Suppression of a myosin defect by a kinesin-related gene

Suppression of the bimC4 mitotic spindle defect by deletion of klpA, a gene encoding a KAR3-related kinesin-like protein in Aspergillus nidulans

To investigate the relationship between structure and function of kinesin-like proteins, we have identified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) a new kinesin-like protein in the filamentous fungus Aspergillus nidulans, which we have designated KLPA. DNA sequence analysis showed that the predicted KLPA protein contains a COOH terminal kinesin-like motor domain. Despite the structural similarity of KLPA to the KAR3 and NCD kinesin-like proteins of Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Drosophila melanogaster, which also posses COOH-terminal kinesin-like motor domains, there are no significant sequence similarities between the nonmotor or tail portions of these proteins. Nevertheless, expression studies in S. cerevisiae showed that klpA can complement a null mutation in KAR3, indicating that primary amino acid sequence conservation between the tail domains of kinesin-like proteins is not necessarily required for conserved function. Chromosomal deletion of the klpA gene exerted no observable mutant phenotype, suggesting that in A. nidulans there are likely to be other proteins functionally redundant with KLPA. Interestingly, the temperature sensitive phenotype of a mutation in another gene, bimC, which encodes a kinesin-like protein involved in mitotic spindle function in A. nidulans, was suppressed by deletion of klpA. We hypothesize that the loss of KLPA function redresses unbalanced forces within the spindle caused by mutation in bimC, and that the KLPA and BIMC kinesin-like proteins may play opposing roles in spindle function.

Golgi-derived vesicles from developing epithelial cells bind actin filaments and possess myosin-I as a cytoplasmically oriented peripheral membrane protein

In the intestinal brush border, the mechanoenzyme myosin-I links the microvillus core actin filaments with the plasma membrane. Previous immunolocalization shows that myosin-I is associated with vesicles in mature enterocytes (Drenckhahn, D., and R. Dermietzel. 1988. J. Cell Biol. 107:1037-1048) suggesting a potential role mediating vesicle motility. We now report that myosin-I is associated with Golgi-derived vesicles isolated from cells that are rapidly assembling brush borders in intestinal crypts. Crypt cells were isolated in hyperosmotic buffer, homogenized, and fractionated using differential- and equilibrium-density centrifugation. Fractions containing 50-100-nm vesicles, a similar size to those observed in situ, were identified by EM and were shown to contain myosin-I as demonstrated by immunoblotting and immunolabel negative staining. Galactosyltransferase, a marker enzyme for trans-Golgi membranes was present in these fractions, as was alkaline phosphatase, which is an apical membrane targeted enzyme. Galactosyltransferase was also present in vesicles immuno-purified with antibodies to myosin-I. Villin, a marker for potential contamination from fragmented microvilli, was absent. Myosin-I was found to reside on the vesicle "outer" or cytoplasmic surface for it was accessible to exogenous proteases and intact vesicles could be immunolabeled with myosin-I antibodies in solution. The bound myosin-I could be extracted from the vesicles using NaCl, KI and Na2CO3, suggesting that it is a vesicle peripheral membrane protein. These vesicles were shown to bundle actin filaments in an ATP-dependent manner. These results are consistent with a role for myosin-I as an apically targeted motor for vesicle translocation in epithelial cells.

Primary structure and cellular localization of chicken brain myosin-V (p190), an unconventional myosin with calmodulin light chains

Recent biochemical studies of p190, a calmodulin (CM)-binding protein purified from vertebrate brain, have demonstrated that this protein, purified as a complex with bound CM, shares a number of properties with myosins (Espindola, F. S., E. M. Espreafico, M. V. Coelho, A. R. Martins, F. R. C. Costa, M. S. Mooseker, and R. E. Larson. 1992. J. Cell Biol. 118:359-368). To determine whether or not p190 was a member of the myosin family of proteins, a set of overlapping cDNAs encoding the full-length protein sequence of chicken brain p190 was isolated and sequenced. Verification that the deduced primary structure was that of p190 was demonstrated through microsequence analysis of a cyanogen bromide peptide generated from chick brain p190. The deduced primary structure of chicken brain p190 revealed that this 1,830-amino acid (aa) 212,509-D) protein is a member of a novel structural class of unconventional myosins that includes the gene products encoded by the dilute locus of mouse and the MYO2 gene of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We have named the p190-CM complex "myosin-V" based on the results of a detailed sequence comparison of the head domains of 29 myosin heavy chains (hc), which has revealed that this myosin, based on head structure, is the fifth of six distinct structural classes of myosin to be described thus far. Like the presumed products of the mouse dilute and yeast MYO2 genes, the head domain of chicken myosin-V hc (aa 1-764) is linked to a "neck" domain (aa 765-909) consisting of six tandem repeats of an approximately 23-aa "IQ-motif." All known myosins contain at least one such motif at their head-tail junctions; these IQ-motifs may function as calmodulin or light chain binding sites. The tail domain of chicken myosin-V consists of an initial 511 aa predicted to form several segments of coiled-coil alpha helix followed by a terminal 410-aa globular domain (aa, 1,421-1,830). Interestingly, a portion of the tail domain (aa, 1,094-1,830) shares 58% amino acid sequence identity with a 723-aa protein from mouse brain reported to be a glutamic acid decarboxylase. The neck region of chicken myosin-V, which contains the IQ-motifs, was demonstrated to contain the binding sites for CM by analyzing CM binding to bacterially expressed fusion proteins containing the head, neck, and tail domains. Immunolocalization of myosin-V in brain and in cultured cells revealed an unusual distribution for this myosin in both neurons and nonneuronal cells.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

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.

Kinesins in the spindle: an update

Eukaryotes contain a superfamily of microtubule-based motor proteins comprising kinesin and a number of related proteins that are thought to participate in various forms of intracellular motility, including cell division and organelle transport. The role of various members of the kinesin superfamily in chromosome segregation and spindle morphogenesis was described in TCB last year in parts of a series on cytoplasmic motor proteins. In this brief update, Helen Epstein and Jon Scholey comment on new findings that have improved our understanding of the functions of kinesin-related proteins in mitosis and meiosis.

Motors for fast axonal transport

In neurons and other animal cells, membrane-bound vesicles course rapidly along cytoskeletal filaments to reach their destinations. Based on a variety of in vivo studies it is becoming clear that the microtubule-based motor, kinesin (and its relatives), drive vesicle movements in axons. Surprisingly, some axonal membranes have the capacity to move on both microtubules and actin filaments.

A vertebrate actin-related protein is a component of a multisubunit complex involved in microtubule-based vesicle motility

Actin is a cytoskeletal protein which is highly conserved across eukaryotic phyla. Actin filaments, in association with a family of myosin motor proteins, are required for cellular motile processes as diverse as vesicle transport, cell locomotion and cytokinesis. Many organisms have several closely related actin isoforms. In addition to conventional actins, yeasts contain actin-related proteins that are essential for viability. We show here that vertebrates also contain an actin-related protein (actin-RPV). Actin-RPV is a major component of the dynactin complex, an activator of dynein-driven vesicle movement, indicating that unlike conventional actins which work in conjunction with myosin motors, actin-RPV may be involved in cytoplasmic movements via a microtubule-based system.

Microtubule motors: many new models off the assembly line

A far greater variety of microtubule-based motors populate the interior of most eukaryotic cells than was ever imagined, and the inventory of these proteins is growing each year. The discovery of new motors, however, has raised many questions of how cells use their arsenal of force-generating machines. The ability to apply genetics, bacterial expression, biochemistry and in vitro motility assays to study motor proteins provides new opportunities for examining these problems at a molecular level.

Do unconventional myosins exert functions in dynamics of membrane compartments?

Unconventional myosins have now been identified in amoeba as well as in higher eucaryotic cells. Their cellular localization, their ability to bind membrane vesicles and their ability to produce in vitro movement suggest that they can generate forces on the plasma membrane relative to actin filaments as well as on membrane compartments relative to actin. Genetic approaches and biochemical analysis of cells over-producing nonfunctional domains of unconventional myosins have provided direct evidence for a role of unconventional myosins in movement of intracellular vesicles and have allowed us to formulate hypotheses about the possible mechanisms by which unconventional myosins could participate in the intracellular transport of membrane proteins and secretory proteins.