Real-time imaging of the dynamics of secretory granules in growth cones

Secretory granules containing a hybrid protein consisting of the regulated secretory protein tissue plasminogen activator and an enhanced form of green fluorescent protein were tracked at high spatial resolution in growth cones of differentiated PC12 cells. Tracking shows that granules, unlike synaptic vesicles, generally are mobile in growth cones. Quantitative analysis of trajectories generated by granules revealed two dominant modes of motion: diffusive and directed. Diffusive motion was observed primarily in central and peripheral parts of growth cones, where most granules diffused two to four orders of magnitude more slowly than comparably sized spheres in dilute solution. Directed motion was observed primarily in proximal parts of growth cones, where a subset of granules underwent rapid, directed motion at average speeds comparable to those observed for granules in neurites. This high-resolution view of the dynamics of secretory granules in growth cones provides insight into granule organization and release at nerve terminals. In particular, the mobility of granules suggests that granules, unlike synaptic vesicles, are not tethered stably to cytoskeletal structures in nerve terminals. Moreover, the slow diffusive nature of this mobility suggests that secretory responses involving centrally distributed granules in growth cones will occur slowly, on a time scale of minutes or longer.     

Use of a crude extract or purified antigen from first‐instar cattle grubs,Hypoderma lineatum,for the detection of anti‐Hypoderma antibodies in free‐ranging cervids from southern Spain

During the 2003–2005 hunting seasons, a total of 120 Cervidae, including 39 red deer (Cervus elaphus hispanicus) and 81 fallow deer (Dama dama), were examined for subcutaneous myiasis. Animals were shot from January to June in southern Spain. Specific antibodies against Hypodermatinae (Diptera: Oestridae) were detected by indirect enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (iELISA) using a crude larval extract (CLE) and a purified antigen [hypodermin C (HC)] obtained from first instars of Hypoderma lineatum (De Villers) (Diptera: Oestridae). Hypoderma actaeon Brauer was the only species detected in this study, which represents the first confirmation of this species in fallow deer from Spain. The overall prevalence of animals presenting subcutaneous larvae (14.2%) was considerably lower than the prevalences determined by iELISA with CLE (43.3%) and HC (40.0%). Red deer showed a higher prevalence of Hypoderma than fallow deer. The concordance between larval examination during the hunting season and iELISA using both antigens was low, whereas the concordance between the CLE and HC ELISAs was good. Larval antigens obtained from H. lineatum constitute a good tool for the diagnosis of H. actaeon in Cervidae, especially when the hunting season does not coincide with the maximum presence of larvae on the back.     

On the functional interchangeability, oxidant versus reductant, of members of the thioredoxin superfamily

Escherichia coli thioredoxin 1 has been characterized in vivo and in vitro as one of the most efficient reductants of disulfide bonds. Nevertheless, under some conditions, thioredoxin 1 can also act in vivo as an oxidant, promoting formation of disulfide bonds in the cytoplasm (E. J. Stewart, F. Aslund, and J. Beckwith, EMBO J. 17:5543-5550, 1998). We recently showed that when a signal sequence is attached to thioredoxin 1 it is exported to the periplasm, where it can also act as an oxidant, replacing the normal periplasmic catalyst of disulfide bond formation, DsbA, in oxidizing cell envelope proteins (L. Debarbieux and J. Beckwith, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 95:10751-10756, 1998). Here we report pulse-chase studies of the efficiency of disulfide bond formation in strains exporting thioredoxin 1 and more-oxidizing variants of it. While the exported thioredoxin 1 itself substantially speeds up the kinetics of disulfide bond formation, a version of this protein containing the DsbA active site exhibits kinetics that are indistinguishable from those of the DsbA protein itself. Further, we confirm the findings of Jonda et al. (S. Jonda, M. Huber-Wunderlich, R. Glockshuber, and E. M?ssner, EMBO J. 18:3271-3281, 1999), who found that DsbB is responsible for the oxidation of exported thioredoxin 1, and we report the detection of a disulfide-bonded DsbB-thioredoxin 1 complex. Finally, we have found that under conditions of high-level expression of exported thioredoxin 1, the protein can act as both an oxidant and a reductant.     

Allele-specific interactions between the yeast RFC1 and RFC5 genes suggest a basis for RFC subunit-subunit interactions

Replication factor C (RFC) is an essential, multi-subunit ATPase that functions in DNA replication, DNA repair, and DNA metabolism-related checkpoints. In order to investigate how the individual RFC subunits contribute to these functions in vivo, we undertook a genetic analysis of RFC genes from budding yeast. We isolated and characterized mutations in the RFC5 gene that could suppress the cold-sensitive phenotype of rfc1-1 mutants. Analysis of the RFC5 suppressors revealed that they could not suppress the elongated telomere phenotype, the sensitivity to DNA damaging agents, or the mutator phenotype of rfc1-1 mutants. Unlike the checkpoint-defective rfc5-1 mutation, the RFC5 suppressor mutations did not interfere with the methylmethane sulfonate- or hydroxyurea-induced phosphorylation of Rad53p. The Rfc5p suppressor substitutions mapped to amino acid positions in the conserved RFC box motifs IV-VII. Comparisons of the structures of related RFC box-containing proteins suggest that these RFC motifs may function to coordinate interactions between neighboring subunits of multi-subunit ATPases.     

Transmembrane electron transfer by the membrane protein DsbD occurs via a disulfide bond cascade

The cytoplasmic membrane protein DsbD transfers electrons from the cytoplasm to the periplasm of E. coli, where its reducing power is used to maintain cysteines in certain proteins in the reduced state. We split DsbD into three structural domains, each containing two essential cysteines. Remarkably, when coexpressed, these truncated proteins restore DsbD function. Utilizing this three piece system, we were able to determine a pathway of the electrons through DsbD. Our findings strongly suggest that the pathway is based on a series of multistep redox reactions that include direct interactions between thioredoxin and DsbD, and between DsbD and its periplasmic substrates. A thioredoxin-fold domain in DsbD appears to have the novel role of intramolecular electron shuttle.     

Diverse paths to midcell: assembly of the bacterial cell division machinery

At the heart of bacterial cell division is a dynamic ring-like structure of polymers of the tubulin homologue FtsZ. This ring forms a scaffold for assembly of at least ten additional proteins at midcell, the majority of which are likely to be involved in remodeling the peptidoglycan cell wall at the division site. Together with FtsZ, these proteins are thought to form a cell division complex, or divisome. In Escherichia coli, the components of the divisome are recruited to midcell according to a strikingly linear hierarchy that predicts a step-wise assembly pathway. However, recent studies have revealed unexpected complexity in the assembly steps, indicating that the apparent linearity does not necessarily reflect a temporal order. The signals used to recruit cell division proteins to midcell are diverse and include regulated self-assembly, protein-protein interactions, and the recognition of specific septal peptidoglycan substrates. There is also evidence for a complex web of interactions among these proteins and at least one distinct subcomplex of cell division proteins has been defined, which is conserved among E. coli, Bacillus subtilis and Streptococcus pneumoniae.     

Inferring developmental modularity from morphological integration: analysis of individual variation and asymmetry in bumblebee wings

Organisms are built from distinct modules, which are internally coherent but flexible in their relationships among one another. We examined morphological variation within and between two candidate modules: the fore- and hindwings of bumblebees (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Bombus empatiens). We used the techniques of geometric morphometrics (Procrustes superimposition) to analyze the variation of landmark configurations in fore- and hindwings. Regression was used to correct for size-related shape variation (allometry). Principal component analysis revealed patterns of variation that were remarkably similar for individual variation and fluctuating asymmetry (FA). Because covariation of FA among parts must be due to direct transmission of the developmental perturbations causing FA, this agreement of patterns suggests that much of individual variation is also due to direct developmental interactions within each developing wing. Moreover, partial least squares analysis indicated that the patterns of shape covariation between fore- and hindwings were nearly the same as the patterns of within-wing variation. Shape covariation of FA was only found in bees that had been reared under elevated CO(2) concentration but not in bees from the control treatment, suggesting that the mechanisms of developmental interactions between fore- and hindwings are related to gas exchange. We conclude that the fore- and hindwings are developmental modules that maintain internal coherence through direct developmental interactions and are connected to each other only by relatively few links that use the system of interactions within modules.