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Remmelzwaal S, Geisler F, Stucchi R, van der Horst S, Pasolli M, Kroll JR, Jarosinska OD, Akhmanova A, Richardson CA, Altelaar M, Leube RE, Ramalho JJ, Boxem M. BBLN-1 is essential for intermediate filament organization and apical membrane morphology. Curr Biol 2021; 31:2334-2346.e9. [PMID: 33857431 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2021.03.069] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2020] [Revised: 02/25/2021] [Accepted: 03/19/2021] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Epithelial tubes are essential components of metazoan organ systems that control the flow of fluids and the exchange of materials between body compartments and the outside environment. The size and shape of the central lumen confer important characteristics to tubular organs and need to be carefully controlled. Here, we identify the small coiled-coil protein BBLN-1 as a regulator of lumen morphology in the C. elegans intestine. Loss of BBLN-1 causes the formation of bubble-shaped invaginations of the apical membrane into the cytoplasm of intestinal cells and abnormal aggregation of the subapical intermediate filament (IF) network. BBLN-1 interacts with IF proteins and localizes to the IF network in an IF-dependent manner. The appearance of invaginations is a result of the abnormal IF aggregation, indicating a direct role for the IF network in maintaining lumen homeostasis. Finally, we identify bublin (BBLN) as the mammalian ortholog of BBLN-1. When expressed in the C. elegans intestine, BBLN recapitulates the localization pattern of BBLN-1 and can compensate for the loss of BBLN-1 in early larvae. In mouse intestinal organoids, BBLN localizes subapically, together with the IF protein keratin 8. Our results therefore may have implications for understanding the role of IFs in regulating epithelial tube morphology in mammals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sanne Remmelzwaal
- Developmental Biology, Institute of Biodynamics and Biocomplexity, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Florian Geisler
- Institute of Molecular and Cellular Anatomy, RWTH Aachen University, 52074 Aachen, Germany
| | - Riccardo Stucchi
- Cell Biology, Neurobiology and Biophysics, Institute of Biodynamics and Biocomplexity, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH Utrecht, the Netherlands; Biomolecular Mass Spectrometry and Proteomics, Bijvoet Center for Biomolecular Research and Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Suzanne van der Horst
- Molecular Cancer Research, Center for Molecular Medicine, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherlands; Oncode Institute, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Milena Pasolli
- Cell Biology, Neurobiology and Biophysics, Institute of Biodynamics and Biocomplexity, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Jason R Kroll
- Developmental Biology, Institute of Biodynamics and Biocomplexity, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Olga D Jarosinska
- Developmental Biology, Institute of Biodynamics and Biocomplexity, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Anna Akhmanova
- Cell Biology, Neurobiology and Biophysics, Institute of Biodynamics and Biocomplexity, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | | | - Maarten Altelaar
- Biomolecular Mass Spectrometry and Proteomics, Bijvoet Center for Biomolecular Research and Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Rudolf E Leube
- Institute of Molecular and Cellular Anatomy, RWTH Aachen University, 52074 Aachen, Germany
| | - João J Ramalho
- Developmental Biology, Institute of Biodynamics and Biocomplexity, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH Utrecht, the Netherlands.
| | - Mike Boxem
- Developmental Biology, Institute of Biodynamics and Biocomplexity, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH Utrecht, the Netherlands.
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Abstract
As multi-cellular organisms evolved from small clusters of cells to complex metazoans, biological tubes became essential for life. Tubes are typically thought of as mainly playing a role in transport, with the hollow space (lumen) acting as a conduit to distribute nutrients and waste, or for gas exchange. However, biological tubes also provide a platform for physiological, mechanical, and structural functions. Indeed, tubulogenesis is often a critical aspect of morphogenesis and organogenesis. C. elegans is made up of tubes that provide structural support and protection (the epidermis), perform the mechanical and enzymatic processes of digestion (the buccal cavity, pharynx, intestine, and rectum), transport fluids for osmoregulation (the excretory system), and execute the functions necessary for reproduction (the germline, spermatheca, uterus and vulva). Here we review our current understanding of the genetic regulation, molecular processes, and physical forces involved in tubulogenesis and morphogenesis of the epidermal, digestive and excretory systems in C. elegans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel D Shaye
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Illinois at Chicago-College of Medicine, Chicago, IL, United States.
| | - Martha C Soto
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Rutgers-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Piscataway, NJ, United States.
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Yang Z, Mattingly BC, Hall DH, Ackley BD, Buechner M. Terminal web and vesicle trafficking proteins mediate nematode single-cell tubulogenesis. J Cell Biol 2020; 219:e202003152. [PMID: 32860501 PMCID: PMC7594493 DOI: 10.1083/jcb.202003152] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2020] [Revised: 06/15/2020] [Accepted: 08/03/2020] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Single-celled tubules represent a complicated structure that forms during development, requiring extension of a narrow cytoplasm surrounding a lumen exerting osmotic pressure that can burst the luminal membrane. Genetic studies on the excretory canal cell of Caenorhabditis elegans have revealed many proteins that regulate the cytoskeleton, vesicular transport, and physiology of the narrow canals. Here, we show that βH-spectrin regulates the placement of intermediate filament proteins forming a terminal web around the lumen, and that the terminal web in turn retains a highly conserved protein (EXC-9/CRIP1) that regulates apical endosomal trafficking. EXC-1/IRG, the binding partner of EXC-9, is also localized to the apical membrane and affects apical actin placement and RAB-8-mediated vesicular transport. The results suggest that an intermediate filament protein acts in a novel pathway to direct the traffic of vesicles to locations of lengthening apical surface during single-celled tubule development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhe Yang
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS
| | | | - David H. Hall
- Center for C. elegans Anatomy, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY
| | - Brian D. Ackley
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS
| | - Matthew Buechner
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS
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Buechner M, Yang Z, Al-Hashimi H. A Series of Tubes: The C. elegans Excretory Canal Cell as a Model for Tubule Development. J Dev Biol 2020; 8:jdb8030017. [PMID: 32906663 PMCID: PMC7557474 DOI: 10.3390/jdb8030017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2020] [Revised: 08/31/2020] [Accepted: 09/02/2020] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Formation and regulation of properly sized epithelial tubes is essential for multicellular life. The excretory canal cell of C. elegans provides a powerful model for investigating the integration of the cytoskeleton, intracellular transport, and organismal physiology to regulate the developmental processes of tube extension, lumen formation, and lumen diameter regulation in a narrow single cell. Multiple studies have provided new understanding of actin and intermediate filament cytoskeletal elements, vesicle transport, and the role of vacuolar ATPase in determining tube size. Most of the genes discovered have clear homologues in humans, with implications for understanding these processes in mammalian tissues such as Schwann cells, renal tubules, and brain vasculature. The results of several new genetic screens are described that provide a host of new targets for future studies in this informative structure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew Buechner
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS 66045, USA;
- Correspondence:
| | - Zhe Yang
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS 66045, USA;
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Geisler F, Coch RA, Richardson C, Goldberg M, Bevilacqua C, Prevedel R, Leube RE. Intestinal intermediate filament polypeptides in C. elegans: Common and isotype-specific contributions to intestinal ultrastructure and function. Sci Rep 2020; 10:3142. [PMID: 32081918 PMCID: PMC7035338 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-59791-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2019] [Accepted: 01/17/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
The abundance and diversity of intermediate filaments (IFs) in the C. elegans intestine indicate important contributions to intestinal function and organismal wellbeing. Fluorescent IF reporters localize below the actin-rich brush border and are highly enriched in the lumen-enveloping endotube, which is attached to the C. elegans apical junction. Mapping intestinal viscoelasticity by contact-free Brillouin microscopy reveals that the IF-rich endotube is positioned at the interface between the stiff brush border and soft cytoplasm suggesting a mechanical buffering function to deal with the frequent luminal distortions occurring during food intake and movement. In accordance, depletion of IFB-2, IFC-2 and IFD-2 leads to intestinal lumen dilation although depletion of IFC-1, IFD-1 and IFP-1 do not. Ultrastructural analyses of loss of function mutants further show that IFC-2 mutants have a rarefied endotube and IFB-2 mutants lack an endotube altogether. Remarkably, almost all IFB-2- and IFC-2-deficient animals develop to fertile adults. But developmental retardation, reduced brood size, altered survival and increased sensitivity to microbial toxin, osmotic and oxidative stress are seen in both mutants albeit to different degrees. Taken together, we propose that individual intestinal IF polypeptides contribute in different ways to endotube morphogenesis and cooperate to cope with changing environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Florian Geisler
- Institute of Molecular and Cellular Anatomy, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany
| | - Richard A Coch
- Institute of Molecular and Cellular Anatomy, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany
| | - Christine Richardson
- School of Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Durham University, Durham, United Kingdom
| | - Martin Goldberg
- School of Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Durham University, Durham, United Kingdom
| | - Carlo Bevilacqua
- Cell Biology and Biophysics Unit, European Molecular Biology Laboratory, Collaboration for joint PhD degree between EMBL and Heidelberg University, Faculty of Biosciences, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Robert Prevedel
- Cell Biology and Biophysics Unit, European Molecular Biology Laboratory, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Rudolf E Leube
- Institute of Molecular and Cellular Anatomy, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany.
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Karabinos A, Schünemann J, Parry DAD. Promiscuous Dimerization Between the Caenorhabditis elegans IF Proteins and a Hypothesis to Explain How Multiple IFs Persist Over Evolutionary Time. J Mol Evol 2019; 87:221-230. [PMID: 31407015 DOI: 10.1007/s00239-019-09904-5] [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: 05/24/2019] [Accepted: 08/01/2019] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Our previous calculations of ionic interactions indicated that the Caenorhabditis elegans intermediate filament (IF) IFA proteins, in addition to IFA/IFB-1 heterodimers, may also form homodimers. In order to prove the significance of these calculations, we analysed the dimerization potential of the IFA chains in blot overlays. Unexpectedly, we found here that the dimerization of the IFA-1 protein was of both homotypic and heterotypic nature, and involved all proteins immobilized on the membrane (IFA-1, IFA-2, IFA-4, IFB-1, IFB-2, IFC-1, IFC-2, IFD-1, IFD-2 and IFP-1). A similar interaction profile, though less complex, was observed for two biotinylated proteins (IFA-2 and IFA-4). These and previous results indicate that the IFA proteins are able to form many different heteropolymeric and homopolymeric complexes in the C. elegans tissue, but that only those triggered by the IFA-specific IFB-1 protein result in mature IFs. Moreover, the calculations of the possible ionic interactions between the individual rod sequences as well as their various deletion variants indicated a special role in this process for the middle part of the C. elegans IF coil 1B segment that is deleted in all vertebrate cytoplasmic IFs. We hypothesized here, therefore, that the striking promiscuity of the C. elegans IFs originally involved a nuclear lamin which, due to a two-heptad-long rod deletion, prevented formation of a functional lamin/cIF dimer. This, in concert with an efficient dimerization and a strict tissue-specific co-expression, may allow expansion and maintenance of the multiple Caenorhabditis IFs. A possible implication for evolution of chordate IFs proteins is also discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anton Karabinos
- SEMBID,s.r.o.-Research Centre of Applied Biomedical Diagnostics, Magnezitarska 2/C, 04013, Kosice, Slovakia.
| | - Jürgen Schünemann
- Department of Cellular Logistics, Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Am Fassberg 11, 37077, Goettingen, Germany
| | - David A D Parry
- School of Fundamental Sciences, Massey University, Palmerston North, 4442, New Zealand
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Khan LA, Jafari G, Zhang N, Membreno E, Yan S, Zhang H, Gobel V. A tensile trilayered cytoskeletal endotube drives capillary-like lumenogenesis. J Cell Biol 2019; 218:2403-2424. [PMID: 31239283 PMCID: PMC6605810 DOI: 10.1083/jcb.201811175] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2018] [Revised: 04/09/2019] [Accepted: 05/14/2019] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Unicellular tubes are components of internal organs and capillaries. It is unclear how they meet the architectural challenge to extend a centered intracellular lumen of uniform diameter. In an RNAi-based Caenorhabditis elegans screen, we identified three intermediate filaments (IFs)-IFA-4, IFB-1, and IFC-2-as interactors of the lumenal membrane-actin linker ERM-1 in excretory-canal tubulogenesis. We find that IFs, generally thought to affect morphogenesis indirectly by maintaining tissue integrity, directly promote lumenogenesis in this capillary-like single-cell tube. We show that ERM-1, ACT-5/actin, and TBB-2/tubulin recruit membrane-forming endosomal and flux-promoting canalicular vesicles to the lumen, whereas IFs, themselves recruited to the lumen by ERM-1 and TBB-2, restrain lateral vesicle access. IFs thereby prevent cystogenesis, equilibrate the lumen diameter, and promote lumen forward extension. Genetic and imaging analyses suggest that IFB-1/IFA-4 and IFB-1/IFC-2 polymers form a perilumenal triple IF lattice, sandwiched between actin and helical tubulin. Our findings characterize a novel mechanism of capillary-like lumenogenesis, where a tensile trilayered cytoskeletal endotube transforms concentric into directional growth.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liakot A Khan
- Mucosal Immunology and Biology Research Center, Developmental Biology and Genetics Core, Massachusetts General Hospital for Children, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA
| | - Gholamali Jafari
- Mucosal Immunology and Biology Research Center, Developmental Biology and Genetics Core, Massachusetts General Hospital for Children, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA
| | - Nan Zhang
- Mucosal Immunology and Biology Research Center, Developmental Biology and Genetics Core, Massachusetts General Hospital for Children, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA
- Key Laboratory of Zoonosis Research, Institute of Zoonosis, College of Veterinary Medicine, Jilin University, Changchun, China
| | - Edward Membreno
- Mucosal Immunology and Biology Research Center, Developmental Biology and Genetics Core, Massachusetts General Hospital for Children, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA
| | - Siyang Yan
- Mucosal Immunology and Biology Research Center, Developmental Biology and Genetics Core, Massachusetts General Hospital for Children, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA
| | - Hongjie Zhang
- Mucosal Immunology and Biology Research Center, Developmental Biology and Genetics Core, Massachusetts General Hospital for Children, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA
- Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Taipa, Macau, China
| | - Verena Gobel
- Mucosal Immunology and Biology Research Center, Developmental Biology and Genetics Core, Massachusetts General Hospital for Children, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA
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Novel exc Genes Involved in Formation of the Tubular Excretory Canals of Caenorhabditis elegans. G3-GENES GENOMES GENETICS 2019; 9:1339-1353. [PMID: 30885922 PMCID: PMC6505153 DOI: 10.1534/g3.119.200626] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
Regulation of luminal diameter is critical to the function of small single-celled tubes, of which the seamless tubular excretory canals of Caenorhabditis elegans provide a tractable genetic model. Mutations in several sets of genes exhibit the Exc phenotype, in which canal luminal growth is visibly altered. Here, a focused reverse genomic screen of genes highly expressed in the canals found 18 genes that significantly affect luminal outgrowth or diameter. These genes encode novel proteins as well as highly conserved proteins involved in processes including gene expression, cytoskeletal regulation, and vesicular and transmembrane transport. In addition, two genes act as suppressors on a pathway of conserved genes whose products mediate vesicle movement from early to recycling endosomes. The results provide new tools for understanding the integration of cytoplasmic structure and physiology in forming and maintaining the narrow diameter of single-cell tubules.
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