Redistribution of Actin during Assembly and Reassembly of the Contractile Ring in Grasshopper Spermatocytes

Cytokinesis in animal cells requires the assembly of an actomyosin contractile ring to cleave the cell. The ring is highly dynamic; it assembles and disassembles during each cell cleavage, resulting in the recurrent redistribution of actin. To investigate this process in grasshopper spermatocytes, we mechanically manipulated the spindle to induce actin redistribution into ectopic contractile rings, around reassembled lateral spindles. To enhance visualization of actin, we folded the spindle at its equator to convert the remnants of the partially assembled ring into a concentrated source of actin. Filaments from the disintegrating ring aligned along reorganizing spindle microtubules, suggesting that their incorporation into the new ring was mediated by microtubules. We tracked incorporation by speckling actin filaments with Qdots and/or labeling them with Alexa 488-phalloidin. The pattern of movement implied that actin was transported along spindle microtubules, before entering the ring. By double-labeling dividing cells, we imaged actin filaments moving along microtubules near the contractile ring. Together, our findings indicate that in one mechanism of actin redistribution, actin filaments are transported along spindle microtubule tracks in a plus-end–directed fashion. After reaching the spindle midzone, the filaments could be transported laterally to the ring. Notably, actin filaments undergo a dramatic trajectory change as they enter the ring, implying the existence of a pulling force. Two other mechanisms of actin redistribution, cortical flow and de novo assembly, are also present in grasshopper, suggesting that actin converges at the nascent contractile ring from diffuse sources within the cytoplasm and cortex, mediated by spindle microtubules

Phosphofructo-2-kinase/Fructose-2,6-bisphosphatase Modulates Oscillations of Pancreatic Islet Metabolism

Pulses of insulin from pancreatic beta-cells help maintain blood glucose in a narrow range, although the source of these pulses is unclear. It has been proposed that a positive feedback circuit exists within the glycolytic pathway, the autocatalytic activation of phosphofructokinase-1 (PFK1), which endows pancreatic beta-cells with the ability to generate oscillations in metabolism. Flux through PFK1 is controlled by the bifunctional enzyme PFK2/FBPase2 (6-phosphofructo-2-kinase/fructose-2,6-bisphosphatase) in two ways: via (1) production/degradation of fructose-2,6-bisphosphate (Fru2,6-BP), a potent allosteric activator of PFK1, as well as (2) direct activation of glucokinase due to a protein-protein interaction. In this study, we used a combination of live-cell imaging and mathematical modeling to examine the effects of inducibly-expressed PFK2/FBPase2 mutants on glucose-induced Ca2+ pulsatility in mouse islets. Irrespective of the ability to bind glucokinase, mutants of PFK2/FBPase2 that increased the kinase:phosphatase ratio reduced the period and amplitude of Ca2+ oscillations. Mutants which reduced the kinase:phosphatase ratio had the opposite effect. These results indicate that the main effect of the bifunctional enzyme on islet pulsatility is due to Fru2,6-BP alteration of the threshold for autocatalytic activation of PFK1 by Fru1,6-BP. Using computational models based on PFK1-generated islet oscillations, we then illustrated how moderate elevation of Fru-2,6-BP can increase the frequency of glycolytic oscillations while reducing their amplitude, with sufficiently high activation resulting in termination of slow oscillations. The concordance we observed between PFK2/FBPase2-induced modulation of islet oscillations and the models of PFK1-driven oscillations furthermore suggests that metabolic oscillations, like those found in yeast and skeletal muscle, are shaped early in glycolysis

Structure- and function-based design of Plasmodium-selective proteasome inhibitors

The proteasome is a multi-component protease complex responsible for regulating key processes such as the cell cycle and antigen presentation(1). Compounds that target the proteasome are potentially valuable tools for the treatment of pathogens that depend on proteasome function for survival and replication. In particular, proteasome inhibitors have been shown to be toxic for the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum at all stages of its life cycle(2-5). Most compounds that have been tested against the parasite also inhibit the mammalian proteasome resulting in toxicity that precludes their use as therapeutic agents(2,6). Therefore, better definition of the substrate specificity and structural properties of the Plasmodium proteasome could enable the development of compounds with sufficient selectivity to allow their use as anti-malarial agents. To accomplish this goal, we used a substrate profiling method to uncover differences in the specificities of the human and P. falciparum proteasome. We designed inhibitors based on amino acid preferences specific to the parasite proteasome, and found that they preferentially inhibit the β 2 subunit. We determined the structure of the P. falciparum 20S proteasome bound to the inhibitor using cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) and single particle analysis, to a resolution of 3.6 Å. These data reveal the unusually open P. falciparum β2 active site and provide valuable information regarding active site architecture that can be used to further refine inhibitor design. Furthermore, consistent with the recent finding that the proteasome is important for stress pathways associated with resistance of artemisinin (ART) family anti-malarials(7,8), we observed growth inhibition synergism with low doses of this β 2 selective inhibitor in ART sensitive and resistant parasites. Finally, we demonstrated that a parasite selective inhibitor could be used to attenuate parasite growth in vivo without significant toxicity to the host. Thus, the Plasmodium proteasome is a chemically tractable target that could be exploited by next generation anti-malarial agents

Mechanism of nuclear movements in a multinucleated cell

Multinucleated cells are important in many organisms, but the mechanisms governing the movements of nuclei sharing a common cytoplasm are not understood. In the hyphae of the plant pathogenic fungus Ashbya gossypii, nuclei move back and forth, occasionally bypassing each other, preventing the formation of nuclear clusters. This is essential for genetic stability. These movements depend on cytoplasmic microtubules emanating from the nuclei that are pulled by dynein motors anchored at the cortex. Using three-dimensional stochastic simulations with parameters constrained by the literature, we predict the cortical anchor density from the characteristics of nuclear movements. The model accounts for the complex nuclear movements seen in vivo, using a minimal set of experimentally determined ingredients. Of interest, these ingredients power the oscillations of the anaphase spindle in budding yeast, but in A. gossypii, this system is not restricted to a specific nuclear cycle stage, possibly as a result of adaptation to hyphal growth and multinuclearity