Localization of muscle gene products in nuclear domains

Correlation between myofibrillar ATPase activity and myosin heavy chain composition in single human muscle fibers

Single human muscle fibers were analysed using a combination of histochemical and biochemical techniques. Routine myofibrillar adenosine triphosphatase (mATPase) histochemistry revealed a continuum of staining intensities between the fast fiber types IIA and IIB (type IIAB fibers) after preincubation at pH 4.6. Electrophoretic analysis of single, histochemically-identified fibers demonstrated a correlation between the staining intensity and the myosin heavy chain (MHC) composition. All fibers classified as type I contained exclusively MHCI and all type IIA fibers contained only MHCIIa. Type IIAB fibers displayed variable amounts of both MHCIIa and MHCIIb; the greater the staining intensity of these fibers after preincubation at pH 4.6, the greater the percentage of MHCIIb. Those fibers histochemically classified as type IIB contained either entirely MHCIIb or, in addition to MHCIIb, a small amount of MHCIIa. These data establish a correlation between the mATPase activity and MHC content in single human muscle fibers.

Reprogramming of myosin light chain 1/3 expression in muscle heterokaryons

Fast myosin light chain (MLC) 1/3 is one of the few genes which regulates transcript production at both transcriptional and post-transcriptional levels, utilizing two functionally distinct promoters coupled with alternatively spliced exons. The transcriptional process controlling expression from this single gene locus is developmentally regulated, such that MLC 1 precedes MLC 3 during myogenesis. Results from our RNA analyses demonstrate that in differentiated rat L6E9 muscle, MLC 3 is the sole isoform expressed from the MLC 1/3 locus. However, we also show that by generating rat L6E9:mouse C2 muscle heterokaryons, MLC 1 expression from the L6E9 MLC locus can be induced. In addition to novel rat MLC 1 expression in the C2:L6E9 heterokaryons, we show that the synthesis profile of rat MLC 3 mRNA is also altered relative to L6E9 muscle cultured alone. Additional experiments demonstrate that the reprogramming of rat MLC 1 and 3 expression in the muscle heterokaryons requires that C2 and L6E9 nuclei be contained within a common cytoplasm. These results demonstrate that expression from the MLC 1/3 gene is "plastic," and is not under the control of a strict developmental program but, rather, can be modified by the environmental milieu.

Assembly of avian skeletal muscle myosins: evidence that homodimers of the heavy chain subunit are the thermodynamically stable form

Using a double antibody sandwich ELISA we examined the heavy chain isoform composition of myosin molecules isolated from chicken pectoralis major muscle during different stages of development. At 2- and 40-d posthatch, when multiple myosin heavy chain isoforms are being synthesized, we detected no heterodimeric myosins, suggesting that myosins are homodimers of the heavy chain subunit. Chymotryptic rod fragments of embryonic, neonatal, and adult myosins were prepared and equimolar mixtures of embryonic and neonatal rods and neonatal and adult rods were denatured in 8 M guanidine. The guanidine denatured myosin heavy chain fragments were either dialyzed or diluted into renaturation buffer and reformed dimers which were electrophoretically indistinguishable from native rods. Analysis of these renatured rods using double antibody sandwich ELISA showed them to be predominantly homodimers of each of the isoforms. Although hybrids between the different heavy chain fragments were not detected, exchange was possible under these conditions since mixture of biotinylated neonatal rods and fluoresceinated neonatal rods formed a heterodimeric biotinylated-fluoresceinated species upon renaturation. Therefore, we propose that homodimers are the thermodynamically stable form of skeletal muscle myosin isoforms and that there is no need to invoke compartmentalization or other cellular regulatory processes to explain the lack of heavy chain heterodimers in vivo.

Invited review: myoblast transfer: a possible therapy for inherited myopathies?

A potential therapeutic strategy for genetic diseases is to alter the genetic constitution of the affected tissues by means of grafts of normal precursor or stem cells. Over several years, evidence has accumulated to suggest that primary diseases of skeletal muscle, such as Duchenne muscular dystrophy, may be susceptible to this approach. This review makes a critical examination of such background evidence, and also of more recent data directly addressing the concept of therapy by means of grafts of normal myogenic cells. It is concluded that the data establish the principle that such grafts effect an alteration of the genetic constitution and phenotype of skeletal muscle and, therefore, might be used to alleviate recessively inherited myopathies. Several obstacles to the therapeutic application of this method to human disease are also identified; these seem to be problems of a technical nature rather than of basic principle, and none appears insuperable.

Is dystrophin present in the nerve terminal at the neuromuscular junction? An immunohistochemical study of the heterozygote dystrophic (mdx) mouse

Neuromuscular junctions (NMJs) were identified by revealing the presence of cholinergic receptors (AChR) with alpha-bungarotoxin coupled to the fluorescent dye cascade blue in 9- and 60-day-old normal and heterozygote mdx mice. Dystrophin was detected by an immunoperoxidase technique. All the muscle fibers of the normal animals observed in cross sections were immunoreactive for dystrophin and an accumulation of dystrophin was observed at all NMJs identified by alpha-bungarotoxin. In the 9-day-old mdx heterozygote animals, dystrophin positive, negative, and partially positive muscle cross sections were observed. Four different observations were made in these heterozygote animals on the coexistence of AChR and dystrophin. First, alpha-bungarotoxin sites (i.e., NMJs) were observed on dystrophin positive muscle fiber cross sections with an accumulation of dystrophin at these sites. Second, alpha-bungarotoxin sites were observed on dystrophin positive fibers without a dystrophin accumulation at NMJs. Third, there was a coexistence of alpha-bungarotoxin and dystrophin labelling at NMJs of muscle fibers with perimeters labelling negative for dystrophin. Fourth, NMJs, identified by alpha-bungarotoxin, were observed on muscle fibers negative for dystrophin even at the NMJ. These observations suggest that dystrophin is present not only in the muscle membrane but also in the presynaptic nerve terminals.

Distribution of myosin mRNA during development and regeneration of skeletal muscle fibers

Myosin mRNA distribution among subcellular compartments of anterior tibialis muscles in rabbit is monitored by in situ hybridization. A high density of mRNA was widely distributed throughout myotubes from 29-day fetal muscle and from regenerating adult muscle. All cytoplasmic spaces contained mRNA except where scattered myofibrils and centrally located nuclei were found. In fibers from 22-week-old rabbits, myosin mRNA was concentrated under the sarcolemma and excluded from the consolidated myofibrils and peripheral nuclei. The dispersal of mRNA through the cytoplasm in myotubes suggests that translation of myosin is widespread and that rapid myofibril assembly can occur throughout the fiber.

Dystrophin expression in myotubes formed by the fusion of normal and dystrophic myoblasts

Mdx mouse dystrophy is characterized by the absence in the muscle cytoplasmic membrane of a high molecular weight protein called dystrophin. A possible avenue for treatment of muscular dystrophies is to inject normal myoblasts in a dystrophic muscle to form hybrid muscle fibers. Hybrid myotubes were formed in vitro by the fusion of normal rat and dystrophic mouse (mdx) myoblasts. Staining with Hoechst dye 33258 permitted the clear distinction of mouse and rat nuclei. Immunostaining demonstrated that dystrophin was present over the entire membrane of all hybrid myotubes even when nuclei ratio normal/dystrophic was low.

Regulation of skeletal muscle fiber size, shape and function

There is convincing evidence that the cross-sectional area, the type of myosin expressed, the potential for oxidative phosphorylation and the number of myonuclei of a skeletal muscle fiber are closely interdependent. Each of these variables, as well as the shape of the fiber, has identifiable physiological consequences. Further, it is suggested that the cytoplasmic to myonucleus ratio is a function of the myosin type and the amount and/or rate of protein synthesis and degradation. Although the neuromuscular activity (electromyographic activity) as well as the associated mechanical and metabolic events have significant regulatory influences on protein metabolism, there are other important regulatory factors independent of these activity-related events. Both the activity and non-activity related regulatory mechanisms probably occur via a cascade of cellular events. The specific combinations of cellular responses that occur may define the nature of the modulatory effects on specific proteins. In spite of the complexity of the regulatory mechanisms of protein modulation and how these responses are structurally integrated into or removed from functional fibers, it is suggested that controlled studies of human neuromuscular function can be more accurately defined and interpreted when fiber and muscle size and shape are considered.

Distribution of myosin heavy chain mRNA in embryonic muscle tissue visualized by ultrastructural in situ hybridization

We have localized myosin heavy chain (MHC) mRNAs in cells of intact embryonic chick muscle using high resolution in situ hybridization. Blocks of muscle were aldehyde-fixed prior to detergent treatment and hybridized with a biotinated cDNA probe, followed by colloidal gold-labeled antibodies, before embedment. Labeling was determined to represent MHC mRNA by extensive quantitative comparisons of electron micrographs from experimental and four different types of control samples. MHC mRNA was localized primarily to peripheral regions of 14-day chick pectoral muscle cells, where the majority of developing myofibrils were found. MHC mRNAs were consistently associated with the nonmyofibrillar cytoskeletal filaments which had diameters ranging from 4 to 10 nm. They were often oriented parallel to the longitudinal axis of the cell. The resolution of the ultrastructural approach allowed us to demonstrate that the mRNA molecules visualized were not directly associated with myofilaments, suggesting that nascent chains read from those messages do not assemble directly into myofilaments simultaneous with translation.

Myoblasts, myosins, MyoDs, and the diversification of muscle fibers

Distinct types of muscle fibers form and become innervated by appropriate motor neurons during development. Though the activity pattern of the innervating motor neuron affects fiber type in the adult, it is now clear that innervation is not required for the initial formation of fast and slow muscle fibers during embryonic and fetal development. In addition, multiple types of intrinsically different myoblasts are found at different stages of development and motor neurons may preferentially innervate specific types of muscle fibers at relatively early stages of myogenesis. Thus, at least some of the information required for the formation of specific motor units must be carried by muscle cells. Cellular and molecular analyses of the multiple types of myoblasts, myosin heavy chain isoforms, and myogenesis regulating proteins of the MyoD family are leading to a new understanding of the events that choreograph the formation of fast and slow motor units.

Differential subcellular localization of particular mRNAs in hippocampal neurons in culture

In situ hybridization was used to assess the subcellular distribution of mRNAs encoding several important neuronal proteins in hippocampal neurons in culture. mRNA encoding GAP-43, a protein that is largely excluded from dendrites, was restricted to nerve cell bodies, as were mRNAs encoding neurofilament-68 and beta-tubulin, which are prominent constituents of dendrites and of axons. In contrast, mRNA encoding MAP-2, a protein that is selectively distributed in dendrites and cell bodies, was present in both dendrites and cell bodies. These results demonstrate that different mRNAs are differentially distributed within individual hippocampal neurons. Taken together with previous findings from other laboratories, our results suggest that only a limited set of mRNAs are available for local translation within dendrites.

Expression of an alpha cardiac-like myosin heavy chain in muscle spindle fibres

In the present study we have investigated the reactivity of rat muscle to a specific monoclonal antibody directed against alpha cardiac myosin heavy chain. Serial cross sections of rat hindlimb muscles from the 17th day in utero to adulthood, and after neonatal denervation and de-efferentation, were studied by light microscope immunohistochemistry. Staining with anti-alpha myosin heavy chain was restricted to intrafusal bag fibres in all specimens studied. Nuclear bag2 fibres were moderately to strongly stained in the intracapsular portion and gradually lost their reactivity towards the ends, whereas nuclear bag1 fibres were stained for a short distance in each pole. Nuclear bag2 fibres displayed reactivity to anti-alpha myosin heavy chain from the 21st day of gestation, whereas nuclear bag1 fibres only acquired reactivity to anti-alpha myosin heavy chain three days after birth. After neonatal de-efferentation, the reactivity of nuclear bag2 fibres to anti-alpha myosin heavy chain was decreased and limited to a shorter portion of the fibre, whereas nuclear bag1 fibres were unreactive. We showed that a myosin heavy chain isoform hitherto unknown for skeletal muscle is specifically expressed in rat nuclear bag fibres. These findings add further complexity to the intricate pattern of isomyosin expression in intrafusal fibres. Furthermore, we show that motor innervation influences the expression of this isomyosin along the length of the fibres.

Rotational diffusion of acetylcholine receptors on cultured rat myotubes

The rotational mobility of acetylcholine receptors (AChR) in the plasma membrane of living rat myotubes in culture is measured in this study by polarized fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (PFRAP). These AChR are known to exist in two distinct classes, evident by labeling with rhodamine alpha-bungarotoxin; clustered AChR that are aggregated in a pattern of highly concentrated speckles and streaks, with each cluster occupying an area of approximately 1,000 microns 2; and nonclustered AChR that appear as diffuse labeling. PFRAP results reported here show that: (a) most clustered AChR (approximately 86%) are rotationally immobile within a time scale of at least several seconds; and (b) most nonclustered AChR (approximately 76%) are rotationally mobile with characteristic times ranging from less than 50 ms to 0.1 s. External cross-linking with the tetravalent lectin concanavalin A immobilizes many nonclustered AChR. PFRAP experiments in the presence of carbachol or cytochalasin D show that the restraints to rotational motion in clusters are remarkably immune to treatments that disperse clusters or disrupt cytoplasmic actin. The experiments also demonstrate the feasibility of using PFRAP to measure rotational diffusion on selected microscopic areas of living nondeoxygenated cells labeled with standard fluorescence probes over a very wide range of time scales, and they also indicate what technical improvements would make PFRAP even more practicable.

Migration of myoblasts across basal lamina during skeletal muscle development

Basal lamina is a sheet of extracellular matrix that separates cells into topologically distinct groups during morphogenesis and is thought to form a barrier to cell migration. We have examined whether, during normal muscle development, myoblasts--mononucleate muscle precursor cells--can cross the basal lamina that surrounds each multinucleate muscle fibre. We marked myoblasts in vivo by injecting replication-defective retroviral vectors encoding LacZ into muscle tissue and analysed the fate of their progeny by the expression of beta-galactosidase. A dual labelling method with broad application to retroviral lineage-marking studies was developed to ensure that most clusters of labelled cells were clones derived from a single precursor cell. Most of the myoblasts that were infected at a late stage of rat hindlimb development, when each fibre with its satellite myoblasts is individually encased in a basal lamina sheath, gave rise to clones that contributed to several labelled fibres. Our results show that myoblasts from healthy fibres migrate across basal lamina during normal development and could contribute to the repair of fibres damaged by injury or disease.

Compartmentalization of cold-stable and acetylated microtubules in the subsynaptic domain of chick skeletal muscle fibre

The junction between motor nerve and skeletal muscle in vertebrates is characterized by a complex subneural structure in which the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (AChR) accumulates at a surface density of up to 10,000-20,000 molecules per microns 2. Among the mechanisms involved in the maintenance of the accumulation of AChR molecules is the localized expression of AChR subunit genes in the sarcoplasmic nuclei underlying the motor endplate, referred to as 'fundamental' by Ranvier. Immunocytochemical analysis has revealed that in innervated muscle fibres, the Golgi apparatus is also localized to subjunctional domains. We now report an accumulation of cold-stable and acetylated microtubules in the region of the sarcoplasm underlying the endplate. Together, these observations indicate that the subsynaptic sarcoplasm represents a compartment that is specialized both for the transcription, post-translational processing and stabilization of proteins of the postsynaptic membrane, in particular AChR, and for their targeting to the motor endplate.

Development of muscle fiber types in the prenatal rat hindlimb

Immunohistochemistry was used to examine the expression of embryonic, slow, and neonatal isoforms of myosin heavy chain in muscle fibers of the embryonic rat hindlimb. While the embryonic isoform is present in every fiber throughout prenatal development, by the time of birth the expression of the slow and neonatal isoforms occurs, for the most part, in separate, complementary populations of fibers. The pattern of slow and neonatal expression is highly stereotyped in individual muscles and mirrors the distribution of slow and fast fibers found in the adult. This pattern is not present at the early stages of myogenesis but unfolds gradually as different generations of fibers are added. As has been noted by previous investigators (e.g., Narusawa et al., 1987, J. Cell Biol. 104, 447-459), all of the earliest generation (primary) muscle fibers initially express the slow isoform but some of these primary fibers later lose this expression. In this study we show that loss of slow myosin in these fibers is accompanied by the expression of neonatal myosin. This switch in isoform expression occurs in all primary fibers located in specific regions of particular muscles. However, in other muscles primary fibers which retain their slow expression are extensively intermixed with those that switch to neonatal expression. Later generated (secondary) muscle fibers, which are interspersed among the primary fibers, express neonatal myosin, although a few of them in stereotyped locations later switch from neonatal to slow myosin expression. Many of the observed changes in myosin expression occur coincidentally with the arrival of axons in the limb or the invasion of axons into individual muscles. Thus, although both fiber birth date and intramuscular position are grossly predictive of fiber fate, neither factor is sufficient to account for the final pattern of fiber types seen in the rat hindlimb. The possibility that fiber diversification is dependent upon innervation is tested in the accompanying paper (K. Condon, L. Silberstein, H.M. Blau, and W.J. Thompson, 1990, Dev. Biol. 138, 275-295).

Differentiation of fiber types in aneural musculature of the prenatal rat hindlimb

The presynaptic neurotoxin, beta-bungarotoxin, was injected into rat fetuses in utero to destroy the innervation of their hindlimb muscles. These injections were made prior to the invasion of motor axons into the muscles and, in some cases, prior to the cleavage of individual muscles. Examination of the lateral motor column of the spinal cord showed a dramatic reduction (greater than 95%) in the number of motoneuron cell bodies. Staining of sections of the hindlimb with silver and with antibodies to neurofilament proteins and to a synaptic vesicle protein indicated that the muscles were aneural. Anti-myosin antibodies applied to sections of the hindlimb revealed that these aneural muscles by the 20th day of gestation had the same types of fibers as were present in normal muscles of the same age. Moreover, fiber types in most muscles showed their characteristic intramuscular distributions. These findings suggest that fiber types can differentiate in the absence of the nervous system. However, some fibers achieved their ultimate fiber type fate without passing through the normal sequence of myosin expressions. Moreover, some slow fibers lost their slow expression, suggesting that the maintenance of the slow differentiation may require innervation. Muscle growth was dramatically affected by the absence of motoneurons; some muscles were decreased in size and others disappeared completely. In muscles which had not degenerated by the time secondary myogenesis normally begins, secondary muscle fibers were generated indicating that the genesis of these fibers is not strictly nerve dependent. Because fiber types differentiate independently of the nervous system, this study suggests that motoneurons selectively innervate fiber types during normal development.

Effect of cell history on response to helix-loop-helix family of myogenic regulators

In multinucleated heterokaryons formed from the fusion of differentiated muscle cells to either hepatocytes or fibroblasts, muscle-specific gene expression is activated, liver-specific gene expression is repressed, and there are changes in the location of the Golgi apparatus. An understanding of the regulatory mechanisms that underlie this plasticity is of particular interest given the stability of the differentiated state in vivo. We have now investigated whether MyoD or myogenin, regulators of muscle-specific gene expression that have a helix-loop-helix motif, can induce the phenotypic conversion observed in heterokaryons. When these regulators were stably or transiently introduced into fibroblasts or hepatocytes by microinjection, transfection or retroviral infection with complementary DNA in expression vectors, fibroblasts expressed muscle-specific genes, whereas hepatocytes did not. However, fusion of hepatocytes stably expressing MyoD to fibroblasts resulted in activation in the heterokaryon of muscle-specific genes of both cell types. These results imply that other regulators, present in fibroblasts but not in hepatocytes, are necessary for the activation of muscle-specific genes, and indicate that the differentiated state of a cell is dictated by its history and a dynamic interaction among the proteins that it contains.

Nucleus-specific translation and assembly of acetylcholinesterase in multinucleated muscle cells

Multinucleated skeletal muscle fibers synthesize cell surface and secreted oligomeric forms of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) that accumulate at specialized locations on the cell surface, such as sites of nerve-muscle contact. Using allelic variants of the AChE polypeptide chains as genetic markers, we show that nuclei homozygous for either the alpha or beta alleles residing in chimeric myotubes preferentially translate their AChE mRNAs on their respective ERs. These results indicate that the events of transcription, translation, and assembly of this membrane protein are compartmentalized into nuclear domains in multinucleated cells, and provide the structural basis for the possible localized expression and regulation of synaptic components at the neuromuscular junctions of vertebrate skeletal muscle fibers.

Stable incorporation of a bacterial gene into adult rat skeletal muscle in vivo

We have developed a novel technique to incorporate and stably express foreign genes in adult rat skeletal muscle in vivo. Endogeneous satellite cells in skeletal muscle regenerating from bupivacaine damage were infected with an injected retrovirus containing the Escherichia coli beta-galactosidase gene under the promoter control of the Moloney murine leukemia virus long-terminal repeat. Constitutive and stable expression of beta-galactosidase activity was observed in muscle fibers after 6 days and 1 mo of muscle regeneration. Two patterns of expression were observed, diffuse expression within fibers and focal expression associated with the sarcolemma. This technique will allow future experiments with muscle-specific genes and promoters to study the physiological regulation of skeletal muscle gene expression in the intact adult mammal. Furthermore, the technique of stimulating stem cell proliferation to allow retroviral-mediated gene transfer may be generally applicable to other tissues.

Localization of an acetylcholine receptor intron to the nuclear membrane

The first intron of the RNA for the acetylcholine receptor (AChR) alpha subunit shows a ringlike distribution around nuclei in multinucleated myotubes by in situ hybridization. This pattern is not observed for an actin intron or U1 RNA. Quantitation of the intron sequences reveals large variations in the amount of both the AChR and actin introns between nuclei within the same myotube, although all nuclei express equivalent amounts of U1 RNA. This differential RNA expression indicates that nuclei can individually control expression of messenger RNAs. The restricted distribution of the AChR intron RNA suggests a previously unknown step in RNA processing.

Somatic cell genetic analysis of human cell surface antigens 5.1H11 and F35/9 (gp45)

Serologic analysis of rodent-human somatic cell hybrids has permitted the assignment of loci coding for cell surface differentiation antigens 5.1H11 (gene symbol MSK39) and F35/9 (MSK40) to human chromosomes 11q13-qter and 22, respectively. Both antigens are expressed in hybrids constructed with antigen-positive human cells and certain hybrids constructed with antigen-negative human cells, indicating that the coding genes are not irreversibly silenced in human nonexpressor cells. Antigens 5.1H11 and F35/9, and at least six additional cell surface antigens encoded by chromosomes 11 and 22, are expressed on human Ewing sarcoma and peripheral neuroepithelioma cells, providing selectable markers for isolating and characterizing the specific t(11;22)(q24;q12) marker chromosomes of these tumors in interspecies hybrids.

Mouse chimeras and genetic rescue of mosaic muscle

The nuclear-cytoplasmic relationships existing within mosaic muscle will likely determine whether myoblast transfer can effectively rescue diseased muscle. The mouse chimera preparation is one source of such mosaic muscle in which that in vivo relationship can be investigated in the complete absence of complicating immunological or surgical trauma. For several metabolic enzymes, the mature muscle fiber appears to contain a homogeneous mix of the proteins encoded by multiple myonuclei. This relationship is clearly not representative of all muscle proteins, as several examples of proteins highly localized to "nuclear territories" have now been described. Nonetheless, the intrafiber distribution of certain enzymes, particularly GP1-1, is appropriate for the basis of a genotype marking system applicable to mosaic fibers. In vitro rescue of mdg myotubes is readily achievable by incorporation of few normal myonuclei and possibly by only one. In vivo requirements are apparently far more stringent and an hypothesis in which the mdg gene product, a Ca+(+) channel subunit, is restricted to nuclear territories would be consistent with the disparate results obtained in vitro and in vivo. Finally, chimeras containing mdx/mdx cells may show a partial amelioration of muscle pathology and may provide a means of determining the minimum genetically normal myonuclear compliment required to prevent degeneration of dystrophin-deficient fibers.

In situ hybridization of slow myosin heavy chain mRNA in normal and transforming rabbit muscles with the use of a nonradioactively labeled cRNA

A specific method for in situ-hybridization of slow myosin heavy chain MHCI (beta-cardiac MHC) mRNA was established with the use of a nonradioactively labeled cRNA probe. The digoxigenin-labeled probe was the T7-RNA polymerase transcript from a 350 bp SacI fragment of a rabbit beta-cardiac MHC cDNA. Northern blot analyses of RNA preparations from skeletal and cardiac muscles with homologous and complementary RNA proved the specificity of the hybridization. The in situ-hybridization was applied for studying the distribution of MHCI mRNA in normal fast- and slow-twitch muscles, as well as in muscles undergoing fast-to-slow transformation by chronic low-frequency stimulation. The majority of soleus muscle fibers was intensely stained, whereas fast-twitch muscles contained only a few positive fibers. The intracellular distribution of the hybridization product showed a clear relationship to the nuclei with intense staining of the perinuclear regions within the subsarcolemmal space. The more intensely stained fibers of transforming muscle displayed hybridization product also within the nuclei. As revealed by inspection of longitudinal sections at high magnification and polarized light, MHCI mRNA was also detectable in the myofibrils in a cross-striational pattern resulting from staining of the I-bands.

The nucleoskeleton and the topology of transcription

Transcription is conventionally believed to occur by passage of a mobile polymerase along a fixed template. Evidence for this model is derived almost entirely from material prepared using hypotonic salt concentrations. Studies on subnuclear structures isolated using hypertonic conditions, and more recently using conditions closer to the physiological, suggest an alternative. Transcription occurs as the template moves past a polymerase attached to a nucleoskeleton; this skeleton is the active site of transcription. Evidence for the two models is summarised. Much of it is consistent with the polymerase being attached and not freely diffusible. Some consequences of such a model are discussed.

Intracellular and surface distribution of a membrane protein (CD8) derived from a single nucleus in multinucleated myotubes

We have investigated the contribution of an individual nucleus to intracellular and surface membranes in multinucleated muscle fibers. Using a retroviral vector, we introduced the gene encoding the human T-lymphocyte antigen CD8 into C2 mouse muscle cells to form a stable line expressing the human protein on its surface. The intracellular and surface distributions of the protein were then investigated by immunocytochemistry in hybrid myotubes containing a single nucleus expressing CD8. We show that the intracellular distribution of CD8 is limited to a local area surrounding the nucleus encoding it and several neighboring nuclei. On the cell surface, however, the protein is distributed over the entire myotube. Widespread distribution of a surface membrane protein in multinucleated myotubes can thus result from localized synthesis and processing.

Golgi apparatus in chick skeletal muscle: changes in its distribution during end plate development and after denervation

In the course of studies about the cellular and molecular mechanisms of motor end plate formation, the distribution of the Golgi apparatus (GA) has been investigated by immunofluorescence methods in chick skeletal muscle in primary culture and in innervated muscles of 15-day-old chicks. By using a monoclonal antibody directed against the GA, we confirmed the known distribution of the GA in myogenic cells: a juxtanuclear polarized organization in myoblasts and a perinuclear nonpolarized distribution in myotubes. In contrast, the innervated anterior latissimus dorsi muscle of "young adult" chicks displayed a focal distribution of GA that appeared restricted to areas located underneath the motor end plates identified by alpha-bungarotoxin fluorescent labeling of the acetylcholine receptor. Five days after denervation of anterior latissimus dorsi muscle, a striking reorganization and expansion of the GA was observed. The GA now showed a perinuclear distribution in close association with every nucleus of the muscle fibers as observed in myotubes. The focal distribution of the GA in innervated muscle fibers and its remodeling upon denervation are interpreted in terms of a model of local synthesis, processing, and routing of acetylcholine receptor to the end plate and of regulation of these processes by functional motor innervation.

Expression of nuclear lamin A and muscle-specific proteins in differentiating muscle cells in ovo and in vitro

Primary cultures and tissue samples of chicken embryonic muscle were immunologically probed for the expression of muscle-specific proteins, such as myosin heavy chain and the tropomyosins, as well as for the nuclear lamina protein, lamin A. As determined by quantitative immunoblotting, the expression of lamin A and the muscle-specific proteins were at low levels or absent in predifferentiation myoblasts both in vitro and in ovo. During differentiation, an increase of lamin A expression preceded the induction to high levels of expression of muscle-specific proteins. Immunofluorescence staining of chicken embryonic muscle cells in culture also indicates an accumulation of lamin A before the induction of muscle-specific proteins expression. Furthermore, the accumulation of lamin A reached a plateau before the muscle-specific proteins during muscle development. In two dimensional NEPHGE gel analysis of immunoprecipitated lamin A, no detectable change in the ratio of the acidic/basic isoelectric variants of lamin A was observed during myogenesis. A potential role for lamin A in the mechanisms which underlie the differential and coordinate expression of muscle-specific genes is proposed.

Transfer of a protein encoded by a single nucleus to nearby nuclei in multinucleated myotubes

Specialized regions of muscle fibers may result from differential gene expression within a single fiber. In order to investigate the range of action of individual nuclei in multinucleated myotubes, C2 myoblasts were transfected to obtain stable cell lines that express a reporter protein that is targeted to the nucleus. Hybrid myotubes were then formed containing one or a few transfected nuclei as well as a large number of nuclei from the parental strain. In order to determine how far the products of a single nucleus extend, transfected nuclei were labeled with [3H]thymidine before fusion and the myotubes were stained to identify the reporter protein. In such myotubes the fusion protein was not confined to its nucleus of origin, but was restricted to nearby nuclei.

Diversity in expression of myosin heavy chain isoforms and M-band proteins in rat muscle spindles

The composition of adult rat soleus muscle spindles, with respect to myosin heavy chain isoforms and M-band proteins, was studied by light-microscope immunohistochemistry. Serial sections were labelled with antibodies against slow tonic, slow twitch, fast twitch and neonatal myosin isoforms as well as against myomesin, M-protein and the MM form of creatine kinase. Intrafusal fiber types were distinguished according to the pattern of ATPase activity following acid and alkaline preincubations. Nuclear bag1 fibers were always strongly stained throughout with anti-slow tonic myosin, were positive for anti-slow twitch myosin towards and in the C-region but were unstained with anti-fast twitch and anti-neonatal myosins. The staining of nuclear bag2 fibers was in general highly variable. However, they were most often strongly stained by anti-slow tonic myosin in the A-region and gradually lost this reactivity towards the poles, whereas a positive reaction with anti-slow twitch myosins was found along the whole fiber. Regional staining variability with anti-neonatal and anti-fast myosins was apparent, often with decreasing intensity towards the polar regions. Nuclear chain fibers showed strong transient reactivity with anti-slow tonic myosin in the equatorial region, did not react with anti-slow twitch and were always evenly stained by anti-fast twitch and anti-neonatal myosins. All three intrafusal fiber types were stained with anti-myomesin. Nuclear bag1 fibers lacked staining for M-protein, whereas bag2 fibers displayed intermediate staining, with regional variability, often increasing in reactivity towards the polar regions. Chain fibers were always strongly stained by anti-M-protein. The MM form of creatine kinase was present in all three fiber types, but bag1 fibers were less reactive and clear striations were not observed, in contrast to bag2 and chain fibers. Out of 38 cross sectioned spindles two were found to have an atypical fiber composition (lack of chain fibers) and a rather diverse staining pattern for the different antibodies tested. Taken together, the data show that in adult rat soleus, slow tonic and neonatal myosin heavy chain isoforms are only expressed in the muscle spindle fibers and that each intrafusal fiber type has a unique, although variable, composition of myosin heavy chain isoforms and M-band proteins. We propose that both motor and sensory innervation might be the determining factors regulating the variable expression of myosin heavy chain isoforms and M-band proteins in intrafusal fibers of rat muscle spindles.