Les épithéliums jouent le rôle de barrière physique et chimique chez les Métazoires. Les épithéliums subissent des remodelages pendant l’embryogénèse. La morphogénèse des tissus est dirigée par des déformations cellulaires coordonnées fonctionnant grâce à des réseaux contractiles intracellulaires constitués d’actine et de myosine. Ce réseau d’actomyosine peut être soit pulsatile, soit stable. Un exemple est l’élongation de l’ectoderme ventro-latéral par intercalation cellulaire, le long de l’axe antéro-postérieur (AP) de l’embryon de la Drosophile. Les jonctions parallèles à l’axe dorso-ventral (DV) rétrécissent et forment de manière irréversible de nouvelles jonctions parallèles à l’axe AP. Des pulsations de myosine-II (Myo-II) médio-apicale se déplacent de manière anisotrope vers les jonctions parallèles à l’axe DV. Ceci provoque le rétrécissement graduel des jonctions, rétrécissement stabilisé par une population de Myo-II polarisée dans le plan du tissu et enrichie au niveau de ces jonctions. Les mécanismes cellulaires qui régulent la pulsatilité, la stabilité et la polarité de la Myo-II restent à élucider. Lors de ma thèse, j’ai identifié de nouveaux effecteurs régulant l’activation et la polarité planaire de la voie Rho1-Rok-Myo-II aux niveaux des jonctions. J'ai d'abord caractérisé le rôle de la kinase Misshapen dans l’activation polarisée de la voie Rho1 au niveau des jonctions. Misshapen agit en aval de la signalisation GPCR afin de favoriser l’activation de Rho1 et contrôle la polarisation de cette activation en transmettant l’information des récepteurs Toll. Puis j'ai identifié Pebble comme la RhoGEF régulant Rho1 et l'accumulation de Myo-II aux jonctions. / Epithelial build up strong mechanical and chemical barriers in Metazoans. Epithelia can be dramatically remodeled during embryogenesis. Tissue morphogenesis is driven by coordinated cellular deformations which are powered by intracellular contractile networks constituting actin and Myosin. Actomyosin networks can either be pulsatile or stable. One example is the elongation of the ventral-lateral ectoderm by cell intercalation, along antero-posterior (AP) axis of Drosophila embryo. Junctions parallel to the dorso-ventral (DV) axis shrink and form new junctions along AP axis. Medial apical Myosin-II (Myo-II) pulses flow anisotropically towards junctions aligned in DV axis, resulting in steps of junction shrinkage which are stabilized by a planar-polarized pool of Myo-II enriched at these junctions. Sequential deformation and stabilization drive irreversible tissue deformations akin to a ratchet. The cellular mechanisms that regulate Myo-II pulsatility, stability and polarity remained to be unfurled. During my PhD, I identified new regulators for Rho1-Rok-Myo-II pathway at junctions, and Myo-II planar polarity. On the one hand, I characterized the function of Misshapen kinase in polarized activation of Rho1 pathway at junctions. Misshapen acts downstream GPCR signaling to enhance Rho1 activation, and controls the polarization of this activation by transducing information from Toll receptors. Also, I identified Pebble as RhoGEF regulating Rho1 at junctions and Myo-II accumulation.

Myosin II is the molecular motor responsible for muscle contraction. It transforms the chemical energy in ATP into mechanical work while interacting with actin filaments in so called cross-bridge cycles. Myosin II or its proteolytic fragments e.g., heavy meromyosin (HMM) can be adsorbed to moderately hydrophobic surfaces in vitro, while maintaining their ability to translocate actin filaments. This enables observation of myosin-induced actin filament sliding in a microscope. This “in vitro motility assay” (IVMA) is readily used in fundamental studies of actomyosin, including studies of muscle contraction. The degree of correlation of the myosin II function in the IVMA with its function in muscle depends on how the myosin molecules are arranged on the surface. Therefore a multi-technique approach, including total internal reflection spectroscopy, fluorescence interference contrast microscopy and quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation, was applied to characterize the HMM surface configurations. Several configurations with varying distributions were identified depending on the surface property. The most favorable HMM configurations for actin binding were observed on moderately hydrophobic surfaces.   The effects on actomyosin function of different cargo sizes and amount of cargo loaded on an actin filament were also investigated. No difference in sliding velocities could be observed, independent of cargo size indicating that diffusional processive runs of myosin II along an actin filament are not crucial for actomyosin function in muscle. Furthermore, a tool for accurate velocity measurements appropriate for IVMAs at low [MgATP] was developed by utilizing the actin filament capping protein CapZ. These improvements allowed an investigation of the [MgATP]-velocity relationship to study possible processivity in fast skeletal muscle myosin II.  It is shown that the [MgATP]–velocity relationship is well described by a Michaelis-Menten hyperbola.  In addition, statistical cross-bridge modeling showed that the experimental results are in good agreement with recent findings of actomyosin cross-bridge properties, e.g., non-linear cross-bridge elasticity. However, no effect of inter-head cooperativity could be observed.   In conclusion, the described results have contributed to in-depth understanding of the actomyosin cross-bridge cycle in muscle contraction.

No description available.

No description available.

Avaliamos os efeitos da glicação do colágeno (CG) e da glicose elevada sobre a migração de fibroblastos. Utilizamos células de ratos controle e diabéticos (D) e células NIH-3T3, cultivadas em glicose 5 mM ou 30 mM (HG). Para glicação utilizou-se ácido glioxílico. O CG apresentou menor resistência à tração e elasticidade. Fibroblastos migraram menos sob HG e sobre o CG. As células D no CG não se deslocaram, apresentaram menos integrina β141 e expressaram mais α-actina de músculo liso. A viscoelasticidade do citoesqueleto foi menor em células D, especialmente sobre o CG. Sobre fibronectina, células NIH-3T3 em HG apresentaram menos fibras de estresse e deficiência na retração da parte traseira. A expressão de miosinas IIA (MIIA), IIB (MIIB) e MRLC não foi alterada, mas a fosforilação de MII diminuiu. A distribuição de MIIB ficou mais difusa, enquanto MIIA não mudou. Células HG exerceram menor força sobre o substrato. A migração de fibroblastos em ambiente hiperglicêmico é deficiente, especialmente frente ao CG, em parte devido a uma redução da contratilidade celular. / We evaluated the effects of collagen glycation (GC) and high glucose concentrations on fibroblasts migration. Fibroblasts derived from control and diabetic rats (D) and NIH-3T3 cells were cultured under 5 mM or 30 mM glucose (HG). For glycation, glyoxylic acid was used. The GC showed lower tensile strength and elasticity. Fibroblasts migrated less in HG and over the GC. D cells did not move on GC, showed less β141 integrin and a higher expression of smooth muscle α-actin. The viscoelasticity of the cytoskeleton was lower in D cells, especially on the GC. On fibronectin, NIH-3T3 cells under HG had fewer stress fibers and showed impaired contraction at the rear, presenting long tails. The expression of myosin IIA (MIIA), IIB (MIIB) and MRLC has not changed, but the phosphorylation of MII decreased. The distribution of MIIB became more diffuse, while MIIA has not changed. Cells under HG exerted less force on the substrate. The migration of fibroblasts in hyperglycemic environment is impaired, especially on GC, partly due to a reduction of cell contractility.

O cristalino de vertebrados se origina a partir da invaginação do ectoderme que recobre a vesícula óptica. A invaginação epitelial em diversos modelos é causada pela constrição celular apical, mediada pela contração apical de actina e miosina II e regulada pela GTPase RhoA. Neste trabalho nós investigamos se a invaginação do cristalino em embriões de galinha ocorre devido à constrição celular apical e se este evento é controlado por RhoA. Actina filamentosa e miosina II são expressas na porção apical do cristalino durante a invaginação. Quando a polimerização de actina é inibida por Citocalasina D, o cristalino não invagina, sugerindo que a constrição celular apical poderia contribuir para a invaginação do cristalino. RhoA também é expressa durante o desenvolvimento do cristalino, mas a inibição de RhoA, por eletroporação da forma dominante-negativo, não impediu a invaginação do placóide do cristalino, não alterou a distribuição de miosina II na porção apical do cristalino nem sua ativação, indicando que a invaginação do cristalino independe de RhoA. / Vertebrate lens derives from invagination of the ectoderm that overlies optic vesicles. Epithelial invagination in many model systems is driven by apical cell constriction, mediated by actin and myosin II contraction regulated by GTPase RhoA. Here we investigate the possibility that chick lens placode invagination could also be driven by apical cell constriction and controlled by RhoA. We show that actin and myosin II are expressed at lens apical side during lens invagination. Actin polymerization inhibition by in ovo Cytochalasin D treatment prevents lens placode invagination, suggesting that lens placode invagination could be driven by apical cell constriction. RhoA GTPase is also expressed at apical portion of lens placode and during lens invagination. However, when we overexpressed by electroporation the dominant-negative RhoA in the pre-lens ectoderm invagination was not affected. Furthermore, dominant-negative RhoA didnt affect myosin II apical localization nor myosin II phosphorilation, indicating that in lens invagination this process is not regulated by GTPase RhoA.

No description available.

Fundação de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais / ABSTRACT - CHAPTER I Actomyosin from rat testis was obtained by freezing the soluble fraction and myosin II was isolated from this actomyosin. Testis was homogenized in a buffer extract, centrifuged, and the 40,000g x 40 supernatant frozen at -20°C for 48 hours. The supernatant was thawed at 4°C, centrifuged at 45.000g x 45 and the precipitate washed twice with imidazole buffer (pH 7.0 and 9.0, respectively). The resulting precipitate was enriched in 3 polypeptides: p205, p43 and one that migrated together with the front of the gel. These polypeptides were solubilized in pH 10.8 buffer at 27°C. When isolated in a Sephacryl S-400 column, p205 cosedimented with F-actin in the absence, but not in the presence, of ATP and was marked with anti-myosin II. Although the testis preparation expressed low K/EDTA-ATPase activity, a similar preparation obtained from skeletal muscle exhibited high K/EDTA-ATPase activity. In this study, myosin II was isolated from an actomyosin preparation obtained by freezing the soluble fraction of testis. ABSTRACT - CHAPTER II Actomyosin from swine, bovine and chicks brain was obtained by freezing the soluble fraction and myosin II and V was precipitate together, and myosin II from swine brain was partially isolated from this actomyosin. Brain was homogenized in a buffer extract, centrifuged, and the 40,000g x 40 supernatant frozen at -20°C for 48 hours. The supernatant was thawed at 4°C, centrifuged at 45.000g x 45 and the precipitate washed twice with imidazole buffer (pH 7.0 and 10.0, respectively). The resulting precipitate was enriched in 3 polypeptides: p205, p53, p43 and own high Mg2+-ATPase activity. These polypeptides were solubilized in pH 10.2 buffer at 27°C, with addition of ATP, Mg and NaCl. The p205 from swine brain was partially isolated in a Sephacryl S-500 column. This polypeptide of 205 kDa was marked with antibody anti-myosin II and V. Although the brain preparation expressed low K/EDTA-ATPase activity, we observed Co2+- ATPase activity and a stimulation of the Mg2+-ATPase activity by Tween 20. In this study, showed a precipitation together of myosin II and V, and partially isolated this myosin from swine brain from actomyosin preparation obtained by freezing the soluble fraction of brain. / RESUMO GERAL - Miosinas são proteínas motoras que translocam sobre filamentos de actina e atualmente constituem uma superfamília com 20 classes. Algumas são conhecidas apenas a estrutura primária através de seqüência gênica, outras já estão bem caracterizadas bioquimicamente, como as miosinas I, II e V. São amplamente distribuídas em todas as células eucarióticas. Apresentam como características bioquímicas: alta atividade ATPase na presença de EDTA e alta concentração de potássio (atividade K/EDTA-ATPase) e uma baixa atividade Mg2+-ATPase, que é estimulada por F-actina. Preparação de actomiosina é obtida a partir da precipitação de fração solúvel de cérebro tanto em baixa quanto em alta força iônica e esse processo de precipitação constitui um passo importante para purificar e caracterizar miosina II e V a partir de fração solúvel de cérebro. Miosina II é precipitada quando a fração solúvel de cérebro é dializada contra tampão de baixa força iônica, enquanto que, miosina V é precipitada seletivamente em relação à miossina II, quando a fração solúvel de cérebro é tratada com alta força iônica, sendo postulado que essa precipitação de miosina (II e V) seja resultado de sua interação com actina e vesículas. Recentemente temos obtido a precipitação de actomiosina a partir do congelamento de fração solúvel de cérebro ou testículo de rato. Neste trabalho mostramos a purificação de miosina II de testículo de rato e a obtenção de actomiosina de cérebro de suino, bovino e pintainho através do congelamento de fração solúvel de cérebro e testículo. RESUMO - CAPÍTULO I Actomiosina de testículo de rato foi obtida através do congelamento de fração solúvel e miosina II foi isolada a partir dessa actomiosina. Testículos foram homogeneizados em tampão de extração, centrifugado e o sobrenadante 40.000g x 40 foi congelado a -20oC por 48 horas. O sobrenadante foi descongelado a 4oC, centrifugado a 45.000g x 45 e o precipitado foi lavado duas vezes com tampão imidazol (pH 7,0 e 9,0, respectivamente). O precipitado resultante é enriquecido em três polipeptídeos: p205, p43 e um que migra junto com a frente do gel. Esses polipeptídeos foram solubilizados em tampão pH 10,8 a 27oC. O p205, isolado em Sephacryl S-400, co-sedimenta com F-actina na ausência, mas não na presença, de ATP e foi marcado com anti-miosina II. Embora a preparação de testículo, praticamente, não expressou atividade K/EDTA-ATPásica, uma preparação similar obtida a partir de músculo esquelético apresentou alta atividade K/EDTA-ATPásica. Nesse trabalho, miosina II foi isolada a partir de uma preparação de actomiosina obtida pelo congelamento de fração solúvel de testículo. RESUMO - CAPÍTULO II Actomiosina de cérebro de suino, bovino e pintainho foi obtida através do congelamento de fração solúvel e miosina II e V foram precipitadas conjuntamente, sendo que miosina de cérebro de suino foi parcialmente isolada a partir dessa actomiosina. Os cérebros foram homogeneizados em tampão de extração, centrifugado e o sobrenadante 40.000g x 40 foi congelado a -20oC por 48 horas. O sobrenadante foi descongelado a 4oC, centrifugado a 45.000g x 45 e o precipitado foi lavado duas vezes com tampão imidazol (pH 7,0 e 10, respectivamente). O precipitado resultante é enriquecido em três polipeptídeos: p205, p53, p43 e possui alta atividade Mg2+-ATPase. Esses polipeptídeos foram solubilizados em tampão pH 10,2 a 27oC, com adição de ATP, Mg e NaCl. O p205 de cérebro de suino foi parcialmente isolado em Sephacryl S-500. Esse polipeptídeo de 205 kDa foi marcado com anticorpos anti-miosina II e V. Embora a preparação de cérebro, praticamente, não expressou atividade K/EDTAATPásica, apresentou atividade Co2+-ATPase e uma estimulação da atividade Mg2+-ATPase por Tween 20. Nesse trabalho mostramos a precipitação conjunta de miosina II e V e o isolamento parcial dessas miosinas de cérebro de suino a partir de uma preparação de actomiosina obtida pelo congelamento de fração solúvel de cérebro. / Mestre em Genética e Bioquímica

Le succès de la réponse immunitaire repose en grande partie sur la capacité des leucocytes à se déplacer et à accomplir leur fonction au sein de structures anatomiques précises. Le fait qu’il puisse exister des mécanismes intrinsèques de coordination entre ces fonctions spécifiques et la migration de ces cellules n’a jamais été étudié auparavant. Nos travaux mettent en évidence, pour la première fois, l’existence d’un couplage entre la migration et la macropinocytose dans les cellules dendritiques qui explorent leur environnement en internalisant une grande quantité de matériel extra-cellulaire. C’est la Chaîne Invariante, protéine chaperon impliquée dans l’apprêtement des antigènes, qui est responsable de ce couplage en détournant le moteur Myosine II de l’arrière de la cellule, où elle promeut la migration, vers l’avant de la cellule. Ce recrutement transitoire de Myosin II autour des macropinosomes à l’avant favorise la macropinocytose et la délivrance de l’antigène dans les lysosomes, mais ralentit la cellule. L’implication de la Myosine II à la fois dans la migration et la capture d’antigène permet donc le couplage moléculaire entre ces deux processus et leur coordination spatio-temporelle. Cependant, les voies de signalisation impliquées dans le couplage avant/arrière dans les cellules dendritiques immatures restent encore méconnues. L’ensemble de mes travaux de thèse montrent que la libération de calcium du réticulum endoplasmique à travers les récepteurs IP3 (IP3Rs) est nécessaire pour maintenir le niveau de phosphorylation de la chaîne légère de Myosin (MLC) et la polarisation avant/arrière de Myosine II au cours de la migration des cellules dendritiques immatures. Nous montrons que les récepteurs IP3R1, 2 et 3 sont requis pour atteindre une vitesse maximale en 2- et 3-Dimension, et que le récepteur IP3R3, et dans une moindre mesure IP3R1, favorisent la persistance des cellules. En revanche, l’inhibition de l’expression du récepteur IP3R3 augmente la capacité des cellules dendritiques immatures à capturer l’antigène, ce qui est en accord avec notre résultat montrant que la capture de l'antigène est inversement reliée à la locomotion de cellules dendritiques. Nous proposons que le relargage du calcium par le réticulum endoplasmique favorise l’activité de la myosine II ce qui permet aux cellules dendritiques de ralentir de façon transitoire. Ce relargage calcique permet aux cellules dendritiques du optimiser l'internalisation des antigènes extracellulaires en maintenant leur polarité ce qui leur permet d’optimiser ainsi leur capacité d'échantillonnage de l’environnement. / The immune response heavily relies on the migration capacity of leukocytes. These cells must stop in precise anatomical locations to fulfill a particular task. But whether and how specific functions are coordinated with migration by cell-intrinsic mechanisms is not known. We here show that in dendritic cells, which patrol their environment for the presence of antigens by internalizing extracellular material, macropinocytosis is coupled to cell migration. Coupling relies on the diversion of the Myosin II motor from its migratory function at the cell rear to macropinosomes at the cell front by the Invariant Chain, a cell-specific regulator of antigen presentation. Transient Myosin II recruitment at the cell front promotes antigen macropinocytosis and antigen delivery to endolysosomes but antagonizes cell migration. Thus, the requirement for Myosin II for both migration and antigen capture provides a molecular mechanism to couple these two processes and allow their coordination in time and space. However, the signaling pathways involved in back/front coupling in migrating immature DCs remain unknown. Here we show that calcium released from the endoplasmic reticulum through IP3 Receptors (IP3Rs) is required to maintain Myosin regulatory light Chain (MLC) phosphorylation and Myosin II back/front polarization during DC locomotion. We found that while IP3R1, 2 and 3 are required for immature DCs to reach maximal speed in 2-Dimensional and 3-Dimensional environments, IP3R3 and to a lesser extent IP3R1 positively regulate their persistency. On the contrary, silencing of IP3R3 increases antigen uptake by immature DCs, consistent with our finding showing that antigen capture is inversely coupled to DC locomotion (Appendix, manuscript #1). We propose that by promoting myosin II activity, calcium released from the ER help DCs to transiently slow-down to uptake extracellular antigens without losing their polarity and thereby optimizes their environment sampling capacity.

O cristalino de vertebrados se origina a partir da invaginação do ectoderme que recobre a vesícula óptica. A invaginação epitelial em diversos modelos é causada pela constrição celular apical, mediada pela contração apical de actina e miosina II e regulada pela GTPase RhoA. Neste trabalho nós investigamos se a invaginação do cristalino em embriões de galinha ocorre devido à constrição celular apical e se este evento é controlado por RhoA. Actina filamentosa e miosina II são expressas na porção apical do cristalino durante a invaginação. Quando a polimerização de actina é inibida por Citocalasina D, o cristalino não invagina, sugerindo que a constrição celular apical poderia contribuir para a invaginação do cristalino. RhoA também é expressa durante o desenvolvimento do cristalino, mas a inibição de RhoA, por eletroporação da forma dominante-negativo, não impediu a invaginação do placóide do cristalino, não alterou a distribuição de miosina II na porção apical do cristalino nem sua ativação, indicando que a invaginação do cristalino independe de RhoA. / Vertebrate lens derives from invagination of the ectoderm that overlies optic vesicles. Epithelial invagination in many model systems is driven by apical cell constriction, mediated by actin and myosin II contraction regulated by GTPase RhoA. Here we investigate the possibility that chick lens placode invagination could also be driven by apical cell constriction and controlled by RhoA. We show that actin and myosin II are expressed at lens apical side during lens invagination. Actin polymerization inhibition by in ovo Cytochalasin D treatment prevents lens placode invagination, suggesting that lens placode invagination could be driven by apical cell constriction. RhoA GTPase is also expressed at apical portion of lens placode and during lens invagination. However, when we overexpressed by electroporation the dominant-negative RhoA in the pre-lens ectoderm invagination was not affected. Furthermore, dominant-negative RhoA didnt affect myosin II apical localization nor myosin II phosphorilation, indicating that in lens invagination this process is not regulated by GTPase RhoA.