Insights into the dynamic properties of keratin intermediate filaments in living epithelial cells

The properties of keratin intermediate filaments (IFs) have been studied after transfection with green fluorescent protein (GFP)-tagged K18 and/or K8 (type I/II IF proteins). GFP-K8 and -K18 become incorporated into tonofibrils, which are comprised of bundles of keratin IFs. These tonofibrils exhibit a remarkably wide range of motile and dynamic activities. Fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP) analyses show that they recover their fluorescence slowly with a recovery t(1/2) of approximately 100 min. The movements of bleach zones during recovery show that closely spaced tonofibrils (<1 microm apart) often move at different rates and in different directions. Individual tonofibrils frequently change their shapes, and in some cases these changes appear as propagated waveforms along their long axes. In addition, short fibrils, termed keratin squiggles, are seen at the cell periphery where they move mainly towards the cell center. The motile properties of keratin IFs are also compared with those of type III IFs (vimentin) in PtK2 cells. Intriguingly, the dynamic properties of keratin tonofibrils and squiggles are dramatically different from those of vimentin fibrils and squiggles within the same cytoplasmic regions. This suggests that there are different factors regulating the dynamic properties of different types of IFs within the same cytoplasmic regions.     

Steady state dynamics of intermediate filament networks

We have conducted experiments to examine the dynamic exchange between subunit and polymer of vimentin intermediate filaments (IF) at steady state through the use of xrhodamine-labeled vimentin in fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP) analysis. The xrhodamine-vimentin incorporated into the endogenous vimentin IF network after microinjection into fibroblasts and could be visualized with a cooled charge-coupled device (CCD) camera and digital imaging fluorescence microscopy. Bar shaped regions were bleached in the fluorescent IF network using a beam from an argon ion laser and the cells were monitored at various times after bleaching to assess recovery of fluorescence in the bleached zones. We determined that bleached vimentin fibers can recover their fluorescence over relatively short time periods. Vimentin fibers in living cells also can exhibit significant movements, but the recovery of fluorescence was not dependent upon movement of fibers. Fluorescence recovery within individual fibers did not exhibit any marked polarity and was most consistent with a steady state exchange of vimentin subunits along the lengths of IF.     

New horizons in cytoskeletal dynamics: transport of intermediate filaments along microtubule tracks

Until recently, the dynamic properties of intermediate filaments (IF) were attributed primarily to the exchange of subunits between a disassembled pool and polymerized 10nm filaments. During interphase, this subunit exchange process was thought to produce local modifications in IF structure. During cell division, shifts in the equilibrium between subunits and polymers were thought to lead to either the global or regional disassembly of IF networks, thereby facilitating their distribution into daughter cells. Recently, novel structural forms of IF that undergo rapid and directed transport in several cell types were revealed. Time-lapse observations of motile IF structures in different cell systems have also revealed novel insights into the mechanisms underlying the transport of cytoskeletal components throughout the cytoplasm and the molecular basis of the 'crosstalk' between different cytoskeletal systems.     

A requirement for cytoplasmic dynein and dynactin in intermediate filament network assembly and organization

We present evidence that vimentin intermediate filament (IF) motility in vivo is associated with cytoplasmic dynein. Immunofluorescence reveals that subunits of dynein and dynactin are associated with all structural forms of vimentin in baby hamster kidney-21 cells. This relationship is also supported by the presence of numerous components of dynein and dynactin in IF-enriched cytoskeletal preparations. Overexpression of dynamitin biases IF motility toward the cell surface, leading to a perinuclear clearance of IFs and their redistribution to the cell surface. IF-enriched cytoskeletal preparations from dynamitin-overexpressing cells contain decreased amounts of dynein, actin-related protein-1, and p150Glued relative to controls. In contrast, the amount of dynamitin is unaltered in these preparations, indicating that it is involved in linking vimentin cargo to dynactin. The results demonstrate that dynein and dynactin are required for the normal organization of vimentin IF networks in vivo. These results together with those of previous studies also suggest that a balance among the microtubule (MT) minus and plus end-directed motors, cytoplasmic dynein, and kinesin are required for the assembly and maintenance of type III IF networks in interphase cells. Furthermore, these motors are to a large extent responsible for the long recognized relationships between vimentin IFs and MTs.     

Microinjection of monoclonal antibodies to vimentin, desmin, and GFA in cells which contain more than one IF type

Microinjection of antibodies to vimentin into fibroblast cell lines causes intermediate filaments (IFs) to build perinuclear caps. We have extended these findings by microinjection of monoclonal antibodies specific for different IF types to non-epithelial cell lines of human origin, which co-express two different IF proteins. Thus GFA and vimentin IgGs have been microinjected in separate experiments into a glioma cell line, desmin and vimentin IgGs into RD cells, and vimentin IgGs into a cell line which co-expresses neurofilaments and vimentin. In all instances, microinjection of a single antibody causes the formation of perinuclear caps in which the two different IF proteins co-localize, suggesting that vimentin and the second IF type present in each cell line localize to the same 10-nm filaments. Immunoelectron microscopy using desmin and vimentin antibodies made in different species and appropriate second antibodies labelled with 5 and 20 nm gold particles confirm this result for RD cells. When Fab' fragments of the vimentin IgGs are microinjected into different cell types, formation of perinuclear caps is observed in immunofluorescence microscopy. In RD cells immunoelectron microscopy shows that the Fab' fragments induce caps which appear less dense than the caps seen after microinjection of IgGs.     

Nestin promotes the phosphorylation-dependent disassembly of vimentin intermediate filaments during mitosis

The expression of the intermediate filament (IF) protein nestin is closely associated with rapidly proliferating progenitor cells during neurogenesis and myogenesis, but little is known about its function. In this study, we examine the effects of nestin expression on the assembly state of vimentin IFs in nestin-free cells. Nestin is introduced by transient transfection and is positively correlated with the disassembly of vimentin IFs into nonfilamentous aggregates or particles in mitotic but not interphase cells. This nestin-mediated disassembly of IFs is dependent on the phosphorylation of vimentin by the maturation/M-phase-promoting factor at ser-55 in the amino-terminal head domain. In addition, the disassembly of vimentin IFs during mitosis appears to be a unique feature of nestin-expressing cell types. Furthermore, when the expression of nestin is downregulated by the nestin-specific small interfering RNA in nestin-expressing cells, vimentin IFs remain assembled throughout all stages of mitosis. Previous studies suggest that nonfilamentous vimentin particles are IF precursors and can be transported rapidly between different cytoplasmic compartments along microtubule tracks. On the basis of these observations, we speculate that nestin may play a role in the trafficking and distribution of IF proteins and potentially other cellular factors to daughter cells during progenitor cell division.     

Alteration of vimentin intermediate filament expression during differentiation of human hemopoietic cells

We describe the alterations of vimentin intermediate filament (IF) expression in human hemopoietic committed precursors as they differentiate into mature cells of the erythroid, granulomonocytic, megacaryocytic and lymphoid lineages. A double labelling fluorescence procedure was used to identify hemopoietic cells expressing lineage-specific antigens and to decorate the vimentin IF network. Whereas very early progenitors from each lineage expressed vimentin, the density and organization of the network differed strikingly as the cells matured on a given pathway. T lymphocytes, monocytes and granulocytes retained vimentin expression at all stages of maturation. In contrast, megakaryoblasts lose vimentin expression at a very early stage of differentiation, erythroblasts at variable steps between the committed erythroid cell and the red cell. Finally, B lymphocytes tend to lose vimentin expression later when they mature into plasma cells.     

Differential organization of desmin and vimentin in muscle is due to differences in their head domains

In most myogenic systems, synthesis of the intermediate filament (IF) protein vimentin precedes the synthesis of the muscle-specific IF protein desmin. In the dorsal myotome of the Xenopus embryo, however, there is no preexisting vimentin filament system and desmin's initial organization is quite different from that seen in vimentin-containing myocytes (Cary and Klymkowsky, 1994. Differentiation. In press.). To determine whether the organization of IFs in the Xenopus myotome reflects features unique to Xenopus or is due to specific properties of desmin, we used the injection of plasmid DNA to drive the synthesis of vimentin or desmin in myotomal cells. At low levels of accumulation, exogenous vimentin and desmin both enter into the endogenous desmin system of the myotomal cell. At higher levels exogenous vimentin forms longitudinal IF systems similar to those seen in vimentin-expressing myogenic systems and massive IF bundles. Exogenous desmin, on the other hand, formed a reticular IF meshwork and non-filamentous aggregates. In embryonic epithelial cells, both vimentin and desmin formed extended IF networks. Vimentin and desmin differ most dramatically in their NH2- terminal "head" regions. To determine whether the head region was responsible for the differences in the behavior of these two proteins, we constructed plasmids encoding chimeric proteins in which the head of one was attached to the body of the other. In muscle, the vimentin head- desmin body (VDD) polypeptide formed longitudinal IFs and massive IF bundles like vimentin. The desmin head-vimentin body (DVV) polypeptide, on the other hand, formed IF meshworks and non-filamentous structures like desmin. In embryonic epithelial cells DVV formed a discrete filament network while VDD did not. Based on the behavior of these chimeric proteins, we conclude that the head domains of vimentin and desmin are structurally distinct and not interchangeable, and that the head domain of desmin is largely responsible for desmin's muscle- specific behaviors.     

Intermediate filament reorganization during mitosis is mediated by p34cdc2 phosphorylation of vimentin

As cells enter mitosis, the intermediate filament (IF) networks of interphase BHK-21 cells are depolymerized to form cytoplasmic aggregates of disassembled IFs, and the constituent IF proteins, vimentin and desmin are hyperphosphorylated at several specific sites. We have characterized one of two endogenous vimentin kinases from a particulate fraction of mitotic cell lysates. Through several purification steps, vimentin kinase activity copurifies with histone H1 kinase and both activities bind to p13suc1-Sepharose. The final enriched kinase preparation consists primarily of p34cdc2 and polypeptides of 65 and 110 kd. The purified kinase complex phosphorylates vimentin in vitro at a subset of sites phosphorylated in vivo during mitosis. Furthermore, phosphorylation of in vitro polymerized vimentin IFs by the purified kinase causes their disassembly. Therefore, vimentin is a substrate of p34cdc2 and phosphorylation of vimentin contributes to M phase reorganization of the IF network.     

Viscoelastic properties of vimentin compared with other filamentous biopolymer networks

The cytoplasm of vertebrate cells contains three distinct filamentous biopolymers, the microtubules, microfilaments, and intermediate filaments. The basic structural elements of these three filaments are linear polymers of the proteins tubulin, actin, and vimentin or another related intermediate filament protein, respectively. The viscoelastic properties of cytoplasmic filaments are likely to be relevant to their biologic function, because their extreme length and rodlike structure dominate the rheologic behavior of cytoplasm, and changes in their structure may cause gel-sol transitions observed when cells are activated or begin to move. This paper describes parallel measurements of the viscoelasticity of tubulin, actin, and vimentin polymers. The rheologic differences among the three types of cytoplasmic polymers suggest possible specialized roles for the different classes of filaments in vivo. Actin forms networks of highest rigidity that fluidize at high strains, consistent with a role in cell motility in which stable protrusions can deform rapidly in response to controlled filament rupture. Vimentin networks, which have not previously been studied by rheologic methods, exhibit some unusual viscoelastic properties not shared by actin or tubulin. They are less rigid (have lower shear moduli) at low strain but harden at high strains and resist breakage, suggesting they maintain cell integrity. The differences between F-actin and vimentin are optimal for the formation of a composite material with a range of properties that cannot be achieved by either polymer alone. Microtubules are unlikely to contribute significantly to interphase cell rheology alone, but may help stabilize the other networks.     

Intermediate Filaments Play a Pivotal Role in Regulating Cell Architecture and Function

Intermediate filaments (IFs) are composed of one or more members of a large family of cytoskeletal proteins, whose expression is cell- and tissue type-specific. Their importance in regulating the physiological properties of cells is becoming widely recognized in functions ranging from cell motility to signal transduction. IF proteins assemble into nanoscale biopolymers with unique strain-hardening properties that are related to their roles in regulating the mechanical integrity of cells. Furthermore, mutations in the genes encoding IF proteins cause a wide range of human diseases. Due to the number of different types of IF proteins, we have limited this short review to cover structure and function topics mainly related to the simpler homopolymeric IF networks composed of vimentin, and specifically for diseases, the related muscle-specific desmin IF networks.     

Engagement of vimentin intermediate filaments in hypotonic stress

Intermediate filaments (IFs) play a key role in the control of cell structure and morphology, cell mechano-responses, migration, proliferation, and apoptosis. However, the mechanisms regulating IFs organization in motile adhesive cells under certain physical/pathological conditions remain to be fully understood. In this study, we found hypo-osmotic–induced stress results in a dramatic but reversible rearrangement of the IF network. Vimentin and nestin IFs are partially depolymerized as they are redistributed throughout the cell cytoplasm after hypo-osmotic shock. This spreading of the IFs requires an intact microtubule network and the motor protein associated transportation. Both nocodazole treatment and depletion of kinesin-1 (KIF5B) block the hypo-osmotic shock–induced rearrangement of IFs showing that the dynamic behavior of IFs largely depends on microtubules and kinesin-dependent transport. Moreover, we show that cell survival rates are dramatically decreased in response to hypo-osmotic shock, which was more severe by vimentin IFs depletion, indicating its contribution to osmotic endurance. Collectively, these results reveal a critical role of vimentin IFs under hypotonic stress and provide evidence that IFs are important for the defense mechanisms during the osmotic challenge.     

Specific types of prosomes are associated to subnetworks of the intermediate filaments in PtK1 cells.

Prosomes are small ribonucleoprotein (RNP) particles of unique morphology in the electron microscope but of variable protein and RNA composition, depending on the differentiation state of the cells studied. They were initially observed as subcomplexes of untranslated mRNP. In previous studies, we found that prosomes are associated to the intermediate filaments (IF) of cytokeratin type in HeLa and PtK1 cells. Here we have studied in detail the association of prosomal antigens with the IF networks in PtK1 cells. Contrary to our earlier conclusions, in these cells the vimentin fibers also carry prosomes which, thus, distribute in between the two types of networks. During the selective collapse of the IF induced by acrylamide, and upon recovery after the withdrawal of the drug, no dissociation of the prosome and IF networks of cytokeratin- and vimentin-type could be observed. These data show that even in a dynamic situation, prosome and IF antigens do not dissociate, indicating strongly that they are located on one and the same structure. Furthermore, the differential distribution of specific prosomal antigens between both types of intermediate filament networks indicates that prosomes do not ubiquitously populate the intermediate filaments but occupy subnetworks of either vimentin or cytokeratin type.     

The ultrastructure of human mitotic chromosomes and interphase nuclei treated by Giemsa banding techniques

Total preparations of mitotic chromosomes and interphase nuclei prepared as for Giemsa banding techniques were investigated by standard transmission electron microscopy and by a method of a three dimensional representation. Chromosomes as well as interphase nuclei appear to be composed of irregularely folded fibrils of at least 300 Å thickness. In the G-band regions the chromosomes are thicker containing more foldings of fibrils. Also the fibrils are darker stained in the G-band regions. Loops of fibrils stick out from chromosomes as well as from interphase nuclei. When chromosomes or interphase nuclei come to lie close enough, such loops may stick together and form fibrillar bridges between them. These as well as interchromatid bridges are considered to be artefacts. The fibrils seem to be built up either of one or of several finer fibrils. No further conclusions regarding the fine structure of the fibrils can be drawn.     

Deletion mutagenesis of the amino-terminal head domain of vimentin reveals dispensability of large internal regions for intermediate filament assembly and stability

Previous studies have shown that the non-alpha-helical head domain of vimentin is required for polymerization of intermediate filaments (IFs) and, furthermore, a nonapeptide highly conserved among type III IF subunit proteins at their extreme amino-terminus is essential for this process. Recombinant DNA technology was employed to produce specific vimentin deletion mutant proteins (for in vitro studies) or vimentin protein expression plasmids (for in vivo studies), which were used to identify other regions of the vimentin head domain important for polymerization. Various vimentin proteins lacking either residues 25-38, 44-95, or 40-95 polymerized into wild-type or largely normal IFs, both in vitro and in vivo. Vimentin proteins lacking residues 44-69 or 25-63 failed to form IFs in vitro, but assembled into IFs in vivo. Vimentin proteins lacking residues 25-68, 44-103, or 88-103 failed to form IFs in vitro or in vivo. Taken together with previous results, these data demonstrate that the middle of the vimentin non-alpha-helical head domain, which is known to be the site of nucleic acid binding, is completely dispensable for IF formation, whereas both ends of the vimentin non-alpha-helical head domain are required for IF formation. The simplest explanation for these results is that the middle of the vimentin non-alpha-helical head domain loops out, thereby permitting the juxtaposition of the ends of the head domain and their productive interaction with other protein domains (probably the C-terminus of the rod domain) during IF polymerization. The ability of some of the mutant proteins to form IFs in vivo, but not in vitro, suggests that as-yet-unknown cellular proteins may interact with and, in some cases, enable polymerization of IFs, even though they are not absolutely required for IF formation by wild-type vimentin.     

Cell surface receptors transmit sufficient force to bend collagen fibrils

To better understand the dynamic interaction of cells with their surrounding extracellular matrix, chondrocytes and rat embryo fibroblasts were overlaid with individual collagen fibrils and observed with high-resolution video-enhanced differential interference contrast microscopy. Although the cells had a polygonal shape characteristic of nonmotile cells, they used processes usually associated with cell locomotion to acquire the collagen fibrils. Instead of being transported in a retrograde direction, fibrils on the dorsal cell surface were bent, and regions of the bent fibrils were shifted in diverse directions. A blocking antibody to the beta1 integrin subunit significantly inhibited collagen fibril acquisition and bending. Enhanced actin assembly was only occasionally associated with fibrils undergoing rearrangement. Considering that the relatively stiff collagen fibrils require the application of force to be bent, this study shows that cells with a polygonal morphology (as opposed to a polarized, motile shape) are capable of exerting force through the beta1 integrins on the dorsal surface of the cell. Analysis of the bending patterns indicates that fibril buckling was induced by retrograde force combined with regions held stationary and/or the fibrils were bent by forces acting in opposing directions.     

Changing intermediate-sized filament patterns in metastatic hepatocellular carcinoma cells of the guinea pig

Hepatocellular carcinoma cells obtained from ascitic fluid after diethylnitrosamine treatment of Sewall Wright strain-2 guinea pigs produce solid (primary) tumors, lymph-node metastases and malignant ascites when reinjected into animals of the same strain. When brought into culture the cells settle, form multilayer cultures and can be maintained in passage. In addition to epithelium-specific cytokeratin intermediate filaments (IF), these latter cells, like most cultured cells, also contain vimentin. Hepatocellular carcinoma cells in solid tumors and in metastatic tumors retain their original keratin IF and in general do not have an additional vimentin-IF system. When the tumor cells are present in ascites they develop vimentin-IF in addition to cytokeratin filaments. Vimentin is gradually lost when these cells sediment onto the peritoneal surface and proliferate continuously to form papillary projections, or when they are detected as circumscribed metastases. It seems likely, therefore, that in this system the synthesis of an additional vimentin cytoskeleton is related to reduced cell-to-cell contact and to the ability of the cells to survive individually or as cell clusters in body fluids, without being part of a cohesive tissue.     

Modulation of vimentin containing intermediate filament distribution and phosphorylation in living fibroblasts by the cAMP-dependent protein kinase

Microinjection of the purified catalytic subunit of the cAMP-dependent protein kinase (A-kinase) into living rat embryo fibroblasts leads to dramatic changes in vimentin intermediate filament (IF) organization, involving the collapse of the filaments into tight bundles. In some cell types, this rearrangement of the IF proceeds further, leading to an apparent loss of filament integrity, resulting in a punctate staining pattern throughout the cytoplasm. Both these types of IF rearrangement are fully reversible, and similar to structural changes previously described for IF during mitosis. As shown by electron microscopy, in rat embryo fibroblasts these changes in IF structure do not involve the loss of the 10-nM filament structure but instead correspond to the bundling together of 25 or more individual filaments. Metabolic pulse labeling of injected cells reveals that accompanying these changes in IF organization is a dramatic increase in vimentin phosphorylation which appears maximal when the IF are fully rearranged. However, this increase in IF phosphorylation is not accompanied by any significant increase in soluble vimentin. Analysis of the sites of phosphorylation on vimentin from injected cells by either V8 protease cleavage, or two-dimensional tryptic peptide mapping, revealed increased de novo phosphorylation of two vimentin phosphopeptides after microinjection of A-kinase. These data strongly suggest that the site-specific phosphorylation of vimentin by A-kinase is responsible for the dynamic changes in IF organization observed after injection of the kinase into living cells, and may be involved in similar rearrangement of the IF previously described during mitosis or after heat shock.