Recycling of Golgi-resident Glycosyltransferases through the ER Reveals a Novel Pathway and Provides an Explanation for Nocodazole-induced Golgi Scattering

During microtubule depolymerization, the central, juxtanuclear Golgi apparatus scatters to multiple peripheral sites. We have tested here whether such scattering is due to a fragmentation process and subsequent outward tracking of Golgi units or if peripheral Golgi elements reform through a novel recycling pathway. To mark the Golgi in HeLa cells, we stably expressed the Golgi stack enzyme N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferase-2 (GalNAc-T2) fused to the green fluorescent protein (GFP) or to an 11–amino acid epitope, VSV-G (VSV), and the trans/TGN enzyme β1,4-galactosyltransferase (GalT) fused to GFP. After nocodazole addition, time-lapse microscopy of GalNAc-T2–GFP and GalT–GFP revealed that scattered Golgi elements appeared abruptly and that no Golgi fragments tracked outward from the compact, juxtanuclear Golgi complex. Once formed, the scattered structures were relatively stable in fluorescence intensity for tens of minutes. During the entire process of dispersal, immunogold labeling for GalNAc-T2–VSV and GalT showed that these were continuously concentrated over stacked Golgi cisternae and tubulovesicular Golgi structures similar to untreated cells, suggesting that polarized Golgi stacks reform rapidly at scattered sites. In fluorescence recovery after photobleaching over a narrow (FRAP) or wide area (FRAP-W) experiments, peripheral Golgi stacks continuously exchanged resident proteins with each other through what appeared to be an ER intermediate. That Golgi enzymes cycle through the ER was confirmed by microinjecting the dominant-negative mutant of Sar1 (Sar1p^dn) blocking ER export. Sar1p^dn was either microinjected into untreated or nocodazole-treated cells in the presence of protein synthesis inhibitors. In both cases, this caused a gradual accumulation of GalNAc-T2–VSV in the ER. Few to no peripheral Golgi elements were seen in the nocodazole-treated cells microinjected with Sar1p^dn. In conclusion, we have shown that Golgi-resident glycosylation enzymes recycle through the ER and that this novel pathway is the likely explanation for the nocodazole-induced Golgi scattering observed in interphase cells.     

Evidence that the entire Golgi apparatus cycles in interphase HeLa cells: sensitivity of Golgi matrix proteins to an ER exit block.

We tested whether the entire Golgi apparatus is a dynamic structure in interphase mammalian cells by assessing the response of 12 different Golgi region proteins to an endoplasmic reticulum (ER) exit block. The proteins chosen spanned the Golgi apparatus and included both Golgi glycosyltransferases and putative matrix proteins. Protein exit from ER was blocked either by microinjection of a GTP-restricted Sar1p mutant protein in the presence of a protein synthesis inhibitor, or by plasmid-encoded expression of the same dominant negative Sar1p. All Golgi region proteins examined lost juxtanuclear Golgi apparatus-like distribution as scored by conventional and confocal fluorescence microscopy in response to an ER exit block, albeit with a differential dependence on Sar1p concentration. Redistribution of GalNAcT2 was more sensitive to low Sar1p(dn) concentrations than giantin or GM130. Redistribution was most rapid for p27, COPI, and p115. Giantin, GM130, and GalNAcT2 relocated with approximately equal kinetics. Distinct ER accumulation could be demonstrated for all integral membrane proteins. ER-accumulated Golgi region proteins were functional. Photobleaching experiments indicated that Golgi-to-ER protein cycling occurred in the absence of any ER exit block. We conclude that the entire Golgi apparatus is a dynamic structure and suggest that most, if not all, Golgi region-integral membrane proteins cycle through ER in interphase cells.     

Inhibition of Golgi-apparatus function by brefeldin A in maize coleoptiles and its consequences on auxin-mediated growth,cell-wall extensibility and secretion of cell-wall proteins

Brefeldin A (BFA), a fungal metabolite causing dysfunction of the Golgi apparatus in plant and animal cells, was used to investigate the role of secretory processes at the plasma membrane in auxin-mediated elongation growth of maize (Zea mays L.) coleoptiles. In abraded coleoptile segments BFA produced, within less than 30 min, a decrease in the incorporation of [³H]leucine into tightly bound cell-wall proteins, accompanied by an increased incorporation into the intracellular pool of putative cell-wall glycoproteins. Total protein synthesis was not affected. Electron micrographs revealed striking morphological changes in dictyosomes (especially vesiculation of trans-cisternae), accumulation of Golgi vesicles and dilation of the endoplasmic reticulum. These effects are taken as indication that BFA interferes with the secretion of cell-wall components. Elongation growth of coleoptile segments in the presence and absence of auxin was inhibited by 80% in 20 mg·l^–1 BFA. If BFA was applied to segments growing in the presence of auxin, maximum inhibition was reached after about 30 min, indicating that the growth response depends on an uninterrupted supply of a cell-wall or plasma-membrane component (wall-loosening factor) delivered by the secretory pathway. After its secretion, this factor has a rather short growth-effective life time. The inhibition of auxin-mediated growth by BFA was accompanied by an elimination of auxin-induced cell-wall extensibility and by an inhibition of auxin-induced proton excretion. Fusicoccin-induced proton excretion was similarly affected by BFA. It is concluded that both the wall-loosening process underlying elongation growth as well as proton excretion depend on an intact secretory pathway from the Golgi apparatus to the cell wall; however, a causal relationship between these processes is not warranted by the data.Abbreviations BFA brefeldin A - FC fusicoccin - TCA trichloroacetic acid - WLF wall-loosening factor Supported by Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (SFB 206). We thank Ms. B. Huvermann and Mrs. C. Plachy for conducting growth and proton excretion measurements.     

Comparison of Golgi apparatus and endoplasmic reticulum proteins from livers of juvenile and aged rats using a novel technique for separation and enrichment of organelles.

The broad dynamic range of protein abundances, which can vary from about 10(6) for cells to 10(10) for tissues in complex proteomes, continues to challenge proteomics research. Proteome analysis, in particular organelle proteomics, using current approaches, requires extensive fractionation, separation, and enrichment. Over the years, organelle separation was achieved through the use of differential and density-gradient ultracentrifugation. However, the traditional fixed-volume process is a time-consuming and labor-intensive method, especially with large quantities of sample. Here, we present a novel tool for subcellular fractionation of biologically complex mixtures: continuous-flow ultracentrifugation of tissue homogenates to obtain both organelle separation and extensive organelle enrichment at the same time. In this study, rat liver tissues from two different age groups (3-8 wk and greater than 1 y old) were homogenized by blending. After removing nuclei, the resulting homogenates were further fractionated at the subcellular level by the use of sucrose gradient continuous-flow ultracentrifugation. Each organelle's enriched fractions were identified by Western blot analysis. To study the possible effects of aging on the endoplasmic reticulum and Golgi apparatus, we compared the organelle protein profiles of the two groups of rat liver tissues using two-dimensional gel electrophoresis, digitized imaging of two-dimensional gel electrophoresis, and mass spectrometry. Significant differences in the protein profiles of both organelles were observed between the two groups of rat tissues. The technique described here for fractionation and enrichment of organelles demonstrated a useful tool for proteomics research, including identification of low-abundance proteins and post-translational modifications.     

Golgi clusters and vesicles mediate mitotic inheritance independently of the endoplasmic reticulum

We have examined the fate of Golgi membranes during mitotic inheritance in animal cells using four-dimensional fluorescence microscopy, serial section reconstruction of electron micrographs, and peroxidase cytochemistry to track the fate of a Golgi enzyme fused to horseradish peroxidase. All three approaches show that partitioning of Golgi membranes is mediated by Golgi clusters that persist throughout mitosis, together with shed vesicles that are often found associated with spindle microtubules. We have been unable to find evidence that Golgi membranes fuse during the later phases of mitosis with the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) as a strategy for Golgi partitioning (Zaal, K.J., C.L. Smith, R.S. Polishchuk, N. Altan, N.B. Cole, J. Ellenberg, K. Hirschberg, J.F. Presley, T.H. Roberts, E. Siggia, et al. 1999. Cell. 99:589-601) and suggest that these results, in part, are the consequence of slow or abortive folding of GFP-Golgi chimeras in the ER. Furthermore, we show that accurate partitioning is accomplished early in mitosis, by a process of cytoplasmic redistribution of Golgi fragments and vesicles yielding a balance of Golgi membranes on either side of the metaphase plate before cell division.     

Depletion of vesicle-tethering factor p115 causes mini-stacked Golgi fragments with delayed protein transport

Depletion of p115 with small interfering RNA caused fragmentation of the Golgi apparatus, resulting in dispersed distribution of stacked short cisternae and a vesicular structure (mini-stacked Golgi). The mini-stacked Golgi with cis- and trans-organization is functional in protein transport and glycosylation, although secretion is considerably retarded in p115 knockdown cells. The fragmented Golgi was further disrupted by treatment with breferdin A and reassembled into the mini-stacked Golgi by removal of the drug, as observed in control cells. In addition, p115 knockdown cells maintained retrograde transport from the Golgi to the endoplasmic reticulum, although the rate was not as efficient as in control cells. While no alternation of microtubule networks was found in p115 knockdown cells, the fragmented Golgi resembled those in cells treated with anti-microtubule drugs. The results suggest that p115 is involved in vesicular transport between endoplasmic reticulum and the Golgi, along with microtubule networks.