A1 Refereed original research article in a scientific journal
Internal epithelia in Drosophila display rudimentary competence to form cytoplasmic networks of transgenic human vimentin
Authors: Gullmets J, Torvaldson E, Lindqvist J, Imanishi SY, Taimen P, Meinander A, Eriksson JE
Publisher: FEDERATION AMER SOC EXP BIOL
Publication year: 2017
Journal: FASEB Journal
Journal name in source: FASEB JOURNAL
Journal acronym: FASEB J
Volume: 31
Issue: 12
First page : 5332
Last page: 5341
Number of pages: 15
ISSN: 0892-6638
eISSN: 1530-6860
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1096/fj.201700332R
Abstract
Cytoplasmic intermediate filaments (cIFs) are found in all eumetazoans, except arthropods. To investigate the compatibility of cIFs in arthropods, we expressed human vimentin(h Vim), a cIF with filament-forming capacity in vertebrate cells and tissues, transgenically in Drosophila. Transgenic hVim could be recovered from whole-fly lysates by using a standard procedure for intermediate filament (IF) extraction. When this procedure was used to test for the possible presence of IF-like proteins in flies, only lamins and tropomyosin were observed in IF-enriched extracts, thereby providing biochemical reinforcement to the paradigm that arthropods lack cIFs. In Drosophila, transgenic hVim was unable to form filament networks in S2 cells and mesenchymal tissues; however, cage-like vimentin structures could be observed around the nuclei in internal epithelia, which suggests that Drosophila retains selective competence for filament formation. Taken together, our results imply that although the filament network formation competence is partially lost in Drosophila, a rudimentary filament network formation ability remains in epithelial cells. As a result of the observed selective competence for cIF assembly in Drosophila, we hypothesize that internal epithelial cIFs were the last cIFs to disappear from arthropods.
Cytoplasmic intermediate filaments (cIFs) are found in all eumetazoans, except arthropods. To investigate the compatibility of cIFs in arthropods, we expressed human vimentin(h Vim), a cIF with filament-forming capacity in vertebrate cells and tissues, transgenically in Drosophila. Transgenic hVim could be recovered from whole-fly lysates by using a standard procedure for intermediate filament (IF) extraction. When this procedure was used to test for the possible presence of IF-like proteins in flies, only lamins and tropomyosin were observed in IF-enriched extracts, thereby providing biochemical reinforcement to the paradigm that arthropods lack cIFs. In Drosophila, transgenic hVim was unable to form filament networks in S2 cells and mesenchymal tissues; however, cage-like vimentin structures could be observed around the nuclei in internal epithelia, which suggests that Drosophila retains selective competence for filament formation. Taken together, our results imply that although the filament network formation competence is partially lost in Drosophila, a rudimentary filament network formation ability remains in epithelial cells. As a result of the observed selective competence for cIF assembly in Drosophila, we hypothesize that internal epithelial cIFs were the last cIFs to disappear from arthropods.
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