The Ctf18 RFC-like complex positions yeast telomeres but does not specify their replication time

Chromosome ends in Saccharomyces cerevisiae are positioned in clusters at the nuclear rim. We report that Ctf18, Ctf8, and Dcc1, the subunits of a Replication Factor C (RFC)-like complex, are essential for the perinuclear positioning of telomeres. In both yeast and mammalian cells, peripheral nuclear positioning of chromatin during G1 phase correlates with late DNA replication. We find that the mislocalized telomeres of ctf18 cells still replicate late, showing that late DNA replication does not require peripheral positioning during G1. The Ku and Sir complexes have been shown to act through separate pathways to position telomeres, but in the absence of Ctf18 neither pathway can act fully to maintain telomere position. Surprisingly CTF18 is not required for Ku or Sir4-mediated peripheral tethering of a nontelomeric chromosome locus. Our results suggest that the Ctf18 RFC-like complex modifies telomeric chromatin to make it competent for normal localization to the nuclear periphery.     

Glycogen synthase kinase 3 and h-prune regulate cell migration by modulating focal adhesions

h-prune, which has been suggested to be involved in cell migration, was identified as a glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK-3)-binding protein. Treatment of cultured cells with GSK-3 inhibitors or small interfering RNA (siRNA) for GSK-3 and h-prune inhibited their motility. The kinase activity of GSK-3 was required for the interaction of GSK-3 with h-prune. h-prune was localized to focal adhesions, and the siRNA for GSK-3 or h-prune delayed the disassembly of paxillin. The tyrosine phosphorylation of focal adhesion kinase (FAK) and the activation of Rac were suppressed in GSK-3 or h-prune knocked-down cells. GSK-3 inhibitors suppressed the disassembly of paxillin and the activation of FAK and Rac. Furthermore, h-prune was highly expressed in colorectal and pancreatic cancers, and the positivity of the h-prune expression was correlated with tumor invasion. These results suggest that GSK-3 and h-prune cooperatively regulate the disassembly of focal adhesions to promote cell migration and that h-prune is useful as a marker for tumor aggressiveness.     

Cloning and expression of two crystal protein genes, cry30Ba1 and cry44Aa1, obtained from a highly mosquitocidal strain, Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. entomocidus INA288

Two novel crystal protein genes, cry30Ba and cry44Aa, were cloned from Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. entomocidus INA288 and expressed in an acrystalliferous strain. Cry44Aa crystals were highly toxic to second-instar Culex pipiens pallens (50% mortality concentration [LC50] = 6 ng/ml) and Aedes aegypti (LC50 = 12 ng/ml); however, Cry30Ba crystals were not toxic.     

Genetic analysis of the mode of interplay between an ATPase subunit and membrane subunits of the lipoprotein-releasing ATP-binding cassette transporter LolCDE

The LolCDE complex, an ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter, releases lipoproteins from the inner membrane, thereby initiating lipoprotein sorting to the outer membrane of Escherichia coli. The LolCDE complex is composed of two copies of an ATPase subunit, LolD, and one copy each of integral membrane subunits LolC and LolE. LolD hydrolyzes ATP on the cytoplasmic side of the inner membrane, while LolC and/or LolE recognize and release lipoproteins anchored to the periplasmic leaflet of the inner membrane. Thus, functional interaction between LolD and LolC/E is critically important for coupling of ATP hydrolysis to the lipoprotein release reaction. LolD contains a characteristic sequence called the LolD motif, which is highly conserved among LolD homologs but not other ABC transporters of E. coli. The LolD motif is suggested to be a region in contact with LolC/E, judging from the crystal structures of other ABC transporters. To determine the functions of the LolD motif, we mutagenized each of the 32 residues of the LolD motif and isolated 26 dominant-negative mutants, whose overexpression arrested growth despite the chromosomal lolD(+) background. We then selected suppressor mutations of the lolC and lolE genes that correct the growth defect caused by the LolD mutations. Mutations of the lolC suppressors were mainly located in the periplasmic loop, whereas ones of lolE suppressors were mainly located in the cytoplasmic loop, suggesting that the mode of interaction with LolD differs between LolC and LolE. Moreover, the LolD motif was found to be critical for functional interplay with LolC/E, since some LolD mutations lowered the ATPase activity of LolCDE without affecting that of LolD.     

Cardiac progenitor cells in brown adipose tissue repaired damaged myocardium

Cardiomyocyte (CM) regeneration is limited in adult life and is not sufficient to prevent myocardial infarction. Hence, the identification of a useful source of CM progenitors is of great interest for possible use in regenerative therapy. Mesenchymal stem cells in bone marrow, embryonic stem cells, and skeletal myoblasts are known sources of CM repletion; however, there are a number of critical problems for clinical application. In this study, we succeeded to identify CM progenitor cells in brown adipose tissue (BAT). Moreover, we showed that CM progenitor cells in BAT that existed in CD29-positive population could differentiate into CM with high efficiency. To confirm the in vivo effect of CD29(+)BAT-derived cells (BATDCs), we transplanted these cells into infarct border zone of an acute myocardial infarction model in rat. Results clearly indicated that implantation of CD29(+) BATDCs led to the reduction of the infarction area and improvement of left ventricular function by replacing newly developed CMs in comparison with that by CD29(+) white adipose tissue-derived cells or control saline. These findings suggest that BATDCs are one of the useful sources for a new strategy in CM regeneration.     

WRNIP1 accumulates at laser light irradiated sites rapidly via its ubiquitin-binding zinc finger domain and independently from its ATPase domain

WRNIP1 (Werner helicase-interacting protein 1) was originally identified as a protein that interacts with the Werner syndrome responsible gene product. WRNIP1 contains a ubiquitin-binding zinc-finger (UBZ) domain in the N-terminal region and two leucine zipper motifs in the C-terminal region. In addition, it possesses an ATPase domain in the middle of the molecule and the lysine residues serving as ubiquitin acceptors in the entire of the molecule. Here, we report that WRNIP1 accumulates in laser light irradiated sites very rapidly via its ubiquitin-binding zinc finger domain, which is known to bind polyubiquitin and to be involved in ubiquitination of WRNIP1 itself. The accumulation of WRNIP1 in laser light irradiated sites also required the C-terminal region containing two leucine zippers, which is reportedly involved in the oligomerization of WRNIP1. Mutated WRNIP1 with a deleted ATPase domain or with mutations in lysine residues, which serve as ubiquitin acceptors, accumulated in laser light irradiated sites, suggesting that the ATPase domain of WRNIP1 and ubiquitination of WRNIP1 are dispensable for the accumulation.     

Rab14 and its exchange factor FAM116 link endocytic recycling and adherens junction stability in migrating cells

Rab GTPases define the vesicle trafficking pathways underpinning cell polarization and migration. Here, we find that Rab4, Rab11, and Rab14 and the candidate Rab GDP-GTP exchange factors (GEFs) FAM116A and AVL9 are required for cell migration. Rab14 and its GEF FAM116A localize to and act on an intermediate compartment of the transferrin-recycling pathway prior to Rab11 and after Rab5 and Rab4. This Rab14 intermediate recycling compartment has specific functions in migrating cells discrete from early and recycling endosomes. Rab14-depleted cells show increased N-cadherin levels at junctional complexes and cannot resolve cell-cell junctions. This is due to decreased shedding of cell-surface N-cadherin by the ADAM family protease ADAM10/Kuzbanian. In FAM116A- and Rab14-depleted cells, ADAM10 accumulates in a transferrin-positive endocytic compartment, and the cell-surface level of ADAM10 is correspondingly reduced. FAM116 and Rab14 therefore define an endocytic recycling pathway needed for ADAM protease trafficking and regulation of cell-cell junctions.     

Mutation accumulation in a selfing population: consequences of different mutation rates between selfers and outcrossers

Currently existing theories predict that because deleterious mutations accumulate at a higher rate, selfing populations suffer from more intense genetic degradation relative to outcrossing populations. This prediction may not always be true when we consider a potential difference in deleterious mutation rate between selfers and outcrossers. By analyzing the evolutionary stability of selfing and outcrossing in an infinite population, we found that the genome-wide deleterious mutation rate would be lower in selfing than in outcrossing organisms. When this difference in mutation rate was included in simulations, we found that in a small population, mutations accumulated more slowly under selfing rather than outcrossing. This result suggests that under frequent and intense bottlenecks, a selfing population may have a lower risk of genetic extinction than an outcrossing population.     

Strategies to detect interdigital cell death in the frog, Xenopus laevis: T3 accerelation, BMP application, and mesenchymal cell cultivation

Fates of digits in amniotes, i.e., free or webbed digits, are determined by the size of programmed interdigital cell death (ICD) area. However, no (or very few) cell death has thus far been observed in developing limb buds of non-amniotic terrestrial vertebrates including other anuran or urodela amphibians. We speculate that the undetectable situation of amphibian ICD is the result of their less frequency due to slow developmental speed characteristic to most amphibian species. Here, we present three strategies for detecting difficult-to-find ICD in the frog, Xenopus laevis. (1) Addition of triiodo-L-thyronine (T(3)) accelerated two to three times the limb development and increased two to four times the appearance frequency of vital dye-stainable cells in limb buds of the accelerated tadpoles (stage 54 to 55). (2) Application of human bone morphogenetic protein-4 to the autopods of tadpoles at stage 53 to 54 enhanced digital cartilage formation and induced vital dye-stainable cells around the enhanced digital cartilages within 2 d. (3) In cell culture, T(3) increased the chondrogenic and cell death activities of limb mesenchymal cells. The augmentation of both activities by T(3) was stronger in the forelimb cells than in the hindlimb cells. This situation is well coincided with the limb fates of non-webbed forelimbs and webbed hindlimbs in X. laevis adulthood. Collectively, all three approaches showed that it become possible to detect X. laevis ICD with appropriate strategies.