Morphogenesis of the polarized epithelial cell phenotype

Polarized distribution of Na,K-ATPase in honeybee photoreceptors is maintained by interaction with glial cells

Arthropod photoreceptors are polarized cells displaying distinct surface domains. The distribution of the Na,K-ATPase (sodium pump) over these domains was examined in the honeybee photoreceptor using a monoclonal antibody that specifically recognizes the sodium pump alpha-subunit (approximately 100 kDa). We find that the sodium pump is restricted to sites of the nonreceptive photoreceptor surface closely juxtaposed to glial cells; no sodium pumps were detected on the glia-free domains of the nonreceptive surface and on the light-sensitive microvillar membranes. In order to determine the role of photoreceptor-glia contact in maintaining this polarized pump distribution, we assayed the distribution of the Na,K-ATPase after experimentally influencing photoreceptor-glia contact. Sodium pumps were present on the entire nonreceptive photoreceptor surface when photoreceptor-glia contact was removed by isolating the photoreceptors. Remodeling photoreceptor-glia contact by incubation in hyperosmotic saline caused a redistribution of sodium pumps on the photoreceptor surface corresponding to the redistribution of glial cells. We show, further, that both photoreceptor-glia contact and Na,K-ATPase distribution are independent of extracellular Ca2+. No junctional structures were observed at the borders between Na,K-ATPase-positive and Na,K-ATPase-negative membrane domains. Together, these results suggest that adhesion of glial cells to the photoreceptors plays a crucial role in the maintenance of the polarized distribution of Na,K-ATPase in the honeybee photoreceptors. The Ca(2+)-independent adhesion of glial cells to the photoreceptor surface may trap the pump molecules at the sites of photoreceptor-glia contact.

Rab17, a novel small GTPase, is specific for epithelial cells and is induced during cell polarization

The rab subfamily of small GTPases has been demonstrated to play an important role in the regulation of membrane traffic in eukaryotic cells. Compared with nonpolarized cells, epithelial cells have distinct apical and basolateral transport pathways which need to be separately regulated. This raises the question whether epithelial cells require specific rab proteins. However, all rab proteins identified so far were found to be equally expressed in polarized and nonpolarized cells. Here we report the identification of rab17, the first epithelial cell-specific small GTPase. Northern blot analysis on various mouse organs, revealed that the rab17 mRNA is present in kidney, liver, and intestine but not in organs lacking epithelial cells nor in fibroblasts. To determine whether rab17 is specific for epithelial cells we studied its expression in the developing kidney. We found that rab17 is absent from the mesenchymal precursors but is induced upon their differentiation into epithelial cells. In situ hybridization studies on the embryonic kidney and intestine revealed that rab17 is restricted to epithelial cells. By immunofluorescence and immunoelectron microscopy on kidney sections, rab17 was localized to the basolateral plasma membrane and to apical tubules. Rab proteins associated with two distinct compartments have been found to regulate transport between them. Therefore, our data suggest that rab17 might be involved in transcellular transport.

Polarized distribution of the viral glycoproteins of vesicular stomatitis, fowl plague and Semliki Forest viruses in hippocampal neurons in culture: a light and electron microscopy study

We have shown previously using immunofluorescence microscopy that upon infection of polarized hippocampal cells in culture with vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) and fowl plague virus (FPV) the VSV glycoprotein is delivered to the plasma membrane of the dendrites and of the cell body whereas the FPV hemagglutinin is transported to the axonal surface (Cell, 62 (1990) 63-72). In this work electron microscopy of infected rat hippocampal neurons showed that VSV progeny budded from the plasma membrane of the dendrites and the cell body. The location of the budding virions corresponded to the distribution of the VSV glycoprotein which was detected over the somatodendritic plasma membrane by immunoelectron microscopy. In contrast, no FPV formation was seen in the infected neurons although the FPV hemagglutinin was localized to the axonal surface by immunoelectron microscopy. In Semliki Forest virus (SFV) infected hippocampal cells we observed that the viral glycoproteins were exclusively present in the dendrites and cell body but not in axons.

An ion-transporting ATPase encodes multiple apical localization signals

Epithelial cells accumulate distinct populations of membrane proteins at their two plasmalemmal domains. We have examined the molecular signals which specify the differential subcellular distributions of two closely related ion pumps. The Na,K-ATPase is normally restricted to the basolateral membranes of numerous epithelial cell types, whereas the H,K-ATPase is a component of the apical surfaces of the parietal cells of the gastric epithelium. We have expressed full length and chimeric H,K-ATPase/Na,K-ATPase cDNAs in polarized renal proximal tubular epithelial cells (LLC-PK1). We find that both the alpha and beta subunits of the H,K-ATPase encode independent signals that specify apical localization. Furthermore, the H,K-ATPase beta-subunit possesses a sequence which mediates its participation in the endocytic pathway. The interrelationship between epithelial sorting and endocytosis signals suggested by these studies supports the redefinition of apical and basolateral as functional, rather than simply topographic domains.

Apical polarization of N-CAM in retinal pigment epithelium is dependent on contact with the neural retina

The retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) is unique among epithelia in that its apical surface does not face a lumen, but, instead, is specialized for interaction with the neural retina. The molecules involved in the interaction of the RPE with the neural retina are not known. We show here that the neural cell adhesion molecule (N-CAM) is found both on the apical surface of RPE in situ and on the outer segments of photoreceptors, fulfilling an important requisite for an adhesion role between both structures. Strikingly, culture of RPE results in rapid redistribution of N-CAM to the basolateral surface. This is not due to an isoform shift, since the N-CAM expressed by cultured cells (140 kD) is the same as that expressed by RPE in vivo. Rather, the reversed polarity of N-CAM appears to result from the disruption of the contact between the RPE and the photoreceptors of the neural retina. We suggest that N-CAM in RPE and photoreceptors participate in these interactions.

Protein trafficking along the exocytotic pathway

Proteins of the exocytotic (secretory) pathway are initially targeted to the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and then translocated across and/or inserted into the membrane of the ER. During their anterograde transport with the bulk of the membrane flow along the exocytotic pathway, some proteins are selectively retained in various intracellular compartments, while others are sorted to different branches of the pathway. The signals or structural motifs that are involved in these selective targeting processes are being revealed and investigations into the mechanistic nature of these processes are actively underway.

GPI-anchored proteins associate to form microdomains during their intracellular transport in Caco-2 cells

In this study, we have investigated the possibility that glycosyl-phosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored proteins form insoluble membrane complexes in Caco-2 cells and that transmembrane proteins are associated with these complexes. GPI-anchored proteins were mainly resistant to Triton X-100 (TX-100) extraction at 4 degrees C but fully soluble in n-octyl-glucoside. Resistance to Triton X-100 extraction was not observed in the endoplasmic reticulum but appeared during transport through the Golgi complex. It was not dependent upon N-glycosylation processing, or pH variation from 6.5 to 8.5, and was not affected by sterol-binding agents. Other apical or basolateral transmembrane proteins were well solubilized in TX-100, with the exception of sucrase-isomaltase, which was partly insoluble. We isolated a membrane fraction from Caco-2 cells that contained GPI-anchored proteins and sucrase-isomaltase but no antigen 525, a basolateral marker, or dipeptidylpeptidase IV, an apical one. These data suggest that GPI-anchored proteins cluster to form membrane microdomains together with an apical transmembrane protein, providing a possible apical sorting mechanism for intestinal cells in vitro that might be related to apical sorting in MDCK cells, and that other mechanisms might exist to sort proteins to the apical membrane.

Polar location of the chemoreceptor complex in the Escherichia coli cell

The eukaryotic cell exhibits compartmentalization of functions to various membrane-bound organelles and to specific domains within each membrane. The spatial distribution of the membrane chemoreceptors and associated cytoplasmic chemotaxis proteins in Escherichia coli were examined as a prototypic functional aggregate in bacterial cells. Bacterial chemotaxis involves a phospho-relay system brought about by ligand association with a membrane receptor, culminating in a switch in the direction of flagellar rotation. The transduction of the chemotaxis signal is initiated by a chemoreceptor-CheW-CheA ternary complex at the inner membrane. These ternary complexes aggregate predominantly at the cell poles. Polar localization of the cytoplasmic CheA and CheW proteins is dependent on membrane-bound chemoreceptor. Chemoreceptors are not confined to the cell poles in strains lacking both CheA and CheW. The chemoreceptor-CheW binary complex is polarly localized in the absence of CheA, whereas the chemoreceptor-CheA binary complex is not confined to the cell poles in strains lacking CheW. The subcellular localization of the chemotaxis proteins may reflect a general mechanism by which the bacterial cell sequesters different regions of the cell for specialized functions.

Apical secretion of apolipoproteins from enterocytes

Synthesis and secretion of apolipoproteins in pig small intestine was studied by pulse-chase labeling of jejunal segments, kept in organ culture. Apo A-1 and apo B-48 were the two major proteins released, constituting 25 and 10%, respectively, of the total amount of labeled protein in the mucosal-side medium where they appeared with a t1/2 of 50-60 min. Using tissue from fasting animals, > 85% of newly synthesized apo A-1 and about one third of apo B-48 was released to the mucosal-side medium. Newly synthesized apolipoprotein that remained associated with the intestinal segment accumulated in the soluble fraction, suggesting a basolateral secretion into the intercellular space, and both this accumulation and the release to the medium was prevented by culture at 20 degrees C. The specific radioactivity of apo A-1 and apo B-48 released to the medium was significantly higher than that of the corresponding apolipoproteins remaining associated with the intestinal tissue. Furthermore, during culture periods of up to 5 h, the enterocytes and their tight junctions largely remained intact as evidenced by the inaccessibility of the nonpermeable surface marker Ruthenium red. We therefore propose that enterocytes release most of their newly made free apo A-1 and a significant portion of apo B-48 by exocytosis via the brush border membrane into the intestinal lumen. Fat absorption reduced apolipoprotein secretion to the medium and induced the formation of chylomicrons, containing apo A-1 at their surface, as evidenced by immunogold electron microscopy. The chylomicrons were localized in the Golgi complex and near the basolateral plasma membrane, but not in the apical region of the enterocytes, indicating that only free apolipoproteins are secreted to the intestinal lumen.

Oligodendrocyte proteoglycans: modulation by cell-substratum adhesion

The signals that trigger the cytodifferentiation of oligodendrocytes (OLGs) are largely unknown. Using as a model system cultures of pure OLGs, we have shown that adhesion to a substratum initiates myelinogenesis (Yim SH, Szuchet S, Polak PE, J Biol Chem 261:11808-11815, 1986). It was of interest to investigate whether components such as proteoglycans (PGs) play any role in the biology of OLGs as it pertains to myelinogenesis. We set out to determine first, whether OLGs carry PGs; second, the nature of the association of these components with OLG plasma membrane; and third, if and how these PGs are modulated by OLG-substratum interaction. We compared the expression and characteristics of PGs extracted with different solvents from nonattached (B3.f) and attached (B3.fA) OLGs. B3.f and B3.fA OLG cultures were labeled with carrier-free 35SO4(2-) in serum-free medium. After removing excess label, OLGs were treated with heparin to extract susceptible components. Pellets were then exposed to 1% Triton X-100 plus 0.1 M NaCl and subsequently to 4 M guanidine-HCl plus 0.5 M NaCl. Solutions containing extracted material were characterized by size-exclusion chromatography, SDS-PAGE, and enzymatic degradation. Herein we report that (1) OLGs display [35S]PGs on their surface within 24 hr of substratum adhesion, and (2) these PGs can be operationally classified as peripheral and integral. We further show that the peripheral PGs are of high and intermediate size as assessed by size-exclusion chromatography and are segregated within the plasma membrane in such a way that the species with intermediate mass are extracted while OLGs remain adhered, whereas the high-molecular-weight species are only extracted after OLGs have been detached. Heparin also dislodges a number of sulfated proteins/Gps. Only a single class--high molecular weight--of integral PGs was identified; this PG requires guanidine-HCl for extraction. All PGs belong to the heparan sulfate class as evidenced by their degradation with heparitinase and their lack of susceptibility to chondroitinase ABC. The common theme of our findings is that these macromolecules have basal levels of expression in the nonadhered OLGs but undergo an adhesion-induced enhancement in their syntheses. We postulate that these PGs (1) play a role in OLG-substratum adhesion and hence myelinogenesis, and (2) may be determinants in establishing OLG polarity. Such polarization is the first overt sign of OLG functional differentiation and occurs prior to any morphological differentiation, e.g., extension of processes does not occur until 48 hr later when the plasma membrane is already polarized.

The amino-terminal domain of the lamin B receptor is a nuclear envelope targeting signal

The lamin B receptor (LBR) is a polytopic protein of the inner nuclear membrane. It is synthesized without a cleavable amino-terminal signal sequence and composed of a nucleoplasmic amino-terminal domain of 204 amino acids followed by a hydrophobic domain with eight putative transmembrane segments. To identify a nuclear envelope targeting signal, we have examined the cellular localization by immunofluorescence microscopy of chicken LBR, its amino-terminal domain and chimeric proteins transiently expressed in transfected COS-7. Full-length LBR was targeted to the nuclear envelope. The amino-terminal domain, without any transmembrane segments, was transported to the nucleus but excluded from the nucleolus. When the amino-terminal domain of LBR was fused to the amino-terminal side of a transmembrane segment of a type II integral membrane protein of the ER/plasma membrane, the chimeric protein was targeted to the nuclear envelope, likely the inner nuclear membrane. When the amino-terminal domain was deleted from LBR and replaced by alpha-globin, the chimeric protein was retained in the ER. These findings demonstrate that the amino-terminal domain of LBR is targeted to the nucleus after synthesis in the cytoplasm and that this polypeptide can function as a nuclear envelope targeting signal when located at the amino terminus of a type II integral membrane protein synthesized on the ER.

Tyrosine kinase receptors in the control of epithelial growth and morphogenesis during development

The c-ros, c-met and c-neu genes encode receptor-type tyrosine kinases and were originally identified because of their oncogenic potential. However, recent progress in the analysis of these receptors and their respective ligands indicate that they do not mediate exclusively mitogenic signals. Rather, they can induce cell movement, differentiation or morphogenesis of epithelial cells in culture. Interestingly, the discussed receptors are expressed in embryonal epithelia, whereas direct and indirect evidence shows that the corresponding ligands are produced in mesenchymal cells. In development, signals given by mesenchymal cells are major driving forces for differentiation and morphogenesis of epithelia; embryonal epithelia are generally unable to differentiate without the appropriate mesenchymal factors. The observed activities of these receptor/ligand systems in cultured cells and their expression patterns indicate that they regulate epithelial differentiation and morphogenesis also during embryogenesis and suggest thus a molecular basis for mesenchymal epithelial interactions.

Spatial and temporal dissection of immediate and early events following cadherin-mediated epithelial cell adhesion

Cell-cell adhesion is at the top of a molecular cascade of protein interactions that leads to the remodeling of epithelial cell structure and function. The earliest events that initiate this cascade are poorly understood. Using high resolution differential interference contrast microscopy and retrospective immunohistochemistry, we observed that cell-cell contact in MDCK epithelial cells consists of distinct stages that correlate with specific changes in the interaction of E-cadherin with the cytoskeleton. We show that formation of a stable contact is preceded by numerous, transient contacts. During this time and immediately following formation of a stable contact, there are no detectable changes in the distribution, relative amount, or Triton X-100 insolubility of E-cadherin at the contact. After a lag period of approximately 10 min, there is a rapid acquisition of Triton X-100 insolubility of E-cadherin localized to the stable contact. Significantly, the total amount of E-cadherin at the contact remains unchanged during this time. The increase in the Triton X-100 insoluble pool of E-cadherin does not correlate with changes in the distribution of actin or fodrin, suggesting that the acquisition of the Triton X-100 insolubility is due to changes in E-cadherin itself, or closely associated proteins such as the catenins. The 10 minute lag period, and subsequent prompt and localized nature of E-cadherin reorganization indicate a form of signaling is occurring.

Assembly of GABAA receptor subunits determines sorting and localization in polarized cells

The GABAA receptor, the principal inhibitory receptor in the CNS, is distributed on cell bodies, dendrites, and in some cells at axon hillocks and presynaptic terminals. The dendritic distribution is crucial for shunting of excitatory synaptic inputs. Molecular cloning has revealed that the GABAA receptor can be formed by a diverse set of subunits and by separately encoded subunit isoforms, the expression of each of which differs in distinct areas of the central nervous system and during development. Why different genes exist to encode these isoforms is not clear, but may be linked to functional differences. Here we show that assembly of specific isoforms also codes for sorting and localization of the receptor complex. Confocal microscopy and immunoblot analysis of epithelial cells transfected with the complementary DNAs encoding the alpha 1 and beta 1 GABAA receptor subunits and probed with subunit isoform-specific antibodies show that the alpha 1 subunit is targeted to the basolateral surface, and that the beta 1 subunit is sorted to the apical membrane. In cells where alpha 1 and beta 1 isoforms are co-expressed, assembly of the beta 1 with the alpha 1 subunit isoform re-routes the alpha 1 subunit to the apical surface. The ability to assemble complexes of different isoform composition and to target these to specific regions of the cell surface would enable neurons to modulate GABAA receptor distribution and possibly alter the composition of its synapses in response to transcriptional levels of specific subunit isoforms.

Breaching the diffusion barrier that compartmentalizes the transmembrane glycoprotein CE9 to the posterior-tail plasma membrane domain of the rat spermatozoon

CE9 is a posterior-tail domain-specific integral plasma membrane glycoprotein of the rat testicular spermatozoon. During epididymal maturation, CE9 undergoes endoproteolytic processing and then redistributes into the anterior-tail plasma membrane domain of the spermatozoon (Petruszak, J. A. M., C. L. Nehme, and J. R. Bartles. 1991. J. Cell. Biol. 114:917-927). We have determined the sequence of CE9 and found it to be a Type Ia transmembrane protein identical to the MRC OX-47 T-cell activation antigen, a member of the immunoglobulin superfamily predicted to have two immunoglobulin-related loops and three asparagine-linked glycans disposed extracellularly. Although encoded by a single gene and mRNA in the rat, the majority of spermatozoal CE9 is of smaller apparent molecular mass than its hepatocytic counterpart due to the under-utilization of sites for asparagine-linked glycosylation. By fluorescence recovery after photobleaching, CE9 was determined to be mobile within the posterior-tail plasma membrane domain of the living rat testicular spermatozoon, thus implying the existence of a regional barrier to lateral diffusion that is presumed to operate at the level of the annulus. Through the development of an in vitro system, the modification of this diffusion barrier to allow for the subsequent redistribution of CE9 into the anterior-tail domain was found to be a time-, temperature-, and energy-dependent process.

Regulation of cell function by extracellular matrix

The extracellular matrix (ECM) provides structural support and adhesive substrates for the body tissues. Recent advances in our understanding of the biology of matrix indicate that the ECM also plays a significant role in regulating the behavior of cells. Matrix proteins engender changes in cell shape and movement, bind growth factors, and facilitate cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions. Matrix-induced differentiation results from multiple stimuli that include: tensile forces on the cell, cytokine- or growth factor-mediated stimulation, and interaction with bioactive domains of matrix glycoproteins. Because these signals are important determinants of cell behavior, pharmacological manipulation of cell-matrix interactions may offer a valuable new approach to disease treatment.

Correctly sorted molecules of a GPI-anchored protein are clustered and immobile when they arrive at the apical surface of MDCK cells

Glycosyl-phosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored proteins are sorted to the apical surface of many epithelial cell types. To better understand the mechanism for apical segregation of these proteins, we analyzed the lateral mobility and molecular associations of a model GPI-anchored protein, herpes simplex virus gD1 fused to human decay accelerating factor (gD1-DAF) (Lisanti, M. P., I. W. Caras, M. A. Davitz, and E. Rodriguez-Boulan. 1989. J. Cell Biol. 109:2145-2156) shortly after arrival and after long-term residence at the surface of confluent, polarized MDCK cells. FRAP measurements of lateral diffusion showed that the mobile fraction of newly arrived gD1-DAF molecules was much less than the mobile fraction of long-term resident molecules (40 vs. 80-90%). Fluorescence resonance energy transfer measurements showed that the newly arrived molecules were clustered, while resident molecules were not. Newly delivered gD1-DAF molecules were clustered but not immobilized in mutant, Concanavalin A-resistant MDCK cells that failed to sort gD1-DAF. Our results indicate that GPI-anchored proteins in MDCK cells are clustered before delivery to the surface. However, clustering alone does not target molecules for apical delivery. The immobilization observed when gD1-DAF is correctly sorted suggests that the clusters must associate some component of the cell's cytoplasm.

CHIP28 water channels are localized in constitutively water-permeable segments of the nephron

The sites of water transport along the nephron are well characterized, but the molecular basis of renal water transport remains poorly understood. CHIP28 is a 28-kD integral protein which was proposed to mediate transmembrane water movement in red cells and kidney (Preston, G. M., T. P. Carroll, W. B. Guggino, and P. Agre. 1992. Science [Wash. DC]. 256:385-387). To determine whether CHIP28 could account for renal epithelial water transport, we used specific polyclonal antibodies to quantitate and localize CHIP28 at cellular and subcellular levels in rat kidney using light and electron microscopy. CHIP28 comprised 3.8% of isolated proximal tubule brush border protein. Except for the first few cells of the S1 segment, CHIP28 was immunolocalized throughout the convoluted and straight proximal tubules where it was observed in the microvilli of the apical brush border and in basolateral membranes. Very little CHIP28 was detected in endocytic vesicles or other intracellular structures in proximal tubules. Uninterrupted, heavy immunostaining of CHIP28 was also observed over both apical and basolateral membranes of descending thin limbs, including both short and long loops of Henle. These nephron sites have constitutively high osmotic water permeabilities. CHIP28 was not detected in ascending thin limbs, thick ascending limbs, or distal tubules, which are highly impermeable to water. Moreover, CHIP28 was not detected in collecting duct epithelia, where water permeability is regulated by antidiuretic hormone. These determinations of abundance and structural organization provide evidence that the CHIP28 water channel is the predominant pathway for constitutive transepithelial water transport in the proximal tubule and descending limb of Henle's loop.

Immortalization of polarized rat retinal pigment epithelium

Rat retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells were immortalized by infection with a temperature-sensitive tsA SV40 virus and following cloning and selection for epithelial properties the polarized RPE-J cell line was obtained. At the permissive temperature of 33 degrees C, RPE-J cells behave as an immortalized cell line. When RPE-J cells are grown on nitrocellulose filters coated with a thin layer of Matrigel in the presence of 10(−8) M retinoic acid for 6 days at 33 degrees C and then switched for 33–36 hours to the non-permissive temperature of 40 degrees C, they acquire a differentiated polarized RPE phenotype. Under these growth conditions, RPE-J cells exhibit circumferential staining for the tight-junction protein ZO-1 and acquire a transepithelial resistance of 350 ohms cm2. Morphologically, RPE-J cells exhibit a characteristic RPE morphology with extensive apical microvilli as well as numerous dense bodies including premelanosomes and varied multilamellar structures. Ruthenium red labeling revealed the frequent basal localization of the tight junction. The cells were identified to be of rat RPE origin by their expression of the rat RPE marker RET-PE2 and their ability to phagocytose latex beads. While RPE-J cells are capable of sorting influenza and vesicular stomatitis virus to the apical and basal surfaces, respectively, the Na,K-ATPase is not polarized and the neural cell adhesion molecule, N-CAM, is localized exclusively to the lateral surface. In vivo the apical surface of RPE interacts with the adjacent neural retina and the Na,K-ATPase and N-CAM are both apical; the altered polarity of these two proteins in RPE-J cells may be a consequence of the absence of apical interaction with the neural retina in culture. Previous studies of RPE have been restricted to the use of primary cultures and the RPE-J cell line should prove an excellent model system for the study of the mechanisms determining the characteristic polarity and functions of the retinal pigment epithelium.

Virus infection of polarized epithelial cells

This chapter focuses on the interaction of viruses with epithelial cells. The role of specific pathways of virus entry and release in the pathogenesis of viral infection is examined together with the mechanisms utilized by viruses to circumvent the epithelial barrier. Polarized epithelial cells in culture, which can be grown on permeable supports, provide excellent systems for investigating the events in virus entry and release at the cellular level, and much information is being obtained using such systems. Much remains to be learned about the precise routes by which many viruses traverse the epithelial barrier to initiate their natural infection processes, although important information has been obtained in some systems. Another area of great interest for future investigation is the process of virus entry and release from other polarized cell types, including neuronal cells.

Bidirectional entry of poliovirus into polarized epithelial cells

The interactions of viruses with polarized epithelial cells are of some significance to the pathogenesis of disease because these cell types comprise the primary barrier to many virus infections and also serve as the sites for virus release from the host. Poliovirus-epithelial cell interactions are of particular interest since this virus is an important enteric pathogen and the host cell receptor has been identified. In this study, poliovirus was observed to adsorb to both the apical and basolateral surfaces of polarized monkey kidney (Vero C1008) and human intestinal (Caco-2) epithelial cells but exhibited preferential binding to the basolateral surfaces of both cell types. Localization of the poliovirus receptor by a receptor-specific monoclonal antibody (D171) revealed a similar distribution predominantly on basolateral membranes, and treatment of cells with antibody D171 inhibited virus adsorption to both membrane surfaces. Poliovirus was able to initiate infection with similar efficiency following adsorption to either surface, and infection was blocked at both surfaces by D171, indicating that functional receptor molecules are expressed on both surfaces at sufficient density to mediate efficient infection at the apical and basolateral plasma membranes. Poliovirus infection resulted in a decrease in transepithelial resistance which was inhibited by prior treatment with monoclonal antibody D171 and occurred prior to other visible cytopathic effects. These results have interesting implications for viral pathogenesis in the human gut.

Isolated brush cells of the rat stomach retain their structural polarity

The brush cells (BC) are highly polarized elements occurring in epithelia of endodermal origin. They have a preferential topographical distribution in the organs in which they reside. In the stomach of the rat, BC prevail near the transitional zone separating the forestomach from the glandular stomach. Thus, a method was developed to isolate and recover BC from this organ with the aim of investigating the changes they may undergo after dissociation. Strips of the rat stomach were severed from the very proximal border of the glandular region and incubated in Hanks' balanced salt solution containing pronase. After sedimentation of the dissociated cells (crude sediment containing all stomach epithelial cell types) two successive cell fractions were prepared on performed Percoll gradient in an attempt to enrich BC in a defined layer. BC were recovered in a fraction at a density close to 1.03 g/ml where they represented about 2% of all cells. The isolated BC changed their form from columnar to pear-shaped; however, they maintained their structural polarity over 2 h as demonstrated by light microscopy, transmission-and scanning-electron microscopy. The fine structure of BC was always satisfactorily preserved. Maintenance of the structural polarity of isolated BC is contrary to the general rule according to which all conventional epithelial cells examined to date lose their polarity after isolation. This result is discussed in relation to morphological findings in isolated sensory cells (hair cells, photoreceptor cells) leading to the suggestion that BC are more similar to these than to conventional epithelial cells.

Activation of an inducible c-FosER fusion protein causes loss of epithelial polarity and triggers epithelial-fibroblastoid cell conversion

As a novel approach to studying the modulation of the polarized epithelial phenotype, we have expressed c-Fos and c-Myc estrogen receptor fusion proteins (c-FosER and c-MycER) in mammary epithelial cells. The hybrid proteins could be activated by estrogen for defined time periods and after the cells had achieved their fully polarized organization. Activation of c-MycER deregulated proliferation but did not affect epithelial polarity. Short-term activation of c-FosER induced the reversible loss of morphological and functional cell polarity. In contrast, long-term stimulation of c-FosER caused the cells to depolarize irreversibly, to invade collagen gels, and to undergo epithelial-fibroblastoid cell conversion. Our data suggest that Fos proteins are important in modulating the epithelial phenotype both in normal tissue development and in invasive processes.

Polarized secretion of plasminogen activators by epithelial cell monolayers

We have investigated the synthesis and the polarized secretion of plasminogen activators (PAs) in three epithelial cell lines (FRT, derived from rat thyroid; MDCK, from canine kidney, and CaCo-2, from human intestine) grown on filters, in bicameral systems. Confluency and acquisition of functional polarity were assessed by measuring transepithelial resistance and by showing polarized secretion of endogenous proteins. By zymography, before and after immunoprecipitation with specific antibodies, we found that FRT cells synthesized tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) and that tPA activity was mostly confined to the apical cell compartment. MDCK and CaCo-2 cells, instead, synthesized urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA). In MDCK cells the uPA activity was found predominantly in the apical cell compartment while in CaCo-2 cells it was mostly basolateral.

Spectrin redistributes to the cytosol and is phosphorylated during mitosis in cultured cells

Dramatic changes in morphology and extensive reorganization of membrane-associated actin filaments take place during mitosis in cultured cells, including rounding up; appearance of numerous actin filament-containing microvilli and filopodia on the cell surface; and disassembly of intercellular and cell-substratum adhesions. We have examined the distribution and solubility of the membrane-associated actin-binding protein, spectrin, during interphase and mitosis in cultured CHO and HeLa cells. Immunofluorescence staining of substrate-attached, well-spread interphase CHO cells reveals that spectrin is predominantly associated with both the dorsal and ventral plasma membranes and is also concentrated at the lateral margins of cells at regions of cell-cell contacts. In mitotic cells, staining for spectrin is predominantly in the cytoplasm with only faint staining at the plasma membrane on the cell body, and no discernible staining on the membranes of the microvilli and filopodia (retraction fibers) which protrude from the cell body. Biochemical analysis of spectrin solubility in Triton X-100 extracts indicates that only 10-15% of the spectrin is soluble in interphase CHO or HeLa cells growing attached to tissue culture plastic. In contrast, 60% of the spectrin is soluble in mitotic CHO and HeLa cells isolated by mechanical "shake-off" from nocodazole-arrested synchronized cultures, which represents a four- to sixfold increase in the proportion of soluble spectrin. This increase in soluble spectrin may be partly due to cell rounding and detachment during mitosis, since the amount of soluble spectrin in CHO or HeLa interphase cells detached from the culture dish by trypsin-EDTA or by growth in spinner culture is 30-38%. Furthermore, mitotic cells isolated from synchronized spinner cultures of HeLa S3 cells have only 2.5 times as much soluble spectrin (60%) as do synchronous interphase cells from these spinner cultures (25%). The beta subunit of spectrin is phosphorylated exclusively on serine residues both in interphase and mitosis. Comparison of steady-state phosphorylation levels of spectrin in mitotic and interphase cells demonstrates that solubilization of spectrin in mitosis is correlated with a modest increase in the level of phosphorylation of the spectrin beta subunit in CHO and HeLa cells (a 40% and 70% increase, respectively). Two-dimensional phosphopeptide mapping of CHO cell spectrin indicates that this is due to mitosis-specific phosphorylation of beta-spectrin at several new sites. This is independent of cell rounding and dissociation from other cells and the substratum, since no changes in spectrin phosphorylation take place when cells are detached from culture dishes with trypsin-EDTA.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Colocalization of transforming growth factor-alpha and a functional epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) to the inner cell mass and preferential localization of the EGFR on the basolateral surface of the trophectoderm in the mouse blastocyst

Results of previous studies suggested that responses of mouse blastocysts to TGF-alpha/EGF treatment are mediated by EGF receptors (EGFR) located on the apical surface of the trophectoderm (TE). We report here results of experiments using gold-labeled EGF that confirm the presence of these apically located EGFRs. In addition, immunoelectron microscopy (IEM) studies using anti-EGFR antibodies indicate that the receptor is preferentially distributed on the basolateral surface of the TE. Furthermore, the receptor is also present on the inner cell mass (ICM) and is likely to be functional, since treatment of isolated ICMs with TGF-alpha affects [35S]methionine uptake and incorporation into acid-insoluble material. IEM was also used to demonstrate that EGF, which is not synthesized by the mouse preimplantation embryo, is present in both the oviduct and the uterus. Maternally derived EGF is present in both ICM and TE cells in freshly isolated blastocysts, but is present in greatly reduced amounts following overnight culture of blastocysts in vitro. Last, IEM was also used to demonstrate that TGF-alpha is preferentially localized to the ICM and polar TE. The co-localization of TGF-alpha and functional EGFRs to the ICM and polar TE suggests potential autocrine, juxtacrine, and paracrine roles for TGF-alpha in blastocyst development.

Patches, posts and fences: proteins and plasma membrane domains

Recent findings have indicated the presence of micrometre-scale protein-based domains in the membranes of several cell types. What are the implications of this organization for membrane function? Here, Michael Edidin describes the formation of protein-based domains, and discusses their possible effects on protein interactions within the bilayer.

Cytoskeleton-dependent endocytosis is required for apical type 1 angiotensin II receptor-mediated phospholipase C activation in cultured rat proximal tubule cells

Renal proximal tubule sodium reabsorption is enhanced by apical or basolateral angiotensin II (AII). Although AII activates phospholipase C (PLC) in other tissues, AII coupling to PLC on either apical or basolateral surfaces of proximal tubule cells is unclear. To determine if AII causes PLC activation, and the differences between apical and basolateral AII receptor function, receptors were unilaterally activated in rat proximal tubule cells cultured on permeable, collagen-coated supports. Apical AII incubation resulted in concentration- and time-dependent inositol trisphosphate (IP3) formation. Basolateral AII caused greater IP3 responses. Apical AII-induced IP3 generation was inhibited by DuP 753, suggesting that the type 1 AII receptor subtype mediated proximal tubule PLC activation. Apical AII signaling did not result from paracellular ligand leak to basolateral receptors since AII-induced PLC activation occurred when basolateral AII receptors were occupied by Sar-Leu AII or DuP 753. Inhibition of endocytosis with phenylarsine oxide prevented apical (but not basolateral) AII-induced IP3 formation. Cytoskeletal disruption with colchicine or cytochalasin D also prevented apical AII-induced IP3 generation. These results demonstrate that in cultured rat proximal tubule cells, AII is coupled to PLC via type 1 AII receptors and cytoskeleton-dependent endocytosis is required for apical (but not basolateral) AII receptor-mediated PLC activation.

Polarized budding of vesicular stomatitis and influenza virus from cultured human and bovine retinal pigment epithelium

The retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) is able to perform a variety of functions because of its high degree of plasma membrane polarity. Some aspects of this polarity such as the localization of the majority of Na-K ATPase to the apical membrane distinguish the RPE from kidney cells and most other transporting epithelia. The polarized budding of enveloped viruses such as vesicular stomatitis and influenza from the basolateral and apical membrane, respectively, has been used to study mechanisms underlying the domain-specific sorting of membrane proteins in cultured epithelial cell lines. These processes also serve as a useful index of the degree of polarization in epithelial cell cultures. Viral budding from apical and basolateral RPE membranes was used in this study to determine whether the sorting of viral envelope membrane proteins by the RPE is reversed in polarity from that of kidney cells and, if so, whether this might predict a fundamental difference in membrane protein sorting for RPE. The results clearly indicate that the polarity of viral membrane sorting and subsequent viral budding is the same in RPE as in other polarized epithelial cell lines examined to date.

Squamous cell metaplasia in the human lung: molecular characteristics of epithelial stratification

Squamous cell metaplasia (SCM) is a frequent epithelial alteration of the human tracheobronchial mucosa. This review pays particular attention to the fact that SCM can mimic esophageal, and in some instances even skin-type differentiation, showing striking similarities not only in morphology but also in terms of gene expression. Therefore, characterization of this dynamic process lends insight into the process of stratification, squamous cell formation, and "keratinization" in a pathologically relevant in vivo situation in man. First, the concept of metaplasia is presented with certain historical viewpoints on histogenesis. Then, the morphological characteristics of normal bronchial epithelium are compared with the altered phenotype of cells in SCM. These changes are described as a disturbance of the finely tuned balance of differentiation and proliferation through the action of a variety of extrinsic and intrinsic factors. Molecular aspects of altered cell/cell and cell/extracellular matrix interactions in stratified compared with single-layered epithelia are discussed with reference to SCM in the lung. Intracellular organizational and compositional changes are then summarized with special emphasis on the differential distribution of the cytokeratin (CK) polypeptides. Finally, the still unresolved problems of the histogenetic relationships between normal bronchial mucosa, SCM, and pulmonary neoplasms are addressed. As these questions remain open, examples for detection of well defined "markers" are provided that may be employed as objective criteria for determining clinically important cellular differentiation features.

Regulation of cell surface polarity from bacteria to mammals

The generation of unique domains on the cell, cell surface polarity, is critical for differentiation into the diversity of cell structures and functions found in a wide variety of organisms and cells, including the bacterium Caulobacter crescentus, the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and mammalian polarized epithelial cells. Comparison of the mechanisms for establishing polarity in these cells indicates that restricted membrane protein distributions are generated by selective protein targeting to, and selective protein retention at, the cell surface. Initiation of these mechanisms involves reorientation of components of the cytoskeleton and protein transport pathways toward restricted sites at the cell surface and formation of a targeting patch at those sites for selective recruitment and retention of proteins.

Polarized secretion of urokinase-type plasminogen activator by epithelial cells

Numerous epithelial cell types produce and secrete plasminogen activators (PAs) and/or PA inhibitors (PAIs). When epithelial cells were grown on polycarbonate filters and their apical and basolateral secretion products analyzed, PA activity accumulated in a highly polarized fashion; depending upon the cell line, the compartment of PA accumulation was either apical (MDCK I cells and HBL-100 cells) or basolateral (LLC-PK1, CaCo-2, and HeLa cells). By contrast, PAI-1 was recovered in roughly equal amounts in both compartments. Basolateral accumulation of urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA), but not its apical targeting, required an acidic compartment and the integrity of the cytoskeleton. Polarity of uPA accumulation did not result from removal of the free enzyme from the opposite compartment through its binding to the cell surface. Transfection with wild-type or mutated murine uPA demonstrated that neither the "growth factor" domain nor the kringle domain is required for the appropriate sorting of the protein. We propose that polarized secretion of PAs is one mechanism whereby cells spatially control extracellular proteolysis.

Antimicrotubule drugs inhibit the polarized insertion of an intracellular glycoprotein pool into the apical membrane of Madin-Darby canine kidney (MDCK) cells

Previous experiments on MDCK cells have demonstrated that the polarized appearance of a 135 kDa glycoprotein (gp135) on the apical plasma membrane can occur through the insertion of both newly synthesized gp135 as well as a pre-existing gp135 intracellular pool. In this study, anticytoskeletal drugs were utilized to determine the role of the cytoskeleton in the polarized delivery of gp135. Colchicine and nocodazole produced a 15–20% inhibition in the apical surface accumulation of newly synthesized gp135 and inhibited the appearance of the gp135 pool by approximately 33%, while cytochalasin D had no affect on the apical accumulation of either newly synthesized gp135 or the gp135 pool. These results indicate that microtubules, but not microfilaments, are involved in the intracellular targeting of gp135. Quantitative immunogold electron microscopy of nocodazole-treated cells demonstrated that gp135 was not mistargeted to the basolateral membrane, suggesting the possibility that some vesicles containing gp135 did not fuse with the apical membrane and remained in the cells. These experiments demonstrate that microtubules are an important component of gp135 insertion into the apical membrane. They also suggest that gp135 resides within vesicles which have an apical membrane recognition signal and cannot fuse with the basolateral membrane. The possibility that these data, and those of others, could support a hypothesis for the presence of two constitutive apical transport pathways is discussed.

Laminin selectively enhances axonal growth and accelerates the development of polarity by hippocampal neurons in culture

We have examined the effects of laminin on the morphological development of embryonic rat hippocampal neurons maintained in tissue culture. Forty-eight hours after plating, neurons grown on a polylysine-coated substrate had become polarized, typically having one long axon and 4 or 5 minor processes. Adsorption of laminin to the substrate did not cause changes in the number of axons extended by hippocampal neurons but did cause significant increases in the length of the axonal plexus and in axonal branching. In contrast to its effects on axons, laminin did not influence the number, length, or branching of the minor processes that eventually become dendrites or the morphology of definite dendrites as assessed after 7 days in culture. In addition to selectively enhancing axonal growth, laminin greatly increased the rate of polarization of hippocampal neurons such that most became polarized within 18 h. Analysis of the time course of laminin's effects revealed that the acceleration of polarization was not associated with a change in the time of initial process formation, but rather with a selective stimulation of the growth of the longest process at all times from the 12th through the 48th h in vitro. These data suggest that even though the basic shape of hippocampal neurons may be intrinsically programmed, critical aspects of their morphological development may be modulated by extracellular matrix molecules such as laminin.

The establishment of polarized membrane traffic in Xenopus laevis embryos

Delineation of apical and basolateral membrane domains is a critical step in the epithelialization of the outer layer of cells in the embryo. We have examined the initiation of polarized membrane traffic in Xenopus and show that membrane traffic is not polarized in oocytes but polarized membrane domains appear at first cleavage. The following proteins encoded by injected RNA transcripts were used as markers to monitor membrane traffic: (a) VSV G, a transmembrane glycoprotein preferentially inserted into the basolateral surface of polarized epithelial cells; (b) GThy-1, a fusion protein of VSV G and Thy-1 that is localized to the apical domains of polarized epithelial cells; and (c) prolactin, a peptide hormone that is not polarly secreted. In immature oocytes, there is no polarity in the expression of VSV G or GThy-1, as shown by the constitutive expression of both proteins at the surface in the animal and vegetal hemispheres. At meiotic maturation, membrane traffic to the surface is blocked; the plasma membrane no longer accepts the vesicles synthesized by the oocyte (Leaf, D. L., S. J. Roberts, J. C. Gerhart, and H.-P. Moore. 1990. Dev. Biol. 141:1-12). When RNA transcripts are injected after fertilization, VSV G is expressed only in the internal cleavage membranes (basolateral orientation) and is excluded from the outer surface (apical orientation, original oocyte membrane). In contrast, GThy-1 and prolactin, when expressed in embryos, are inserted or released at both the outer membrane derived from the oocyte and the inner cleavage membranes. Furthermore, not all of the cleavage membrane comes from an embryonic pool of vesicles--some of the cleavage membrane comes from vesicles synthesized during oogenesis. Using prolactin as a marker, we found that a subset of vesicles synthesized during oogenesis was only released after fertilization. However, while embryonic prolactin was secreted from both apical and basolateral surfaces, the secretion of oogenic prolactin was polarized. Oogenic prolactin was secreted only into the blastocoel (from the cleavage membrane), none could be detected in the external medium (from the original oocyte membrane). These results provide the first direct evidence that the oocyte synthesizes a cache of vesicles for specific recruitment to the embryonic cleavage membranes which are polarized beginning with the first cleavage division.