Chlamydomonas alpha-tubulin is posttranslationally modified in the flagella during flagellar assembly

The principal alpha-tubulin within Chlamydomonas reinhardtii flagellar axonemes differs from the major alpha-tubulin in the cell body. We show that these two isoelectric variants of alpha-tubulin are related to one another since posttranslational modification of the cell body precursor form converts it to the axonemal form. During flagellar assembly, precursor alpha-tubulin enters the flagella and is posttranslationally modified within the flagellar matrix fraction prior to or at the time of its addition to the growing axonemal microtubules. Experiments designed to identify the nature of this posttranslational modification have also been conducted. When flagella are induced to assemble in the absence of de novo protein synthesis, tritiated acetate can be used to posttranslationally label alpha-tubulin in vivo and, under these conditions, no other flagellar polypeptides exhibit detectable labeling.     

Reversal of the posttranslational modification on Chlamydomonas flagellar alpha-tubulin occurs during flagellar resorption

We previously have shown that a posttranslational modification of alpha-tubulin takes place in the flagellum during Chlamydomonas flagellar assembly (L'Hernault, S. W., and J. L. Rosenbaum, 1983, J. Cell Biol., 97:258-263). In this report, we show that the posttranslationally modified alpha-3 tubulin is changed back to its unmodified alpha-1 precursor form during the microtubular disassembly that takes place during flagellar resorption. These data indicate that the addition and removal of a posttranslational modification on alpha-tubulin might be a control step in the assembly and disassembly of flagella.     

Induction of microtubule protein synthesis in Chlamydomonas reinhardi during flagellar regeneration

Flagellar regeneration in gametes of Chlamydomonas reinhardi is initiated within 15–20 min after flagellar amputation and proceeds at a rapid but decelerating rate until by 90 min flagellar outgrowth is 80–85% complete. Sufficient flagellar protein reserves exist in the cytoplasm to allow regeneration of flagella $\text{1}\text{3}\text{–}\text{1}\text{2}$ normal length. Nevertheless, in vivo labeling with ¹⁴C-amino acids shows that microtubule protein and other flagellar proteins are synthesized de novo during flagellar regeneration. To determine whether tubulin is synthesized continuously by gametic cells or whether its synthesis is induced as a consequence of deflagellation, we have isolated polyribosomes from deflagellated and control cells, and analyzed the proteins produced by these polyribosomes during in vitro translation. Two proteins of 53,000 and 56,000 molecular weight which co-migrate with flagellar and chick brain tubulin on SDS-polyacrylamide gels and which selectively co-assemble with chick brain tubulin during in vitro microtubule assembly are synthesized by polyribosomes (or polyadenylated mRNA) from deflagellated cells. No microtubule proteins can be detected in the translation products synthesized by polyribosomes (or mRNA) from control cells, clearly indicating that deflagellation results in the induction of tubulin synthesis.Kinetics of tubulin synthesis demonstrate that induction takes place immediately after deflagellation; polyribosomes bearing tubulin mRNA can be detected in the cytoplasm in as little as 15 min after removal of flagella. Maximal rates of tubulin synthesis occur between 45 and 90 min after deflagellation when approximately 14% of the protein being synthesized by the cell is tubulin. This estimate of tubulin synthesis based on in vitro translation data agrees well with in vivo measurements of flagellar tubulin synthesis. While high levels of tubulin production extend well beyond the period of rapid flagellar assembly, synthesis begins to decline after 90 min, and by 180 min after deflagellation only low levels of tubulin mRNA are detectable in polyribosomes.     

Kinesin-II is required for flagellar sensory transduction during fertilization in Chlamydomonas

The assembly and maintenance of eucaryotic flagella and cilia depend on the microtubule motor, kinesin-II. This plus end-directed motor carries intraflagellar transport particles from the base to the tip of the organelle, where structural components of the axoneme are assembled. Here we test the idea that kinesin-II also is essential for signal transduction. When mating-type plus (mt+) and mating-type minus (mt-) gametes of the unicellular green alga Chlamydomonas are mixed together, binding interactions between mt+ and mt- flagellar adhesion molecules, the agglutinins, initiate a signaling pathway that leads to increases in intracellular cAMP, gamete activation, and zygote formation. A critical question in Chlamydomonas fertilization has been how agglutinin interactions are coupled to increases in intracellular cAMP. Recently, fla10 gametes with a temperature-sensitive defect in FLA10 kinesin-II were found to not form zygotes at the restrictive temperature (32 degrees C). We found that, although the rates and extents of flagellar adhesion in fla10 gametes at 32 degrees C are indistinguishable from wild-type gametes, the cells do not undergo gamete activation. On the other hand, fla10 gametes at 32 degrees C regulated agglutinin location and underwent gamete fusion when the cells were incubated in dibutyryl cAMP, indicating that their capacity to respond to the cAMP signal was intact. We show that the cellular defect in the fla10 gametes at 32 degrees C is a failure to undergo increases in cAMP during flagella adhesion. Thus, in addition to being essential for assembly and maintenance of the structural components of flagella, kinesin-II/intraflagellar transport plays a role in sensory transduction in these organelles.     

An actin-like protein is a component of axonemes from Chlamydomonas flagella.

Several lines of evidence indicate that a component of axonemes from Chlamydomonas flagella is similar to actin from rabbit skeletal muscle. The polypeptide has an apparent molecular weight of 42,000 and in a pH gradient has the electrophoretic behavior of beta-actin. It was co-polymerized with rabbit actin and purified by affinity chromatography on DNase I-Sepharose. Incomplete proteolysis of mixed 35S-labeled axonemal protein and cold rabbit actin formed similar sets of peptides as analyzed by one-dimensional gel electrophoresis. The actin-like protein and the tubulin appear to be present in the axoneme in the molar ratio 1:60.     

Protein phosphorylation is a key event of flagellar disassembly revealed by analysis of flagellar phosphoproteins during flagellar shortening in Chlamydomonas

Cilia are disassembled prior to cell division, which is proposed to regulate proper cell cycle progression. The signaling pathways that regulate cilia disassembly are not well-understood. Recent biochemical and genetic data demonstrate that protein phosphorylation plays important roles in cilia disassembly. Here, we analyzed the phosphoproteins in the membrane/matrix fraction of flagella undergoing shortening as well as flagella from steady state cells of Chlamydomonas. The phosphopeptides were enriched by a combination of IMAC and titanium dioxide chromatography with a strategy of sequential elution from IMAC (SIMAC) and analyzed by tandem mass spectrometry. A total of 224 phosphoproteins derived from 1296 spectral counts of phosphopeptides were identified. Among the identified phosphoproteins are flagellar motility proteins such as outer dynein arm, intraflagellar transport proteins as well as signaling molecules including protein kinases, phosphatases, G proteins, and ion channels. Eighty-nine of these phosphoproteins were only detected in shortening flagella, whereas 29 were solely in flagella of steady growing cells, indicating dramatic changes of protein phosphorylation during flagellar shortening. Our data indicates that protein phosphorylation is a key event in flagellar disassembly, and paves the way for further study of flagellar assembly and disassembly controlled by protein phosphorylation.     

Cilia and flagella revealed: from flagellar assembly in Chlamydomonas to human obesity disorders

The recent identification in Chlamydomonas of the intraflagellar transport machinery that assembles cilia and flagella has triggered a renaissance of interest in these organelles that transcends studies on their well-characterized ability to move. New studies on several fronts have revealed that the machinery for flagellar assembly/disassembly is regulated by homologs of mitotic proteins, that cilia play essential roles in sensory transduction, and that mutations in cilia/basal body proteins are responsible for cilia-related human disorders from polycystic kidney disease to a syndrome associated with obesity, hypertension, and diabetes.     

Chlamydomonas reinhardtii hydin is a central pair protein required for flagellar motility

Mutations in Hydin cause hydrocephalus in mice, and HYDIN is a strong candidate for causing hydrocephalus in humans. The gene is conserved in ciliated species, including Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. An antibody raised against C. reinhardtii hydin was specific for an approximately 540-kD flagellar protein that is missing from axonemes of strains that lack the central pair (CP). The antibody specifically decorated the C2 microtubule of the CP apparatus. An 80% knock down of hydin resulted in short flagella lacking the C2b projection of the C2 microtubule; the flagella were arrested at the switch points between the effective and recovery strokes. Biochemical analyses revealed that hydin interacts with the CP proteins CPC1 and kinesin-like protein 1 (KLP1). In conclusion, C. reinhardtii hydin is a CP protein required for flagellar motility and probably involved in the CP-radial spoke control pathway that regulates dynein arm activity. Hydrocephalus caused by mutations in hydin likely involves the malfunctioning of cilia because of a defect in the CP.     

BBS8蛋白参与衣藻鞭毛膜蛋白的运输

真核细胞的纤毛(也称鞭毛)是一种突出于细胞表面的极性细胞器,纤毛不仅参与细胞运动,还参与信号传导等过程,其结构或功能异常引发的一系列人类疾病称为"纤毛相关性疾病"。纤毛相关性疾病巴德-毕德氏综合征(Bardet-Biedl syndrome,简称BBS)由BBS相关基因缺陷导致,为了研究致病基因BBS8的生理作用和功能,构建模式生物莱茵衣藻BBS8基因缺陷突变体,利用性状观测和生化分析检测突变体的表现型和生理功能。免疫荧光表明BBS8蛋白是一种鞭毛蛋白且在基体有特异性定位;bbs8突变体感光极性运动消失,并在解聚诱导实验中鞭毛解聚缓慢;鞭毛的银染和质谱结果表明突变体的鞭毛膜蛋白在鞭毛内异常积累。文中通过实验证据说明BBS8蛋白在参与鞭毛内膜蛋白运输中起到重要作用,并极可能通过介导膜蛋白反向运输发挥生理功能。     

CDKL5 regulates flagellar length and localizes to the base of the flagella in Chlamydomonas

The length of Chlamydomonas flagella is tightly regulated. Mutations in four genes—LF1, LF2, LF3, and LF4—cause cells to assemble flagella up to three times wild-type length. LF2 and LF4 encode protein kinases. Here we describe a new gene, LF5, in which null mutations cause cells to assemble flagella of excess length. The LF5 gene encodes a protein kinase very similar in sequence to the protein kinase CDKL5. In humans, mutations in this kinase cause a severe form of juvenile epilepsy. The LF5 protein localizes to a unique location: the proximal 1 μm of the flagella. The proximal localization of the LF5 protein is lost when genes that make up the proteins in the cytoplasmic length regulatory complex (LRC)—LF1, LF2, and LF3—are mutated. In these mutants LF5p becomes localized either at the distal tip of the flagella or along the flagellar length, indicating that length regulation involves, at least in part, control of LF5p localization by the LRC.     

Centrin-mediated microtubule severing during flagellar excision in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

Chlamydomonas cells excise their flagella in response to a variety of experimental conditions (e.g., extremes of temperature or pH, alcohol or detergent treatment, and mechanical shear). Here, we show that flagellar excision is an active process whereby microtubules are severed at select sites within the transition zone. The transition zone is located between the flagellar axoneme and the basal body; it is characterized by a pair of central cylinders that have an H shape when viewed in longitudinal section. Both central cylinders are connected to the A tubule of each microtubule doublet of the transition zone by fibers (approximately 5 nm diam). When viewed in cross section, these fibers are seen to form a distinctive stellate pattern characteristic of the transition zone (Manton, I. 1964. J. R. Microsc. Soc. 82:279-285; Ringo. D. L. 1967. J. Cell Biol. 33:543-571). We demonstrate that at the time of flagellar excision these fibers contract and displace the microtubule doublets of the axoneme inward. We believe that the resulting shear force and torsional load act to sever the axonemal microtubules immediately distal to the central cylinder. Structural alterations of the transition zone during flagellar excision occur both in living cells and detergent-extracted cell models, and are dependent on the presence of calcium (greater than or equal to 10(-6) M). Immunolocalization using monoclonal antibodies against the calcium-binding protein centrin demonstrate the presence of centrin in the fiber-based stellate structure of the transition zone of wild-type cells. Examination of the flagellar autotomy mutant, fa-1, which fails to excise its flagella (Lewin, R., and C. Burrascano. 1983. Experientia. 39:1397-1398), demonstrates that the fa-1 lacks the ability to completely contract the fibers of the stellate structure. We conclude that flagellar excision in Chlamydomonas involves microtubule severing that is mediated by the action of calcium-sensitive contractile fibers of the transition zone. These observations have led us to question whether microtubule severing may be a more general phenomenon than previously suspected and to suggest that microtubule severing may contribute to the dynamic behavior of cytoplasmic microtubules in other cells.     

Flagellar elongation and shortening in Chlamydomonas. IV. Effects of flagellar detachment, regeneration, and resorption on the induction of flagellar protein synthesis

Synthesis of new proteins is required to regenerate full length Chlamydomonas flagella after deflagellation. Using gametes, which have a low basal level of protein synthesis, it has been possible to label and detect the synthesis of many flagellar proteins in whole cells. The deflagellation-induced synthesis of the tubulins, dyneins, the flagellar membrane protein, and at least 20 other proteins which co- migrate with proteins in isolated axonemes, can be detected in gamete cytoplasm, and the times of initiation and termination of synthesis for each of the proteins can be studied. The nature of the signal that stimulates the cell to initiate flagellar protein synthesis is unknown. Flagellar regeneration and accompanying pool depletion are not necessary for either the onset or termination of flagellar protein synthesis, because colchicine, which blocks flagellar regeneration, does not change the pattern of proteins synthesized in the cytoplasm after deflagellation or the timing of their synthesis. Moreover, flagellar protein synthesis is stimulated after cells are chemically induced to resorb their flagella, indicating that the act of deflagellation itself is not necessary to stimulate synthesis. Methods were defined for inducing the cells to resorb their flagella by removing Ca++ from the medium and raising the concentration of K+ or Na+. The resorption was reversible and the flagellar components that were resorbed could be re-utilized to assemble flagella in the absence of protein synthesis. This new technique is used in this report to study the control of synthesis and assembly of flagella.     

The Chlamydomonas kinesin-like protein FLA10 is involved in motility associated with the flagellar membrane

The Chlamydomonas FLA10 gene was shown to encode a flagellar kinesin- like protein (Walther, Z., M. Vashishtha, and J.L. Hall. 1994. J. Cell Biol. 126:175-188). By using a temperature-sensitive allele of FLA10, we have determined that the FLA10 protein is necessary for both the bidirectional movement of polystyrene beads on the flagellar membrane and intraflagellar transport (IFT), the bidirectional movement of granule-like particles beneath the flagellar membrane (Kozminski, K.G., K.A. Johnson, P. Forscher, and J.L. Rosenbaum. 1993. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. (USA). 90:5519-5523). In addition, we have correlated the presence and position of the IFT particles visualized by light microscopy with that of the electron dense complexes (rafts) observed beneath the flagellar membrane by electron microscopy. A role for FLA10 in submembranous or flagellar surface motility is also strongly supported by the immunolocalization of FLA10 to the region between the axonemal outer doublet microtubules and the flagellar membrane.     

Oversized flagellar membrane protein in paralyzed mutants of Chlamydomonas reinhardrii

A mutant strain of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii is shown to possess an oversized flagellar membrane protein. The mutant has paralyzed flagella, is temperature sensitive for flagellar assembly, and has an abnormal axonemal protein composition. All phenotypes appear to derive from a single Mendelian mutation, and genetic analysis suggests that the mutation, which call ts222, is in the gene pfl. Because pf1 mutants are known to have radial-spoke defects (Piperno et al., 1977, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A. 74:1600-1604; and Witman et al., 1978, J. Cell Biol. 76:729-797), a relation as yet undefined appears to exist between radial-spoke and flagellar membrane biogenesis.     

An aurora kinase is essential for flagellar disassembly in Chlamydomonas

Cilia and flagella play key roles in development and sensory transduction, and several human disorders, including polycystic kidney disease, are associated with the failure to assemble cilia. Here, we show that the aurora protein kinase CALK in the biflagellated alga Chlamydomonas has a central role in two pathways for eliminating flagella. Cells rendered deficient in CALK were defective in regulated flagellar excision and regulated flagellar disassembly. Exposure of cells to altered ionic conditions, the absence of a centriole/basal body for nucleating flagellar assembly, cessation of delivery of flagellar components to their tip assembly site, and formation of zygotes all led to activation of the regulated disassembly pathway as indicated by phosphorylation of CALK and the absence of flagella. We propose that cells have a sensory pathway that detects conditions that are inappropriate for possession of a flagellum, and that CALK is a key effector of flagellar disassembly in that pathway.     

mRNA abundance changes during flagellar regeneration in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii.

Flagellar amputation in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii induces the accumulation of a specific set of RNAs, many of which encode flagellar proteins. We prepared a cDNA clone bank from RNA isolated from cells undergoing flagellar regeneration. From this bank, we selected clones that contain RNA sequences that display several different patterns of abundance regulation. Based on quantitation of the relative amounts of labeled, cloned cDNAs hybridizing to dots of RNA on nitrocellulose filters, the cloned sequences were divided into five regulatory classes: class I RNAs remain at constant abundance during flagellar regeneration; classes II, III, and IV begin to increase in abundance within a few minutes after deflagellation, reach maximal abundance at successively later times during regeneration, and return to control cell levels within 2 to 3 h; and class V RNA abundance decreases during flagellar regeneration. Alpha- and beta-tubulin mRNAs are included in regulatory class IV. The abundance kinetics of alpha-tubulin mRNAs differ slightly from those of beta-tubulin mRNAs. The availability of these clones makes possible studies on the mechanisms controlling the abundance of a wide variety of different RNA species during flagellar regeneration in Chlamydomonas.     

Mechanoreception in motile flagella of Chlamydomonas

Ciliates and flagellates temporarily swim backwards on collision by generating a mechanoreceptor potential. Although this potential has been shown to be associated with cilia in Paramecium, the molecular entity of the mechanoreceptor has remained unknown. Here we show that Chlamydomonas cells express TRP11, a member of the TRP (transient receptor potential) subfamily V, in the proximal region of the flagella, and that suppression of TRP11 expression results in loss of the avoiding reaction. The results indicate that Chlamydomonas flagella exhibit mechanosensitivity, despite constant motility, by localizing the mechanoreceptor in the proximal region, where active bending is restricted.     

The short flagella 1 (SHF1) gene in Chlamydomonas encodes a Crescerin TOG-domain protein required for late stages of flagellar growth

Length control of flagella represents a simple and tractable system to investigate the dynamics of organelle size. Models for flagellar length control in the model organism Chlamydomonas reinhardtii have focused on the length dependence of the intraflagellar transport (IFT) system, which manages the delivery and removal of axonemal subunits at the tip of the flagella. One of these cargoes, tubulin, is the major axonemal subunit, and its frequency of arrival at the tip plays a central role in size control models. However, the mechanisms determining tubulin dynamics at the tip are still poorly understood. We discovered a loss-of-function mutation that leads to shortened flagella and found that this was an allele of a previously described gene, SHF1, whose molecular identity had not been determined. We found that SHF1 encodes a Chlamydomonas orthologue of Crescerin, previously identified as a cilia-specific TOG-domain array protein that can bind tubulin via its TOG domains and increase tubulin polymerization rates. In this mutant, flagellar regeneration occurs with the same initial kinetics as in wild-type cells but plateaus at a shorter length. Using a computational model in which the flagellar microtubules are represented by a differential equation for flagellar length combined with a stochastic model for cytoplasmic microtubule dynamics, we found that our experimental results are best described by a model in which Crescerin/SHF1 binds tubulin dimers in the cytoplasm and transports them into the flagellum. We suggest that this TOG-domain protein is necessary to efficiently and preemptively increase intraflagella tubulin levels to offset decreasing IFT cargo at the tip as flagellar assembly progresses.     

Nucleotide-metabolizing enzymes in Chlamydomonas flagella.

Nucleotides have at least two functions in eukaryotic cilia and flagella. ATP, originating in the cells, is utilized for motility by energy-transducing protein(s) called dynein, and the binding of guanine nucleotides to tubulin, and probably certain transformations of the bound nucleotides, are prerequisites for the assembly of microtubules. Besides dynein, which can be solubulized from Chlamydomonas flagella as a heterogeneous, Mg2+ or Ca2+-activated ATPase, we have purified and characterized five other flagellar enzymes involved in nucleotide transformations. A homogeneous, low molecular weight, Ca2+-specific adenosine triphosphatase was isolated, which was inhibited by Mg2+ and was not specific for ATP. This enzyme was not formed by treating purified dynein with proteases. It was absent from extracts of Tetrahymena cilia. Its function might be an auxiliary energy transducer, or in steering or tactic responses. Two species of adenylate kinase were isolated, one of which was much elevated in regenerating flagella; the latter was also present in cell bodies. A large part of flagellar nucleoside diphosphokinase activity could not be solubilized. Two soluble enzyme species were identified, one of which was also present in cell bodies. Since these enzymes are of interest because they might function in microtubule assembly, we studied the extent to which brain nucleoside diphosphokinase co-polymerizes with tubulin purified by repeated cycles of polymerization. Arginine kinase was not detected in Chlamydomonas flagellar extracts.