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The Eph family of receptor tyrosine kinases and their ligands, the ephrins, play important roles during development of the nervous system. Frequently they exert their functions through a repellent mechanism, so that, for example, an axon expressing an Eph receptor does not invade a territory in which an ephrin is expressed. Eph receptor activation requires membrane-associated ligands. This feature discriminates ephrins from other molecules sculpturing the nervous system such as netrins, slits and class 3 semaphorins, which are secreted molecules. While the ability of secreted molecules to guide axons, i.e. to change their growth direction, is well established in vitro, little is known about this for the membrane-bound ephrins. Here we set out to investigate--using Xenopus laevis retinal axons--the properties of substratum-bound and (artificially) soluble forms of ephrin-A5 (ephrin-A5-Fc) to guide axons. We find--as expected on the basis of chick experiments - that, when immobilised in the stripe assay, ephrin-A5 has a repellent effect such that retinal axons avoid ephrin-A5-Fc-containing lanes. Also, retinal axons react with repulsive turning or growth cone collapse when confronted with ephrin-A5-Fc bound to beads. However, when added in soluble form to the medium, ephrin-A5 induces growth cone collapse, comparable to data from chick. The analysis of growth cone behaviour in a gradient of soluble ephrin-A5 in the 'turning assay' revealed a substratum-dependent reaction of Xenopus retinal axons. On fibronectin, we observed a repulsive response, with the turning of growth cones away from higher concentrations of ephrin-A5. On laminin, retinal axons turned towards higher concentrations, indicating an attractive effect. In both cases the turning response occurred at a high background level of growth cone collapse. In sum, our data indicate that ephrin-As are able to guide axons in immobilised bound form as well as in the form of soluble molecules. To what degree this type of guidance is relevant for the in vivo situation remains to be shown.
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PMID:On the turning of Xenopus retinal axons induced by ephrin-A5. 1262 Sep 87

Since astronauts and cosmonauts have significant bone loss in microgravity we hypothesized that there would be physiological changes in cellular bone growth and cytoskeleton in the absence of gravity. Investigators from around the world have studied a multitude of bone cells in microgravity including Ros 17/2.8, Mc3T3-E1, MG-63, hFOB and primary chicken calvaria. Changes in cytoskeleton and extracellular matrix (ECM) have been noted in many of these studies. Investigators have noted changes in shape of cells exposed to as little as 20 seconds of microgravity in parabolic flight. Our laboratory reported that quiescent osteoblasts activated by sera under microgravity conditions had a significant 60% reduction in growth (p<0.001) but a paradoxical 2-fold increase in release of the osteoblast autocrine factor PGE2 when compared to ground controls. In addition, a collapse of the osteoblast actin cytoskeleton and loss of focal adhesions has been noted after 4 days in microgravity. Later studies in Biorack on STS-76, 81 and 84 confirmed the increased release of PGE2 and collapse of the actin cytoskeleton in cells grown in microgravity conditions, however flown cells under 1 g conditions maintained normal actin cytoskeleton and fibronectin matrix. The changes seen in the cytoskeleton are probably not due to alterations in fibronectin message or protein synthesis since no differences have been noted in microgravity. Multiple investigators have observed actin and microtubule cytoskeletal modifications in microgravity, suggesting a common root cause for the change in cell architecture. The inability of the 0 g grown osteoblast to respond to sera activation suggests that there is a major alteration in anabolic signal transduction under microgravity conditions, most probably through the growth factor receptors and/or the associated kinase pathways that are connected to the cytoskeleton. Cell cycle is dependent on the cytoskeleton. Alterations in cytoskeletal structure can block cell growth either in G1 (F-actin microfilament collapse), or in G2/M (inhibition of microtubule polymerization during G2/M-phase). We therefore hypothesize that microgravity would inhibit growth in either G1, or G2/M.
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PMID:Function of the cytoskeleton in gravisensing during spaceflight. 1500 15

Neurotrophins have been known to play a pivotal role in axonal guidance. Recent research has implicated the role of extracelluar matrix molecules in co-ordinating axonal movement. In this study, we examined the influence of neurotrophins (nerve growth factor (NGF) and neurotrophin-3 (NT-3)) and extracellular matrix molecules (laminin, fibronectin, and poly-l-lysin) on sensory neurite outgrowth in thoracic dorsal root ganglia (DRG) dissected from rats at embryonic day 13. Adjacent DRG were embedded in a collagen gel matrix and supplemented with NGF or NT-3. Under NT-3 conditions, DRG axons extended towards each other and intermingled, while neurites from NGF-treated DRG demonstrated a strong repellent effect, resulting in turning responses and growth cone collapse. This effect was not observed on a collagen culture surface. Interestingly, the composition of the extracellular matrix strongly influenced the observed repellent effect. Sensory neurites from NGF-stimulated DRG again demonstrated a repellent effect when plated on a laminin surface, but showed intermingling behavior when plated on poly-l-lysin or fibronectin. This observation suggests that a factor secreted by NGF-treated DRG axons interacts with laminin, enabling repulsion. This factor and its interaction with the extracellular matrix play an important role in the mechanism of sensory axonal pathfinding.
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PMID:Neurotrophins and extracellular matrix molecules modulate sensory axon outgrowth. 1503 86

NG2 cells (polydendrocytes) comprise an abundant glial population that is widely and uniformly distributed throughout the developing and mature CNS and are identified by the expression of the NG2 proteoglycan at the cell surface. Although recent electrophysiological studies suggest that they are capable of receiving signals from axon terminals, other studies, based on the finding that the NG2 molecule itself induces growth cone collapse, have led to a widely held speculation that NG2 cells themselves also repel and inhibit growing axons. In this study, we have examined the effects of rat NG2 cells on growing hippocampal and neocortical axons in vitro and in vivo. NG2 cells did not repel growing axons but promoted their growth in vitro, and axonal growth cones formed extensive contacts with NG2 cells both in vitro and in the developing corpus callosum. Punctate immunoreactivity for fibronectin and laminin was found to be colocalized with NG2 on the surface of NG2 cells. Altering the level of cell surface NG2 expression had no effect on the growth-promoting effects of NG2 cells on growing axons. Thus, our study indicates that NG2 cells are not inhibitory to growing axons but provide an adhesive substrate for axonal growth cones and promote their growth even in the presence of elevated levels of the NG2 proteoglycan. These findings suggest a novel role for NG2 cells in facilitating axonal growth during development and regeneration.
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PMID:NG2 glial cells provide a favorable substrate for growing axons. 1682 34

Cyclic nucleotides regulate the response of both developing and regenerating growth cones to a wide range of guidance molecules through poorly understood mechanisms. It is not clear how cAMP levels are regulated or how they translate into altered growth cone behavior. Here, we show that intracellular cAMP levels are influenced by substrata and integrin receptors. We also show that growth cones require a substratum-specific balance between cAMP levels, integrin function and Rho GTPases to maintain motility and prevent collapse. Embryonic chick dorsal root ganglion neurons plated on different concentrations of laminin extend growth cones at similar speeds, yet have distinct levels of integrin expression, integrin activation and intracellular cAMP levels. Either increasing cAMP signaling or activating integrins enhances the rate of growth cone motility, but only on substrata where these two factors are endogenously low (i.e. low concentrations of laminin). Surprisingly, combining these two positive manipulations induces growth cone collapse and retraction on laminin but not on fibronectin. Collapse and retraction on laminin are Rho and Rac1 GTPase dependent and are associated with internalization of integrins, the primary receptors responsible for adhesion. These observations define a novel pathway through which cAMP influences growth cone motility and establish a link between integrins, cAMP and Rho GTPases in growth cones.
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PMID:Combined integrin activation and intracellular cAMP cause Rho GTPase dependent growth cone collapse on laminin-1. 1689 44

Cell migration results from forces generated by assembly, contraction, and adhesion of the cytoskeleton. To address how these forces integrate in space and time, novel assays are required that allow spatial separation of the different force categories. We used micro-contact printing of fibronectin on glass substrates to study the effect of adhesion patterns on fish epidermal keratocytes locomotion. Cells migrated at similar speeds on homogeneously adhesive substrates and on patterns with 5 microm-wide adhesive stripes interleaved by non-adhesive stripes with a width varied between 5 and 13 microm. The leading edge protruded on adhesive stripes and lagged behind on non-adhesive stripes. On patterns with non-adhesive stripes wider than 13 microm cells halted, although the lamellipodium did not collapse. High correlation was found between the widths of protruding and lagging edge segments and the widths of the underlying stripes. We explain our data by the force balances between actin polymerization, contraction and adhesion on fibronectin stripes; and between actin polymerization, contraction and lamellipodium-internal elastic tension on non-adhesive stripes. We tested our model further by blocking lamellipodium actin network contraction and polymerization. In both experiments we observed that cells eventually lost their ability to move. However, the two perturbations induced distinct morphological responses. The data suggested that forces powering forward motion of keratocytes are largely associated with network assembly whereas contraction maintains cell polarity. This study establishes spatially selective adhesion substrates and cell morphological readouts as a means to elucidate the mechanical balance between substrate adhesion and cytoskeleton-internal tension in cell migration.
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PMID:Locomotion of fish epidermal keratocytes on spatially selective adhesion patterns. 1771 61

Myocilin is a gene linked to the most common form of glaucoma, a major blinding disease. The trabecular meshwork (TM), a specialized eye tissue, is believed to be involved, at least in part, in the development of glaucoma. The myocilin expression is known to be up-regulated by glucocorticoids in TM cells, and an altered myocilin level may be the culprit in conditions such as corticosteroid glaucoma. Wild type myocilin, when transfected into cultured human TM cells, induced a dramatic loss of actin stress fibers and focal adhesions. Myocilin transfectants displayed a heightened sensitivity to trypsin. Adhesion to fibronectin, collagens, and vitronectin was compromised. The fibronectin deposition and the levels of fibronectin protein and mRNA were also reduced in myocilin transfectants. The fibronectin deposition could be restored by treatment with lysophosphatidic acid, a Rho stimulator. Assays further revealed that upon myocilin overexpression, the activity of RhoA was diminished, whereas the cAMP level and the protein kinase A (PKA) activity were augmented. Myocilin protein did not affect actin polymerization. The collapse of actin stress fibers and increased trypsin sensitivity from myocilin transfection could be reverted by co-expression of constitutively active RhoA or by treatment with PKA inhibitor H-89. The PKA activity, however, was not modified by co-expression of either constitutively active or dominant negative RhoA. These results demonstrate that myocilin has a de-adhesive activity and triggers signaling events. cAMP/PKA activation and the downstream Rho inhibition are possible mechanisms by which myocilin in overabundance may lead to TM cell or tissue damage.
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PMID:Rho GTPase and cAMP/protein kinase A signaling mediates myocilin-induced alterations in cultured human trabecular meshwork cells. 1798 96

Close homolog of L1 (CHL1) is a transmembrane cell adhesion molecule with unique developmental functions in cortical neuronal positioning and dendritic projection within the L1 family, as well as shared functions in promotion of integrin-dependent neurite outgrowth and semaphorin3A (Sema3A)-mediated axon repulsion. The molecular mechanisms by which CHL1 mediates these diverse functions are obscure. Here it is demonstrated using a cytofluorescence assay that CHL1 is able to recruit ezrin, a member of the ezrin-radixin-moesin (ERM) family of filamentous actin binding proteins to the plasma membrane, and that this requires a membrane-proximal motif (RGGKYSV) in the CHL1 cytoplasmic domain. This sequence in CHL1 is shown to have novel functions necessary for Sema3A-induced growth cone collapse and CHL1-dependent neurite outgrowth and branching in cortical embryonic neurons. In addition, stimulation of haptotactic cell migration and cellular adhesion to fibronectin by CHL1 depends on the CHL1/ERM recruitment motif. These findings suggest that a direct or indirect interaction between CHL1 and ERM proteins mediates Sema3A-induced growth cone collapse as well as neurite outgrowth and branching, which are essential determinants of axon guidance and connectivity in cortical development.
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PMID:CHL1 promotes Sema3A-induced growth cone collapse and neurite elaboration through a motif required for recruitment of ERM proteins to the plasma membrane. 1799 39

The combination of the recently introduced soft lithographic technique of inverted microcontact printing (i-muCP) and spin-coated films of polystyrene- block-poly( tert-butyl acrylate) (PS 690- b-P tBA 1210) as a reactive platform is shown to yield a versatile approach for the facile fabrication of topographically structured and chemically patterned biointerfaces with characteristic spacings and distances that cross many orders of magnitude. The shortcomings of conventional muCP in printing of small features with large spacings, due to the collapse of small or high aspect ratio stamp structures, are circumvented in i-muCP by printing reactants using a featureless elastomeric stamp onto a topographically structured reactive polymer film. Prior to molecular transfer, the substrate-supported PS 690- b-P tBA 1210 films were structured by imprint lithography resulting in lateral and vertical feature sizes between >50 microm-150 nm and >1.0 microm-18 nm, respectively. Time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS) and water contact angle measurements provided evidence for the absence of surface chemical transformations during the imprinting step. Following the previously established hydrolysis and activation protocol with trifluoroacetic acid and N-hydroxysuccinimide, amino end-functionalized poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG-NH 2), as well as bovine serum albumin and fibronectin as model proteins, were successfully transferred by i-muCP and coupled covalently. As shown, i-muCP yields increased PEG coverages and thus improved performance in suppressing nonspecific adsorption of proteins by exploiting the high local concentrations in the micro- and nanocontacts during molecular transfer. The i-muCP strategy provides access to versatile biointerface platforms patterned across the length scales, as shown for guided cancer cell adhesion, which opens the pathway for systematic cell-surface interaction studies.
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PMID:Inverted microcontact printing on polystyrene-block-poly(tert-butyl acrylate) films: a versatile approach to fabricate structured biointerfaces across the length scales. 1862 56

This study summarizes the development and testing of a scaffold to promote engraftment of cells in the distal lung. A fibrinogen-fibronectin-vitronectin hydrogel (FFVH) was developed and optimized with respect to its mechanical and biological properties for this application. In vitro, FFVH scaffolds promoted attachment, histiotypic growth and expression of basement membrane proteins by primary ovine lung mesenchymal cells derived from lung biopsies. In vivo testing was then performed to assess the ability of FFVHs to promote cell engraftment in the sheep lung. Treatment with autologous cells delivered using FFVH was clinically well tolerated. Cells labelled with a fluorescent dye (PKH-26) were detected at treatment sites after 1 month. Tissue mass (assessed by CT imaging) and lung perfusion (assessed by nuclear scintigraphy) were increased at emphysema test sites. Post-treatment histology demonstrated cell proliferation and increased elastin expression without scarring or collapse. No treatment-related pathology was observed at healthy control sites. FFVH scaffolds promote cell attachment, spreading and extracellular matrix expression in vitro and apparent engraftment in vivo, with evidence of trophic effects on the surrounding tissue. Scaffolds of this type may contribute to the development of cell-based therapies for patients with end-stage pulmonary diseases.
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PMID:Design and testing of biological scaffolds for delivering reparative cells to target sites in the lung. 2002 May 3


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