1
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Alicea B, Bastani S, Gordon NK, Crawford-Young S, Gordon R. The Molecular Basis of Differentiation Wave Activity in Embryogenesis. Biosystems 2024; 243:105272. [PMID: 39033973 DOI: 10.1016/j.biosystems.2024.105272] [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: 06/04/2024] [Revised: 07/10/2024] [Accepted: 07/11/2024] [Indexed: 07/23/2024]
Abstract
As development varies greatly across the tree of life, it may seem difficult to suggest a model that proposes a single mechanism for understanding collective cell behaviors and the coordination of tissue formation. Here we propose a mechanism called differentiation waves, which unify many disparate results involving developmental systems from across the tree of life. We demonstrate how a relatively simple model of differentiation proceeds not from function-related molecular mechanisms, but from so-called differentiation waves. A phenotypic model of differentiation waves is introduced, and its relation to molecular mechanisms is proposed. These waves contribute to a differentiation tree, which is an alternate way of viewing cell lineage and local action of the molecular factors. We construct a model of differentiation wave-related molecular mechanisms (genome, epigenome, and proteome) based on bioinformatic data from the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. To validate this approach across different modes of development, we evaluate protein expression across different types of development by comparing Caenorhabditis elegans with several model organisms: fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster), yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae), and mouse (Mus musculus). Inspired by gene regulatory networks, two Models of Interactive Contributions (fully-connected MICs and ordered MICs) are used to suggest potential genomic contributions to differentiation wave-related proteins. This, in turn, provides a framework for understanding differentiation and development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bradly Alicea
- Orthogonal Research and Education Lab, Champaign-Urbana, IL, USA; OpenWorm Foundation, Boston, MA, USA; University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, USA.
| | - Suroush Bastani
- Orthogonal Research and Education Lab, Champaign-Urbana, IL, USA.
| | | | | | - Richard Gordon
- Gulf Specimen Marine Laboratory & Aquarium, Panacea, FL, USA.
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2
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Liu J, Murray JI. Mechanisms of lineage specification in Caenorhabditis elegans. Genetics 2023; 225:iyad174. [PMID: 37847877 DOI: 10.1093/genetics/iyad174] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2023] [Accepted: 09/18/2023] [Indexed: 10/19/2023] Open
Abstract
The studies of cell fate and lineage specification are fundamental to our understanding of the development of multicellular organisms. Caenorhabditis elegans has been one of the premiere systems for studying cell fate specification mechanisms at single cell resolution, due to its transparent nature, the invariant cell lineage, and fixed number of somatic cells. We discuss the general themes and regulatory mechanisms that have emerged from these studies, with a focus on somatic lineages and cell fates. We next review the key factors and pathways that regulate the specification of discrete cells and lineages during embryogenesis and postembryonic development; we focus on transcription factors and include numerous lineage diagrams that depict the expression of key factors that specify embryonic founder cells and postembryonic blast cells, and the diverse somatic cell fates they generate. We end by discussing some future perspectives in cell and lineage specification.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jun Liu
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
| | - John Isaac Murray
- Department of Genetics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
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3
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Medwig-Kinney TN, Kinney BA, Martinez MAQ, Yee C, Sirota SS, Mullarkey AA, Somineni N, Hippler J, Zhang W, Shen K, Hammell C, Pani AM, Matus DQ. Dynamic compartmentalization of the pro-invasive transcription factor NHR-67 reveals a role for Groucho in regulating a proliferative-invasive cellular switch in C. elegans. eLife 2023; 12:RP84355. [PMID: 38038410 PMCID: PMC10691804 DOI: 10.7554/elife.84355] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/02/2023] Open
Abstract
A growing body of evidence suggests that cell division and basement membrane invasion are mutually exclusive cellular behaviors. How cells switch between proliferative and invasive states is not well understood. Here, we investigated this dichotomy in vivo by examining two cell types in the developing Caenorhabditis elegans somatic gonad that derive from equipotent progenitors, but exhibit distinct cell behaviors: the post-mitotic, invasive anchor cell and the neighboring proliferative, non-invasive ventral uterine (VU) cells. We show that the fates of these cells post-specification are more plastic than previously appreciated and that levels of NHR-67 are important for discriminating between invasive and proliferative behavior. Transcription of NHR-67 is downregulated following post-translational degradation of its direct upstream regulator, HLH-2 (E/Daughterless) in VU cells. In the nuclei of VU cells, residual NHR-67 protein is compartmentalized into discrete punctae that are dynamic over the cell cycle and exhibit liquid-like properties. By screening for proteins that colocalize with NHR-67 punctae, we identified new regulators of uterine cell fate maintenance: homologs of the transcriptional co-repressor Groucho (UNC-37 and LSY-22), as well as the TCF/LEF homolog POP-1. We propose a model in which the association of NHR-67 with the Groucho/TCF complex suppresses the default invasive state in non-invasive cells, which complements transcriptional regulation to add robustness to the proliferative-invasive cellular switch in vivo.
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Affiliation(s)
- Taylor N Medwig-Kinney
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook UniversityStony BrookUnited States
| | - Brian A Kinney
- Cold Spring Harbor LaboratoryCold Spring HarborUnited States
| | - Michael AQ Martinez
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook UniversityStony BrookUnited States
| | - Callista Yee
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Department of Biology, Stanford UniversityStanfordUnited States
| | - Sydney S Sirota
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook UniversityStony BrookUnited States
| | - Angelina A Mullarkey
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook UniversityStony BrookUnited States
| | - Neha Somineni
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook UniversityStony BrookUnited States
| | - Justin Hippler
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook UniversityStony BrookUnited States
- Science and Technology Research Program, Smithtown High School EastSt. JamesUnited States
| | - Wan Zhang
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook UniversityStony BrookUnited States
| | - Kang Shen
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Department of Biology, Stanford UniversityStanfordUnited States
| | | | - Ariel M Pani
- Departments of Biology and Cell Biology, University of VirginiaCharlottesvilleUnited States
| | - David Q Matus
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook UniversityStony BrookUnited States
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4
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Sherwood DR, Kenny-Ganzert IW, Balachandar Thendral S. Translational regulation of cell invasion through extracellular matrix-an emerging role for ribosomes. F1000Res 2023; 12:1528. [PMID: 38628976 PMCID: PMC11019292 DOI: 10.12688/f1000research.143519.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/22/2023] [Indexed: 04/19/2024] Open
Abstract
Many developmental and physiological processes require cells to invade and migrate through extracellular matrix barriers. This specialized cellular behavior is also misregulated in many diseases, such as immune disorders and cancer. Cell invasive activity is driven by pro-invasive transcriptional networks that activate the expression of genes encoding numerous different proteins that expand and regulate the cytoskeleton, endomembrane system, cell adhesion, signaling pathways, and metabolic networks. While detailed mechanistic studies have uncovered crucial insights into pro-invasive transcriptional networks and the distinct cell biological attributes of invasive cells, less is known about how invasive cells modulate mRNA translation to meet the robust, dynamic, and unique protein production needs of cell invasion. In this review we outline known modes of translation regulation promoting cell invasion and focus on recent studies revealing elegant mechanisms that expand ribosome biogenesis within invasive cells to meet the increased protein production requirements to invade and migrate through extracellular matrix barriers.
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5
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Heinze SD, Berger S, Engleitner S, Daube M, Hajnal A. Prolonging somatic cell proliferation through constitutive hox gene expression in C. elegans. Nat Commun 2023; 14:6850. [PMID: 37891160 PMCID: PMC10611754 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-42644-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2023] [Accepted: 10/17/2023] [Indexed: 10/29/2023] Open
Abstract
hox genes encode a conserved family of homeodomain transcription factors that are essential to determine the identity of body segments during embryogenesis and maintain adult somatic stem cells competent to regenerate organs. In contrast to higher organisms, somatic cells in C. elegans irreversibly exit the cell cycle after completing their cell lineage and the adult soma cannot regenerate. Here, we show that hox gene expression levels in C. elegans determine the temporal competence of somatic cells to proliferate. Down-regulation of the central hox gene lin-39 in dividing vulval cells results in their premature cell cycle exit, whereas constitutive lin-39 expression causes precocious Pn.p cell and sex myoblast divisions and prolongs the proliferative phase of the vulval cells past their normal point of arrest. Furthermore, ectopic expression of hox genes in the quiescent anchor cell re-activates the cell cycle and induces proliferation until young adulthood. Thus, constitutive expression of a single hox transcription factor is sufficient to prolong somatic cell proliferation beyond the restriction imposed by the cell lineage. The down-regulation of hox gene expression in most somatic cells at the end of larval development may be one cause for the absence of cell proliferation in adult C. elegans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Svenia D Heinze
- Department of Molecular Life Sciences, University Zürich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, Zürich, Switzerland
- Molecular Life Science PhD Program, University and ETH Zürich, CH-8057, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Simon Berger
- Department of Molecular Life Sciences, University Zürich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, Zürich, Switzerland
- Institute for Chemical- and Bioengineering, ETH Zürich, Vladimir Prelog Weg 1, 8093, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Stefanie Engleitner
- Department of Molecular Life Sciences, University Zürich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, Zürich, Switzerland
- Molecular Life Science PhD Program, University and ETH Zürich, CH-8057, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Michael Daube
- Department of Molecular Life Sciences, University Zürich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Alex Hajnal
- Department of Molecular Life Sciences, University Zürich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, Zürich, Switzerland.
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6
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Sarkar GC, Rautela U, Goyala A, Datta S, Anand N, Singh A, Singh P, Chamoli M, Mukhopadhyay A. DNA damage signals from somatic uterine tissue arrest oogenesis through activated DAF-16. Development 2023; 150:dev201472. [PMID: 37577954 DOI: 10.1242/dev.201472] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2022] [Accepted: 07/21/2023] [Indexed: 08/15/2023]
Abstract
Germ line integrity is crucial for progeny fitness. Organisms deploy the DNA damage response (DDR) signaling to protect the germ line from genotoxic stress, facilitating the cell-cycle arrest of germ cells and DNA repair or their apoptosis. Cell-autonomous regulation of germ line quality in response to DNA damage is well studied; however, how quality is enforced cell non-autonomously on sensing somatic DNA damage is less known. Using Caenorhabditis elegans, we show that DDR disruption, only in the uterus, when insulin/IGF-1 signaling (IIS) is low, arrests oogenesis in the pachytene stage of meiosis I, in a FOXO/DAF-16 transcription factor-dependent manner. Without FOXO/DAF-16, germ cells of the IIS mutant escape the arrest to produce poor-quality oocytes, showing that the transcription factor imposes strict quality control during low IIS. Activated FOXO/DAF-16 senses DDR perturbations during low IIS to lower ERK/MPK-1 signaling below a threshold to promote germ line arrest. Altogether, we elucidate a new surveillance role for activated FOXO/DAF-16 that ensures optimal germ cell quality and progeny fitness in response to somatic DNA damage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gautam Chandra Sarkar
- Molecular Aging Laboratory, National Institute of Immunology, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi 110067, India
| | - Umanshi Rautela
- Molecular Aging Laboratory, National Institute of Immunology, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi 110067, India
| | - Anita Goyala
- Molecular Aging Laboratory, National Institute of Immunology, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi 110067, India
| | - Sudeshna Datta
- Molecular Aging Laboratory, National Institute of Immunology, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi 110067, India
| | - Nikhita Anand
- Molecular Aging Laboratory, National Institute of Immunology, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi 110067, India
| | - Anupama Singh
- Molecular Aging Laboratory, National Institute of Immunology, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi 110067, India
| | - Prachi Singh
- Molecular Aging Laboratory, National Institute of Immunology, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi 110067, India
| | - Manish Chamoli
- Molecular Aging Laboratory, National Institute of Immunology, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi 110067, India
| | - Arnab Mukhopadhyay
- Molecular Aging Laboratory, National Institute of Immunology, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi 110067, India
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7
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Ezhil Buvani AP, Subramaniam K. The C. elegans gene gvd-1 promotes late larval development and germ cell proliferation. Biol Open 2023; 12:bio059978. [PMID: 37310364 PMCID: PMC10320718 DOI: 10.1242/bio.059978] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2023] [Accepted: 05/18/2023] [Indexed: 06/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Limiting maternal resources necessitates deferring the development of adult-specific structures, notably the reproductive structures, to the postembryonic phase. These structures form postembryonically from blast cells generated during embryogenesis. A close coordination of developmental timing and pattern among the various postembryonic cell lineages is essential to form a functional adult. Here, we show that the C. elegans gene gvd-1 is essential for the development of several structures that form during the late larval stages. In gvd-1 mutant animals, blast cells that normally divide during the late larval stages (L3 and L4) fail to divide. In addition, germ cell proliferation is also severely reduced in these animals. Expression patterns of relevant reporter transgenes revealed a delay in G1/S transition in the vulval precursor cell P6.p and cytokinesis failure in seam cells in gvd-1 larvae. Our analyses of GVD-1::GFP transgenes indicate that GVD-1 is expressed in both soma and germ line, and functions in both. Sequence comparisons revealed that the sequence of gvd-1 is conserved only among nematodes, which does not support a broadly conserved housekeeping function for gvd-1. Instead, our results indicate a crucial role for gvd-1 that is specific to the larval development of nematodes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anbalagan Pon Ezhil Buvani
- Department of Biotechnology, Indian Institute of Technology–Madras, Chennai 600036, India
- Department of Biological Sciences & Bioengineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur 208016, India
| | - Kuppuswamy Subramaniam
- Department of Biological Sciences & Bioengineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur 208016, India
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8
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Costa DS, Kenny-Ganzert IW, Chi Q, Park K, Kelley LC, Garde A, Matus DQ, Park J, Yogev S, Goldstein B, Gibney TV, Pani AM, Sherwood DR. The Caenorhabditis elegans anchor cell transcriptome: ribosome biogenesis drives cell invasion through basement membrane. Development 2023; 150:dev201570. [PMID: 37039075 PMCID: PMC10259517 DOI: 10.1242/dev.201570] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2022] [Accepted: 03/27/2023] [Indexed: 04/12/2023]
Abstract
Cell invasion through basement membrane (BM) barriers is important in development, immune function and cancer progression. As invasion through BM is often stochastic, capturing gene expression profiles of actively invading cells in vivo remains elusive. Using the stereotyped timing of Caenorhabditis elegans anchor cell (AC) invasion, we generated an AC transcriptome during BM breaching. Through a focused RNAi screen of transcriptionally enriched genes, we identified new invasion regulators, including translationally controlled tumor protein (TCTP). We also discovered gene enrichment of ribosomal proteins. AC-specific RNAi, endogenous ribosome labeling and ribosome biogenesis analysis revealed that a burst of ribosome production occurs shortly after AC specification, which drives the translation of proteins mediating BM removal. Ribosomes also enrich near the AC endoplasmic reticulum (ER) Sec61 translocon and the endomembrane system expands before invasion. We show that AC invasion is sensitive to ER stress, indicating a heightened requirement for translation of ER-trafficked proteins. These studies reveal key roles for ribosome biogenesis and endomembrane expansion in cell invasion through BM and establish the AC transcriptome as a resource to identify mechanisms underlying BM transmigration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel S. Costa
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Box 90338, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | | | - Qiuyi Chi
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Box 90338, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Kieop Park
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Box 90338, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Laura C. Kelley
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Box 90338, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Aastha Garde
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
| | - David Q. Matus
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA
| | - Junhyun Park
- Department of Neuroscience, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Shaul Yogev
- Department of Neuroscience, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Bob Goldstein
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
| | - Theresa V. Gibney
- Department of Biology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 29903, USA
| | - Ariel M. Pani
- Department of Biology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 29903, USA
- Department of Cell Biology, University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, VA 29904, USA
| | - David R. Sherwood
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Box 90338, Durham, NC 27708, USA
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9
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Martinez MAQ, Mullarkey AA, Yee C, Zhao CZ, Zhang W, Shen K, Matus DQ. Reevaluating the relationship between EGL-43 (EVI1) and LIN-12 (Notch) during C. elegans anchor cell invasion. Biol Open 2022; 11:bio059668. [PMID: 36445013 PMCID: PMC9751802 DOI: 10.1242/bio.059668] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2022] [Accepted: 11/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Development of the Caenorhabditis elegans reproductive tract is orchestrated by the anchor cell (AC). This occurs in part through a cell invasion event that connects the uterine and vulval tissues. Several key transcription factors regulate AC invasion, such as EGL-43, HLH-2, and NHR-67. Specifically, these transcription factors function together to maintain the post-mitotic state of the AC, a requirement for AC invasion. Recently, a mechanistic connection has been made between loss of EGL-43 and AC cell-cycle entry. The current model states that EGL-43 represses LIN-12 (Notch) expression to prevent AC proliferation, suggesting that Notch signaling has mitogenic effects in the invasive AC. To reexamine the relationship between EGL-43 and LIN-12, we first designed and implemented a heterologous co-expression system called AIDHB that combines the auxin-inducible degron (AID) system of plants with a live cell-cycle sensor based on human DNA helicase B (DHB). After validating AIDHB using AID-tagged GFP, we sought to test it by using AID-tagged alleles of egl-43 and lin-12. Auxin-induced degradation of either EGL-43 or LIN-12 resulted in the expected AC phenotypes. Lastly, we seized the opportunity to pair AIDHB with RNAi to co-deplete LIN-12 and EGL-43, respectively, which revealed that LIN-12 is not required for AC proliferation following loss of EGL-43.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael A. Q. Martinez
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA
| | - Angelina A. Mullarkey
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA
| | - Callista Yee
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Chris Z. Zhao
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA
| | - Wan Zhang
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA
| | - Kang Shen
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - David Q. Matus
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA
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10
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Smith JJ, Xiao Y, Parsan N, Medwig-Kinney TN, Martinez MAQ, Moore FEQ, Palmisano NJ, Kohrman AQ, Chandhok Delos Reyes M, Adikes RC, Liu S, Bracht SA, Zhang W, Wen K, Kratsios P, Matus DQ. The SWI/SNF chromatin remodeling assemblies BAF and PBAF differentially regulate cell cycle exit and cellular invasion in vivo. PLoS Genet 2022; 18:e1009981. [PMID: 34982771 PMCID: PMC8759636 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1009981] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2021] [Revised: 01/14/2022] [Accepted: 12/07/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Chromatin remodelers such as the SWI/SNF complex coordinate metazoan development through broad regulation of chromatin accessibility and transcription, ensuring normal cell cycle control and cellular differentiation in a lineage-specific and temporally restricted manner. Mutations in genes encoding the structural subunits of chromatin, such as histone subunits, and chromatin regulating factors are associated with a variety of disease mechanisms including cancer metastasis, in which cancer co-opts cellular invasion programs functioning in healthy cells during development. Here we utilize Caenorhabditis elegans anchor cell (AC) invasion as an in vivo model to identify the suite of chromatin agents and chromatin regulating factors that promote cellular invasiveness. We demonstrate that the SWI/SNF ATP-dependent chromatin remodeling complex is a critical regulator of AC invasion, with pleiotropic effects on both G0 cell cycle arrest and activation of invasive machinery. Using targeted protein degradation and enhanced RNA interference (RNAi) vectors, we show that SWI/SNF contributes to AC invasion in a dose-dependent fashion, with lower levels of activity in the AC corresponding to aberrant cell cycle entry and increased loss of invasion. Our data specifically implicate the SWI/SNF BAF assembly in the regulation of the G0 cell cycle arrest in the AC, whereas the SWI/SNF PBAF assembly promotes AC invasion via cell cycle-independent mechanisms, including attachment to the basement membrane (BM) and activation of the pro-invasive fos-1/FOS gene. Together these findings demonstrate that the SWI/SNF complex is necessary for two essential components of AC invasion: arresting cell cycle progression and remodeling the BM. The work here provides valuable single-cell mechanistic insight into how the SWI/SNF assemblies differentially contribute to cellular invasion and how SWI/SNF subunit-specific disruptions may contribute to tumorigeneses and cancer metastasis. Cellular invasion is required for animal development and homeostasis. Inappropriate activation of invasion however can result in cancer metastasis. Invasion programs are orchestrated by complex gene regulatory networks (GRN) that function in a coordinated fashion to turn on and off pro-invasive genes. While the core of GRNs are DNA binding transcription factors, they require aid from chromatin remodelers to access the genome. To identify the suite of pro-invasive chromatin remodelers, we paired high resolution imaging with RNA interference to individually knockdown 269 chromatin factors, identifying the evolutionarily conserved SWItching defective/Sucrose Non-Fermenting (SWI/SNF) ATP-dependent chromatin remodeling complex as a new regulator of Caenorhabditis elegans anchor cell (AC) invasion. Using a combination of CRISPR/Cas9 genome engineering and targeted protein degradation we demonstrate that the core SWI/SNF complex functions in a dose-dependent manner to control invasion. Further, we determine that the accessory SWI/SNF complexes, BAF and PBAF, contribute to invasion via distinctive mechanisms: BAF is required to prevent inappropriate proliferation while PBAF promotes AC attachment and remodeling of the basement membrane. Together, our data provide insights into how the SWI/SNF complex, which is mutated in many human cancers, can function in a dose-dependent fashion to regulate switching from invasive to proliferative fates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jayson J. Smith
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York, United States of America
| | - Yutong Xiao
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York, United States of America
| | - Nithin Parsan
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York, United States of America
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Taylor N. Medwig-Kinney
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York, United States of America
| | - Michael A. Q. Martinez
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York, United States of America
| | - Frances E. Q. Moore
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York, United States of America
| | - Nicholas J. Palmisano
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York, United States of America
| | - Abraham Q. Kohrman
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York, United States of America
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, United States of America
| | - Mana Chandhok Delos Reyes
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York, United States of America
| | - Rebecca C. Adikes
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York, United States of America
- Biology Department, Siena College, Loudonville, New York, United States of America
| | - Simeiyun Liu
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York, United States of America
- Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, California, United States of America
| | - Sydney A. Bracht
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York, United States of America
- Department of Cell Biology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America
| | - Wan Zhang
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York, United States of America
| | - Kailong Wen
- The Grossman Institute for Neuroscience, Quantitative Biology, and Human Behavior, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
- Department of Neurobiology, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Paschalis Kratsios
- The Grossman Institute for Neuroscience, Quantitative Biology, and Human Behavior, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
- Department of Neurobiology, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
| | - David Q. Matus
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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11
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Littleford HE, Kiontke K, Fitch DHA, Greenwald I. hlh-12, a gene that is necessary and sufficient to promote migration of gonadal regulatory cells in Caenorhabditis elegans, evolved within the Caenorhabditis clade. Genetics 2021; 219:iyab127. [PMID: 34740245 PMCID: PMC8570790 DOI: 10.1093/genetics/iyab127] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2021] [Accepted: 07/30/2021] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Specialized cells of the somatic gonad primordium of nematodes play important roles in the final form and function of the mature gonad. Caenorhabditis elegans hermaphrodites are somatic females that have a two-armed, U-shaped gonad that connects to the vulva at the midbody. The outgrowth of each gonad arm from the somatic gonad primordium is led by two female distal tip cells (fDTCs), while the anchor cell (AC) remains stationary and central to coordinate uterine and vulval development. The bHLH protein HLH-2 and its dimerization partners LIN-32 and HLH-12 had previously been shown to be required for fDTC specification. Here, we show that ectopic expression of both HLH-12 and LIN-32 in cells with AC potential transiently transforms them into fDTC-like cells. Furthermore, hlh-12 was known to be required for the fDTCs to sustain gonad arm outgrowth. Here, we show that ectopic expression of HLH-12 in the normally stationary AC causes displacement from its normal position and that displacement likely results from activation of the leader program of fDTCs because it requires genes necessary for gonad arm outgrowth. Thus, HLH-12 is both necessary and sufficient to promote gonadal regulatory cell migration. As differences in female gonadal morphology of different nematode species reflect differences in the fate or migratory properties of the fDTCs or of the AC, we hypothesized that evolutionary changes in the expression of hlh-12 may underlie the evolution of such morphological diversity. However, we were unable to identify an hlh-12 ortholog outside of Caenorhabditis. Instead, by performing a comprehensive phylogenetic analysis of all Class II bHLH proteins in multiple nematode species, we found that hlh-12 evolved within the Caenorhabditis clade, possibly by duplicative transposition of hlh-10. Our analysis suggests that control of gene regulatory hierarchies for gonadogenesis can be remarkably plastic during evolution without adverse phenotypic consequence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hana E Littleford
- Department of Biological Sciences, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA
| | - Karin Kiontke
- Department of Biology, Center for Developmental Genetics, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA
| | - David H A Fitch
- Department of Biology, Center for Developmental Genetics, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA
| | - Iva Greenwald
- Department of Biological Sciences, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA
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12
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Medwig-Kinney TN, Palmisano NJ, Matus DQ. Deletion of a putative HDA-1 binding site in the hlh-2 promoter eliminates expression in C. elegans dorsal uterine cells. MICROPUBLICATION BIOLOGY 2021; 2021:10.17912/micropub.biology.000449. [PMID: 34514358 PMCID: PMC8414078 DOI: 10.17912/micropub.biology.000449] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2021] [Revised: 08/24/2021] [Accepted: 08/25/2021] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
The helix-loop-helix transcription factor hlh-2 (E/Daughterless) has been shown to play an important role in regulating cell fate patterning, cell cycle, and basement membrane invasion in the context of the development of the C. elegans somatic gonad. Here, using CRISPR/Cas9 genome engineering, we generated a new hlh-2 allele (hlh-2(Δ-1303-702)) in the endogenous, GFP-tagged hlh-2 locus. This allele represents a deletion of a 601 bp region in the hlh-2 promoter that contains a putative binding site of the histone deacetylase hda-1 (HDAC) according to publicly available ChIP-sequencing data. Strikingly, we find that HLH-2 expression is virtually absent in the dorsal uterine cells of hlh-2(Δ-1303-702) animals compared to wild type controls. Levels of HLH-2 in the anchor cell and ventral uterine cells are only modestly reduced in the mutant; however, this does not seem to be functionally significant based on the lack of relevant phenotypes and expression levels of a downstream gene, NHR-67 (TLX/Tailless/NR2E1), in these cells. Taken together, these results support growing evidence that HDACs can potentially positively regulate transcription and provide a new reagent for studying hlh-2 regulation.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - David Q Matus
- Stony Brook University,
Correspondence to: David Q Matus ()
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13
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Garde A, Sherwood DR. Fueling Cell Invasion through Extracellular Matrix. Trends Cell Biol 2021; 31:445-456. [PMID: 33549396 PMCID: PMC8122022 DOI: 10.1016/j.tcb.2021.01.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2020] [Revised: 01/07/2021] [Accepted: 01/14/2021] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
Cell invasion through extracellular matrix (ECM) has pivotal roles in cell dispersal during development, immune cell trafficking, and cancer metastasis. Many elegant studies have revealed the specialized cellular protrusions, proteases, and distinct modes of migration invasive cells use to overcome ECM barriers. Less clear, however, is how invasive cells provide energy, specifically ATP, to power the energetically demanding membrane trafficking, F-actin polymerization, and actomyosin machinery that mediate break down, remodeling, and movement through ECMs. Here, we provide an overview of the challenges of examining ATP generation and delivery within invading cells and how recent studies using diverse invasion models, experimental approaches, and energy biosensors are revealing that energy metabolism is an integral component of cell invasive behavior that is dynamically tuned to overcome the ECM environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aastha Garde
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University, Box 3709, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - David R Sherwood
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Box 90338, Durham, NC 27708, USA; Regeneration Next, Duke University, Durham, NC 27710, USA.
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14
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Zhao LN, Björklund M, Caldez MJ, Zheng J, Kaldis P. Therapeutic targeting of the mitochondrial one-carbon pathway: perspectives, pitfalls, and potential. Oncogene 2021; 40:2339-2354. [PMID: 33664451 DOI: 10.1038/s41388-021-01695-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2020] [Revised: 01/27/2021] [Accepted: 02/02/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Most of the drugs currently prescribed for cancer treatment are riddled with substantial side effects. In order to develop more effective and specific strategies to treat cancer, it is of importance to understand the biology of drug targets, particularly the newly emerging ones. A comprehensive evaluation of these targets will benefit drug development with increased likelihood for success in clinical trials. The folate-mediated one-carbon (1C) metabolism pathway has drawn renewed attention as it is often hyperactivated in cancer and inhibition of this pathway displays promise in developing anticancer treatment with fewer side effects. Here, we systematically review individual enzymes in the 1C pathway and their compartmentalization to mitochondria and cytosol. Based on these insight, we conclude that (1) except the known 1C targets (DHFR, GART, and TYMS), MTHFD2 emerges as good drug target, especially for treating hematopoietic cancers such as CLL, AML, and T-cell lymphoma; (2) SHMT2 and MTHFD1L are potential drug targets; and (3) MTHFD2L and ALDH1L2 should not be considered as drug targets. We highlight MTHFD2 as an excellent therapeutic target and SHMT2 as a complementary target based on structural/biochemical considerations and up-to-date inhibitor development, which underscores the perspectives of their therapeutic potential.
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Affiliation(s)
- Li Na Zhao
- Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Malmö, Sweden.
| | - Mikael Björklund
- Zhejiang University-University of Edinburgh (ZJU-UoE) Institute, Haining, Zhejiang, PR China.,2nd Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, PR China.,Deanery of Biomedical Sciences, College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Matias J Caldez
- Laboratory of Host Defense, The World Premier International Research Center Initiative (WPI) Immunology Frontier Research Center (IFReC), Osaka University, Osaka, Japan
| | - Jie Zheng
- School of Information Science and Technology, Shanghai Tech University, Shanghai, PR China
| | - Philipp Kaldis
- Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Malmö, Sweden.
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15
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Ashley GE, Duong T, Levenson MT, Martinez MAQ, Johnson LC, Hibshman JD, Saeger HN, Palmisano NJ, Doonan R, Martinez-Mendez R, Davidson BR, Zhang W, Ragle JM, Medwig-Kinney TN, Sirota SS, Goldstein B, Matus DQ, Dickinson DJ, Reiner DJ, Ward JD. An expanded auxin-inducible degron toolkit for Caenorhabditis elegans. Genetics 2021; 217:iyab006. [PMID: 33677541 PMCID: PMC8045686 DOI: 10.1093/genetics/iyab006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 71] [Impact Index Per Article: 23.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2020] [Accepted: 01/10/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
The auxin-inducible degron (AID) system has emerged as a powerful tool to conditionally deplete proteins in a range of organisms and cell types. Here, we describe a toolkit to augment the use of the AID system in Caenorhabditis elegans. We have generated a set of single-copy, tissue-specific (germline, intestine, neuron, muscle, pharynx, hypodermis, seam cell, anchor cell) and pan-somatic TIR1-expressing strains carrying a co-expressed blue fluorescent reporter to enable use of both red and green channels in experiments. These transgenes are inserted into commonly used, well-characterized genetic loci. We confirmed that our TIR1-expressing strains produce the expected depletion phenotype for several nuclear and cytoplasmic AID-tagged endogenous substrates. We have also constructed a set of plasmids for constructing repair templates to generate fluorescent protein::AID fusions through CRISPR/Cas9-mediated genome editing. These plasmids are compatible with commonly used genome editing approaches in the C. elegans community (Gibson or SapTrap assembly of plasmid repair templates or PCR-derived linear repair templates). Together these reagents will complement existing TIR1 strains and facilitate rapid and high-throughput fluorescent protein::AID tagging of genes. This battery of new TIR1-expressing strains and modular, efficient cloning vectors serves as a platform for straightforward assembly of CRISPR/Cas9 repair templates for conditional protein depletion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guinevere E Ashley
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California-Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Tam Duong
- Center for Translational Cancer Research, Institute of Biosciences and Technology, Texas A&M Health Science Center, Texas A&M University, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Max T Levenson
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California-Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Michael A Q Martinez
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA
| | - Londen C Johnson
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California-Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Jonathan D Hibshman
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
| | - Hannah N Saeger
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California-Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Nicholas J Palmisano
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA
| | - Ryan Doonan
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - Raquel Martinez-Mendez
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California-Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Brittany R Davidson
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California-Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Wan Zhang
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA
| | - James Matthew Ragle
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California-Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Taylor N Medwig-Kinney
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA
| | - Sydney S Sirota
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA
| | - Bob Goldstein
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
- Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
| | - David Q Matus
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA
| | - Daniel J Dickinson
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - David J Reiner
- Center for Translational Cancer Research, Institute of Biosciences and Technology, Texas A&M Health Science Center, Texas A&M University, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Jordan D Ward
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California-Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
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16
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Lattmann E, Deng T, Hajnal A. To Divide or Invade: A Look Behind the Scenes of the Proliferation-Invasion Interplay in the Caenorhabditis elegans Anchor Cell. Front Cell Dev Biol 2021; 8:616051. [PMID: 33490081 PMCID: PMC7815685 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2020.616051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2020] [Accepted: 12/09/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Cell invasion is defined by the capability of cells to migrate across compartment boundaries established by basement membranes (BMs). The development of complex organs involves regulated cell growth and regrouping of different cell types, which are enabled by controlled cell proliferation and cell invasion. Moreover, when a malignant tumor takes control over the body, cancer cells evolve to become invasive, allowing them to spread to distant sites and form metastases. At the core of the switch between proliferation and invasion are changes in cellular morphology driven by remodeling of the cytoskeleton. Proliferative cells utilize their actomyosin network to assemble a contractile ring during cytokinesis, while invasive cells form actin-rich protrusions, called invadopodia that allow them to breach the BMs. Studies of developmental cell invasion as well as of malignant tumors revealed that cell invasion and proliferation are two mutually exclusive states. In particular, anchor cell (AC) invasion during Caenorhabditis elegans larval development is an excellent model to study the transition from cell proliferation to cell invasion under physiological conditions. This mini-review discusses recent insights from the C. elegans AC invasion model into how G1 cell-cycle arrest is coordinated with the activation of the signaling networks required for BM breaching. Many regulators of the proliferation-invasion network are conserved between C. elegans and mammals. Therefore, the worm may provide important clues to better understand cell invasion and metastasis formation in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Evelyn Lattmann
- Department of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Ting Deng
- Department of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.,Molecular Life Science PhD Program, University and ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Alex Hajnal
- Department of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
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17
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Adikes RC, Kohrman AQ, Martinez MAQ, Palmisano NJ, Smith JJ, Medwig-Kinney TN, Min M, Sallee MD, Ahmed OB, Kim N, Liu S, Morabito RD, Weeks N, Zhao Q, Zhang W, Feldman JL, Barkoulas M, Pani AM, Spencer SL, Martin BL, Matus DQ. Visualizing the metazoan proliferation-quiescence decision in vivo. eLife 2020; 9:e63265. [PMID: 33350383 PMCID: PMC7880687 DOI: 10.7554/elife.63265] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/18/2020] [Accepted: 12/21/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Cell proliferation and quiescence are intimately coordinated during metazoan development. Here, we adapt a cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) sensor to uncouple these key events of the cell cycle in Caenorhabditis elegans and zebrafish through live-cell imaging. The CDK sensor consists of a fluorescently tagged CDK substrate that steadily translocates from the nucleus to the cytoplasm in response to increasing CDK activity and consequent sensor phosphorylation. We show that the CDK sensor can distinguish cycling cells in G1 from quiescent cells in G0, revealing a possible commitment point and a cryptic stochasticity in an otherwise invariant C. elegans cell lineage. Finally, we derive a predictive model of future proliferation behavior in C. elegans based on a snapshot of CDK activity in newly born cells. Thus, we introduce a live-cell imaging tool to facilitate in vivo studies of cell-cycle control in a wide-range of developmental contexts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rebecca C Adikes
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook UniversityStony BrookUnited States
| | - Abraham Q Kohrman
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook UniversityStony BrookUnited States
| | - Michael A Q Martinez
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook UniversityStony BrookUnited States
| | - Nicholas J Palmisano
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook UniversityStony BrookUnited States
| | - Jayson J Smith
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook UniversityStony BrookUnited States
| | - Taylor N Medwig-Kinney
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook UniversityStony BrookUnited States
| | - Mingwei Min
- Department of Biochemistry and BioFrontiers Institute, University of Colorado BoulderBoulderUnited States
| | - Maria D Sallee
- Department of Biology, Stanford UniversityStanfordUnited States
| | - Ononnah B Ahmed
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook UniversityStony BrookUnited States
| | - Nuri Kim
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook UniversityStony BrookUnited States
| | - Simeiyun Liu
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook UniversityStony BrookUnited States
| | - Robert D Morabito
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook UniversityStony BrookUnited States
| | - Nicholas Weeks
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook UniversityStony BrookUnited States
| | - Qinyun Zhao
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook UniversityStony BrookUnited States
| | - Wan Zhang
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook UniversityStony BrookUnited States
| | | | | | - Ariel M Pani
- Department of Biology, University of VirginiaCharlottesvilleUnited States
| | - Sabrina L Spencer
- Department of Biochemistry and BioFrontiers Institute, University of Colorado BoulderBoulderUnited States
| | - Benjamin L Martin
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook UniversityStony BrookUnited States
| | - David Q Matus
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Stony Brook UniversityStony BrookUnited States
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18
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Ragle JM, Aita AL, Morrison KN, Martinez-Mendez R, Saeger HN, Ashley GA, Johnson LC, Schubert KA, Shakes DC, Ward JD. The conserved molting/circadian rhythm regulator NHR-23/NR1F1 serves as an essential co-regulator of C. elegans spermatogenesis. Development 2020; 147:dev193862. [PMID: 33060131 PMCID: PMC7710015 DOI: 10.1242/dev.193862] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/11/2020] [Accepted: 10/12/2020] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
In sexually reproducing metazoans, spermatogenesis is the process by which uncommitted germ cells give rise to haploid sperm. Work in model systems has revealed mechanisms controlling commitment to the sperm fate, but how this fate is subsequently executed remains less clear. While studying the well-established role of the conserved nuclear hormone receptor transcription factor, NHR-23/NR1F1, in regulating C. elegans molting, we discovered that NHR-23/NR1F1 is also constitutively expressed in developing primary spermatocytes and is a critical regulator of spermatogenesis. In this novel role, NHR-23/NR1F1 functions downstream of the canonical sex-determination pathway. Degron-mediated depletion of NHR-23/NR1F1 within hermaphrodite or male germlines causes sterility due to an absence of functional sperm, as depleted animals produce arrested primary spermatocytes rather than haploid sperm. These spermatocytes arrest in prometaphase I and fail to either progress to anaphase or attempt spermatid-residual body partitioning. They make sperm-specific membranous organelles but fail to assemble their major sperm protein into fibrous bodies. NHR-23/NR1F1 appears to function independently of the known SPE-44 gene regulatory network, revealing the existence of an NHR-23/NR1F1-mediated module that regulates the spermatogenesis program.
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Affiliation(s)
- James Matthew Ragle
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California-Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Abigail L Aita
- Department of Biology, William & Mary, Williamsburg, VA 23187, USA
| | | | - Raquel Martinez-Mendez
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California-Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Hannah N Saeger
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California-Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Guinevere A Ashley
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California-Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Londen C Johnson
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California-Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Katherine A Schubert
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California-Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - Diane C Shakes
- Department of Biology, William & Mary, Williamsburg, VA 23187, USA
| | - Jordan D Ward
- Department of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, University of California-Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
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19
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The Caenorhabditis elegans homolog of the Evi1 proto-oncogene, egl-43, coordinates G1 cell cycle arrest with pro-invasive gene expression during anchor cell invasion. PLoS Genet 2020; 16:e1008470. [PMID: 32203506 PMCID: PMC7117773 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1008470] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2019] [Revised: 04/02/2020] [Accepted: 02/27/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Cell invasion allows cells to migrate across compartment boundaries formed by basement membranes. Aberrant cell invasion is a first step during the formation of metastases by malignant cancer cells. Anchor cell (AC) invasion in C. elegans is an excellent in vivo model to study the regulation of cell invasion during development. Here, we have examined the function of egl-43, the homolog of the human Evi1 proto-oncogene (also called MECOM), in the invading AC. egl-43 plays a dual role in this process, firstly by imposing a G1 cell cycle arrest to prevent AC proliferation, and secondly, by activating pro-invasive gene expression. We have identified the AP-1 transcription factor fos-1 and the Notch homolog lin-12 as critical egl-43 targets. A positive feedback loop between fos-1 and egl-43 induces pro-invasive gene expression in the AC, while repression of lin-12 Notch expression by egl-43 ensures the G1 cell cycle arrest necessary for invasion. Reducing lin-12 levels in egl-43 depleted animals restored the G1 arrest, while hyperactivation of lin-12 signaling in the differentiated AC was sufficient to induce proliferation. Taken together, our data have identified egl-43 Evi1 as an important factor coordinating cell invasion with cell cycle arrest. Cells invasion is a fundamental biological process that allows cells to cross compartment boundaries and migrate to new locations. Aberrant cell invasion is a first step during the formation of metastases by malignant cancer cells. We have investigated how a specialized cell in the Nematode C. elegans, the so-called anchor cell, can invade into the adjacent epithelium during normal development. Our work has identified an oncogenic transcription factor that controls the expression of specific target genes necessary for cell invasion, and at the same time inhibits the proliferation of the invading anchor cell. These findings shed light on the mechanisms, by which cells decide whether to proliferate or invade.
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