Cell nucleus | EPFL Graph Search

The cell nucleus (; : nuclei) is a membrane-bound organelle found in eukaryotic cells. Eukaryotic cells usually have a single nucleus, but a few cell types, such as mammalian red blood cells, have no nuclei, and a few others including osteoclasts have many. The main structures making up the nucleus are the nuclear envelope, a double membrane that encloses the entire organelle and isolates its contents from the cellular cytoplasm; and the nuclear matrix, a network within the nucleus that adds mechanical support. The cell nucleus contains nearly all of the cell's genome. Nuclear DNA is often organized into multiple chromosomes – long strands of DNA dotted with various proteins, such as histones, that protect and organize the DNA. The genes within these chromosomes are structured in such a way to promote cell function. The nucleus maintains the integrity of genes and controls the activities of the cell by regulating gene expression. Because the nuclear envelope is impermeable to larg

How adeno-associated virus Rep78 relocalises Cdc25B to arrest the cell cycle

Florence Magnin

Adeno-associated virus (AAV) is a small DNA virus belonging to the family of the parvoviridae. AAV infects the human population, however no disease has been associated with this virus. On the contrary, AAV was reported to have oncosuppressive activities. The AAV genome contains two genes: the Rep gene encoding four non-structural proteins (Rep78, 68, 52 and 40) and the Cap gene encoding the three capsid proteins. Rep78 is implicated in transcription, replication and site-specific integration of the viral DNA. It has been shown to block the cell cycle in G1, G2 and S phase with a complete inhibition of DNA synthesis. To be able to induce such a strong cell cycle arrest, Rep78 affects several proteins implicated in the regulation of the cell cycle, such as the family of the cell division cycle 25 (Cdc25) phosphatases. Rep78 has been shown to inactivate Cdc25A by binding to it and preventing it from accessing its substrates. Cdc25B shares conserved domains with Cdc25A and moreover has an important role in cell cycle regulation, especially in giving the signal for entry into mitosis. Thus, in this work, the interaction between Cdc25B and Rep78 was examined in more detail. Rep78 was found to bind to Cdc25B and to alter its intracellular localisation. Cdc25B is nuclear, but has to migrate into the cytoplasm at the end of the G2 phase to activate proteins needed for the entry into mitosis. The expression of Rep78, which is nuclear, leads to the sequestration of Cdc25B in the nucleus. Moreover, Rep78 by interacting with Cdc25B not only changes its localisation, but also inhibits its phosphatase activity. Our model is that Rep78 interacts with Cdc25B and thus retains it in the nucleus. This sequestration of Cdc25B in the nucleus prevents it from activating the proteins in the cytoplasm needed to give the entry signal into mitosis, thus contributing to the G2/M arrest induced by Rep78. Moreover, the inhibition of Cdc25B phosphatase activity by Rep78 may also contribute to the cell cycle block. Rep78 also interacts with a number of cellular proteins implicated in DNA replication, DNA repair or recombination. Interactions between Rep78 and mini-chromosome maintenance 3 (MCM3), DNA polymerases α and δ, proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), Rad50 and Rad51 were identified in this work as well as possible interactions between Rep78 and Ataxia telangiectasia mutated (ATM) or Ataxia telangiectasia and Rad3 related (ATR) proteins. These interactions may contribute to AAV genome replication as well as its integration into the host DNA.

EPFL2009

Isolation and Analysis of Regulators Coordinating the Nuclear Cycle with Cytokinesis in Schizosaccharomyces Pombe

Evelyn Lattmann

During the division of a mother cell into two daughter cells the genetic material of the mother cell is replicated and segregated to the daughter cells before the cytoplasm divides into two portions in a process called cytokinesis. In order to maintain the genetic stability of the daughter cells it is crucial that the bisection of the cells only occurs once the genetic material has been faithfully partitioned. In the model organism S. pombe the timely coordination of cytokinesis is regulated by a cellular signaling cascade called the Septation Initiation Network (SIN). The SIN is required for the formation and contraction of the contractile actomyosin ring (CAR) that assembles in the cell centre and guides the centripetal deposition of septum material during its contraction. Most of the regulators of the SIN are located to the SPB at some stage of the cell cycle. Interestingly, in anaphase B, when the SIN is supposed to be fully active, positive and negative regulators of the SIN localize to opposite SPBs. This asymmetric configuration of the SIN is lost at the end of cytokinesis, when the SIN is turned off; the positive regulators dissociate from the new SPB and the negative regulators assemble on this SPB. In order to understand this process in more detail we analyzed the localization of Cdc7p, a positive regulator of the SIN. We found that the disappearance of Cdc7p from the new SPB at the end of cytokinesis correlated with the separation of the two halves of the cytoplasm. Moreover, our data suggested that the separation of the two SPBs resulting from the completion of septum formation is important for the resetting of the SIN. Interestingly, we observed that Sid2p, the downstream effector of the SIN, was important for the maintenance of asymmetry in anaphase B and for the timing of the resetting of the SIN by acting in a negative feedback. Taken together, we suggested a model where the downstream effector of the SIN may promote the loading of the negative regulators to the SPBs; in anaphase to the old SPB (due to higher affinity of the negative regulators for this SPB) and upon cell separation to both SPBs, because the old SPB cannot buffer the negative feedback. In a separate study we designed a screen to isolate new regulators of the SIN. Mutagenesis of a strain that over-expressed spg1, the core activator of the SIN, led to the isolation of 28 mutants that are dependent on high levels of Spg1p for viability. The characterization of the nine heat-sensitive mutants among them revealed that they are all new alleles of known SIN genes. Interestingly, two mutants that mapped to the SIN effector sid2, lysed at the time of cytokinesis, when shifted to the restrictive temperature. This observation points to a possible role of the SIN in regulating cell separation. Surprisingly, one of the mutants that mapped to the essential positive SIN regulator sid1 contained a premature STOP codon after 243 nucleotides. The analysis of this mutant revealed that translational read-through level of the STOP codon is sufficient for successful cytokinesis. Similarly, high levels of sid1 expression did not interfere with cytokinesis. This indicated that the regulation of the SIN by Sid1p does not depend on its levels but on a precise control of its action. Since over expression of sid1 led to the accumulation of the protein in the nucleus this may hint that Sid1p recruitment to the SPB is regulated by nuclear proteins.

EPFL2012

Marine and freshwater micropearls: biomineralization producing strontium-rich amorphous calcium carbonate inclusions is widespread in the genus Tetraselmis (Chlorophyta)

Michaël Bensimon, Montserrat Filella

Unicellular algae play important roles in the biogeochemical cycles of numerous elements, particularly through the biomineralization capacity of certain species (e.g., coccolithophores greatly contributing to the "organic carbon pump" of the oceans), and unidentified actors of these cycles are still being discovered. This is the case of the unicellular alga Tetraselmis cordiformis (Chlorophyta) that was recently discovered to form intracellular mineral inclusions, called micropearls, which had been previously overlooked. These intracellular inclusions of hydrated amorphous calcium carbonates (ACCs) were first described in Lake Geneva (Switzerland) and are the result of a novel biomineralization process. The genus Tetraselmis includes more than 30 species that have been widely studied since the description of the type species in 1878. The present study shows that many other Tetraselmis species share this biomineralization capacity: 10 species out of the 12 tested contained micropearls, including T. chui, T. convolutae, T. levis, T. subcordiformis, T. suecica and T. tetrathele. Our results indicate that micropearls are not randomly distributed inside the Tetraselmis cells but are located preferentially under the plasma membrane and seem to form a definite pattern, which differs among species. In Tetraselmis cells, the biomineralization process seems to systematically start with a rod-shaped nucleus and results in an enrichment of the micropearls in Sr over Ca (the Sr/Ca ratio is more than 200 times higher in the micropearls than in the surrounding water or growth medium). This concentrating capacity varies among species and may be of interest for possible bioremediation techniques regarding radioactive Sr-90 water pollution. The Tetraselmis species forming micropearls live in various habitats, indicating that this novel biomineralization process takes place in different environments (marine, brackish and freshwater) and is therefore a widespread phenomenon.

COPERNICUS GESELLSCHAFT MBH2018