accumulate close to the plasma membrane. Both modules recruit the formin Cdc12 to nucleate actin filaments. Myo2 heads point into the cell interior, where they efficiently capture actin filaments to condense nodes into the contractile ring. Collectively, our work characterizing the assembly and architecture of precursor nodes defines important steps and molecular players for contractile ring assembly.     

A homolog of mammalian antizyme is present in fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe but not detected in budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae

MOTIVATION: The antizymes (AZ) are proteins that regulate cellular polyamine pools in metazoa. To search for remote homologs in single-celled eukaryotes, we used computer software based on hidden Markov models. The most divergent homolog detected was that of the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe. Sequence identities between S.POMBE: AZ and known AZs are as low as 18-22% in the most conserved C-terminal regions. The authenticity of the S.POMBE: AZ is validated by the presence of a conserved nucleotide sequence that, in metazoa, promotes a +1 programmed ribosomal frameshift required for AZ expression. However, no homolog was detected in the completed genome of the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Procedural details and supplementary information can be found at http://itsa.ucsf.edu/ approximately czhu/AZ.     

An inducible expression vector for both fission and budding yeast

We have developed a vector system for inducible gene expression in both fission yeast (Schizosaccharomyces pombe) and budding yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae). The autonomously replicating expression vector contains multiple glucocorticoid response elements, rendering a linked promoter inducible 20-70-fold by glucocorticoid hormones in the presence of the mammalian glucocorticoid receptor. A polylinker with several unique cloning sites allows insertion of cDNAs of interest. Glucocorticoids are gratuitous signalling molecules in yeast, exerting little or no effect on the expression of genes other than those fused to the regulated promoter.