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Sun S, Zhou J, Liu P. Liquid-liquid phase separation of microtubule-binding proteins in the regulation of spindle assembly. Cell Prolif 2024:e13649. [PMID: 38736355 DOI: 10.1111/cpr.13649] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2023] [Revised: 03/19/2024] [Accepted: 04/15/2024] [Indexed: 05/14/2024] Open
Abstract
Cell division is a highly regulated process essential for the accurate segregation of chromosomes. Central to this process is the assembly of a bipolar mitotic spindle, a highly dynamic microtubule (MT)-based structure responsible for chromosome movement. The nucleation and dynamics of MTs are intricately regulated by MT-binding proteins. Over the recent years, various MT-binding proteins have been reported to undergo liquid-liquid phase separation, forming either single- or multi-component condensates on MTs. Herein, we provide a comprehensive summary of the phase separation characteristics of these proteins. We underscore their critical roles in MT nucleation, spindle assembly and kinetochore-MT attachment during the cell division process. Furthermore, we discuss the current challenges and various remaining unsolved problems, highlights the ongoing research efforts aimed at a deeper understanding of the role of the phase separation process during spindle assembly and orientation. Our review aims to contribute to the collective knowledge in this area and stimulate further investigations that will enhance our comprehension of the intricate mechanisms governing cell division.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuang Sun
- Center for Cell Structure and Function, Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Animal Resistance Biology, Collaborative Innovation Center of Cell Biology in Universities of Shandong, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, China
| | - Jun Zhou
- Center for Cell Structure and Function, Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Animal Resistance Biology, Collaborative Innovation Center of Cell Biology in Universities of Shandong, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, China
- State Key Laboratory of Medicinal Chemical Biology, Haihe Laboratory of Cell Ecosystem, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, Tianjin, China
| | - Peiwei Liu
- Center for Cell Structure and Function, Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Animal Resistance Biology, Collaborative Innovation Center of Cell Biology in Universities of Shandong, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, China
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Zhang M, Yang F, Wang W, Wang X, Wang D, Dou Z, Song X, Liu X, Yao X. SKAP interacts with Aurora B to guide end-on capture of spindle microtubules via phase separation. J Mol Cell Biol 2021; 13:841-852. [PMID: 34554241 PMCID: PMC8800532 DOI: 10.1093/jmcb/mjab058] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2021] [Revised: 06/15/2021] [Accepted: 06/21/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Chromosome segregation in mitosis is orchestrated by the dynamic interactions between the kinetochore and spindle microtubules. Our recent studies show that mitotic motor CENP-E cooperates with SKAP and forms a link between kinetochore core MIS13 complex and spindle microtubule plus-ends to achieve accurate chromosome alignment in mitosis. However, it remains elusive how SKAP regulates kinetochore attachment from lateral association to end-on attachment during metaphase alignment. Here, we identify a novel interaction between Aurora B and SKAP that orchestrates accurate interaction between the kinetochore and dynamic spindle microtubules. Interestingly, SKAP spontaneously phase-separates in vitro via weak, multivalent interactions into droplets with fast internal dynamics. SKAP and Aurora B form heterogeneous coacervates in vitro, which recapitulate the dynamics and behavior of SKAP comets in vivo. Importantly, SKAP interaction with Aurora B via phase separation is essential for accurate chromosome segregation and alignment. Based on those findings, we reason that SKAP–Aurora B interaction via phase separation constitutes a dynamic pool of Aurora B activity during the lateral to end-on conversion of kinetochore–microtubule attachments to achieve faithful cell division.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manjuan Zhang
- MOE Key Laboratory for Cellular Dynamics and Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230027, China.,Anhui Key Laboratory for Cellular Dynamics & Chemical Biology and CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Hefei 230027, China
| | - Fengrui Yang
- MOE Key Laboratory for Cellular Dynamics and Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230027, China.,Anhui Key Laboratory for Cellular Dynamics & Chemical Biology and CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Hefei 230027, China.,Keck Center for Organoids Plasticity Control, Atlanta, GA 30310, USA
| | - Wenwen Wang
- MOE Key Laboratory for Cellular Dynamics and Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230027, China.,Keck Center for Organoids Plasticity Control, Atlanta, GA 30310, USA
| | - Xiwei Wang
- MOE Key Laboratory for Cellular Dynamics and Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230027, China.,Anhui Key Laboratory for Cellular Dynamics & Chemical Biology and CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Hefei 230027, China.,Keck Center for Organoids Plasticity Control, Atlanta, GA 30310, USA
| | - Dongmei Wang
- MOE Key Laboratory for Cellular Dynamics and Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230027, China.,Anhui Key Laboratory for Cellular Dynamics & Chemical Biology and CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Hefei 230027, China.,Keck Center for Organoids Plasticity Control, Atlanta, GA 30310, USA
| | - Zhen Dou
- MOE Key Laboratory for Cellular Dynamics and Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230027, China.,Anhui Key Laboratory for Cellular Dynamics & Chemical Biology and CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Hefei 230027, China
| | - Xiaoyu Song
- MOE Key Laboratory for Cellular Dynamics and Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230027, China.,Anhui Key Laboratory for Cellular Dynamics & Chemical Biology and CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Hefei 230027, China.,Keck Center for Organoids Plasticity Control, Atlanta, GA 30310, USA
| | - Xing Liu
- MOE Key Laboratory for Cellular Dynamics and Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230027, China
| | - Xuebiao Yao
- MOE Key Laboratory for Cellular Dynamics and Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230027, China
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Shen B, Chen Z, Yu C, Chen T, Shi M, Li T. Computational Screening of Phase-separating Proteins. GENOMICS PROTEOMICS & BIOINFORMATICS 2021; 19:13-24. [PMID: 33610793 PMCID: PMC8498823 DOI: 10.1016/j.gpb.2020.11.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2019] [Revised: 11/17/2020] [Accepted: 12/10/2020] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Phase separation is an important mechanism that mediates the compartmentalization of proteins in cells. Proteins that can undergo phase separation in cells share certain typical sequence features, like intrinsically disordered regions (IDRs) and multiple modular domains. Sequence-based analysis tools are commonly used in the screening of these proteins. However, current phase separation predictors are mostly designed for IDR-containing proteins, thus inevitably overlook the phase-separating proteins with relatively low IDR content. Features other than amino acid sequence could provide crucial information for identifying possible phase-separating proteins: protein–protein interaction (PPI) networks show multivalent interactions that underlie phase separation process; post-translational modifications (PTMs) are crucial in the regulation of phase separation behavior; spherical structures revealed in immunofluorescence (IF)images indicate condensed droplets formed by phase-separating proteins, distinguishing these proteins from non-phase-separating proteins. Here, we summarize the sequence-based tools for predicting phase-separating proteins and highlight the importance of incorporating PPIs, PTMs, and IF images into phase separation prediction in future studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Boyan Shen
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Beijing 100191, China
| | - Zhaoming Chen
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Beijing 100191, China
| | - Chunyu Yu
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Beijing 100191, China; Institute of Systems Biomedicine, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Beijing 100191, China
| | - Taoyu Chen
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Beijing 100191, China
| | - Minglei Shi
- MOE Key Laboratory of Bioinformatics, Bioinformatics Division and Center for Synthetic & Systems Biology, BNRist, School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Tingting Li
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Beijing 100191, China; Institute of Systems Biomedicine, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Beijing 100191, China.
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Assembling the right type of switch: Protein condensation to signal cell death. Curr Opin Cell Biol 2021; 69:55-61. [PMID: 33461073 DOI: 10.1016/j.ceb.2020.12.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2020] [Revised: 11/30/2020] [Accepted: 12/12/2020] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Protein phase transitions are particularly amenable for cell signalling as these highly cooperative processes allow cells to make binary decisions in response to relatively small intracellular changes. The different processes of condensate formation and the distinct material properties of the resulting condensates provide a dictionary to modulate a range of decisions on cell fate. We argue that, on the one hand, the reversibility of liquid demixing offers a chance to arrest cell growth under specific circumstances. On the other hand, the transition to amyloids is better suited for terminal decisions such as those leading to apoptosis and necrosis. Here, we review recent examples of both scenarios, highlighting how mutations in signalling proteins affect the formation of biomolecular condensates with drastic effects on cell survival.
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Montenegro Gouveia S, Zitouni S, Kong D, Duarte P, Ferreira Gomes B, Sousa AL, Tranfield EM, Hyman A, Loncarek J, Bettencourt-Dias M. PLK4 is a microtubule-associated protein that self-assembles promoting de novo MTOC formation. J Cell Sci 2018; 132:jcs.219501. [PMID: 30237222 PMCID: PMC6398482 DOI: 10.1242/jcs.219501] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2018] [Accepted: 09/10/2018] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
The centrosome is an important microtubule-organising centre (MTOC) in animal cells. It consists of two barrel-shaped structures, the centrioles, surrounded by the pericentriolar material (PCM), which nucleates microtubules. Centrosomes can form close to an existing structure (canonical duplication) or de novo. How centrosomes form de novo is not known. The master driver of centrosome biogenesis, PLK4, is critical for the recruitment of several centriole components. Here, we investigate the beginning of centrosome biogenesis, taking advantage of Xenopus egg extracts, where PLK4 can induce de novo MTOC formation (
Eckerdt et al., 2011; Zitouni et al., 2016). Surprisingly, we observe that in vitro, PLK4 can self-assemble into condensates that recruit α- and β-tubulins. In Xenopus extracts, PLK4 assemblies additionally recruit STIL, a substrate of PLK4, and the microtubule nucleator γ-tubulin, forming acentriolar MTOCs de novo. The assembly of these robust microtubule asters is independent of dynein, similar to what is found for centrosomes. We suggest a new mechanism of action for PLK4, where it forms a self-organising catalytic scaffold that recruits centriole components, PCM factors and α- and β-tubulins, leading to MTOC formation. This article has an associated First Person interview with the first author of the paper. Summary: PLK4 binds to microtubules and self-assembles into condensates that recruit tubulin and trigger de novo microtubule-organising centre formation in vitro.
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Affiliation(s)
- Susana Montenegro Gouveia
- Cell Cycle Regulation Laboratory, Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Rua da Quinta Grande 6, Oeiras, 2780-156, Portugal
| | - Sihem Zitouni
- Cell Cycle Regulation Laboratory, Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Rua da Quinta Grande 6, Oeiras, 2780-156, Portugal
| | - Dong Kong
- Laboratory of Protein Dynamics and Signalling, National Institutes of Health/National Cancer Institute/Center for Cancer Research, Frederick, MD 21702, USA
| | - Paulo Duarte
- Cell Cycle Regulation Laboratory, Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Rua da Quinta Grande 6, Oeiras, 2780-156, Portugal
| | - Beatriz Ferreira Gomes
- Max Planck Institute of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Pfotenhauerstrasse 108, 01307 Dresden, Germany
| | - Ana Laura Sousa
- Cell Cycle Regulation Laboratory, Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Rua da Quinta Grande 6, Oeiras, 2780-156, Portugal
| | - Erin M Tranfield
- Cell Cycle Regulation Laboratory, Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Rua da Quinta Grande 6, Oeiras, 2780-156, Portugal
| | - Anthony Hyman
- Max Planck Institute of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Pfotenhauerstrasse 108, 01307 Dresden, Germany
| | - Jadranka Loncarek
- Laboratory of Protein Dynamics and Signalling, National Institutes of Health/National Cancer Institute/Center for Cancer Research, Frederick, MD 21702, USA
| | - Monica Bettencourt-Dias
- Cell Cycle Regulation Laboratory, Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Rua da Quinta Grande 6, Oeiras, 2780-156, Portugal
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