Extent of myosin penetration within the actin cortex regulates cell surface mechanics.

Autor: Truong Quang BA; MRC Laboratory for Molecular Cell Biology, University College London, London, WC1E 6BT, UK., Peters R; Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3DY, UK., Cassani DAD; MRC Laboratory for Molecular Cell Biology, University College London, London, WC1E 6BT, UK., Chugh P; MRC Laboratory for Molecular Cell Biology, University College London, London, WC1E 6BT, UK., Clark AG; MRC Laboratory for Molecular Cell Biology, University College London, London, WC1E 6BT, UK.; University of Stuttgart, Institute of Cell Biology and Immunology, Allmandring 31, 70569, Stuttgart, Germany., Agnew M; MRC Laboratory for Molecular Cell Biology, University College London, London, WC1E 6BT, UK., Charras G; London Centre for Nanotechnology, University College London, London, WC1H 0AH, UK.; Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University College London, London, WC1E 6BT, UK., Paluch EK; MRC Laboratory for Molecular Cell Biology, University College London, London, WC1E 6BT, UK. ekp25@cam.ac.uk.; Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3DY, UK. ekp25@cam.ac.uk.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Nature communications [Nat Commun] 2021 Nov 11; Vol. 12 (1), pp. 6511. Date of Electronic Publication: 2021 Nov 11.
DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-26611-2
Abstrakt: In animal cells, shape is mostly determined by the actomyosin cortex, a thin cytoskeletal network underlying the plasma membrane. Myosin motors generate tension in the cortex, and tension gradients result in cellular deformations. As such, many cell morphogenesis studies have focused on the mechanisms controlling myosin activity and recruitment to the cortex. Here, we demonstrate using super-resolution microscopy that myosin does not always overlap with actin at the cortex, but remains restricted towards the cytoplasm in cells with low cortex tension. We propose that this restricted penetration results from steric hindrance, as myosin minifilaments are considerably larger than the cortical actin meshsize. We identify myosin activity and actin network architecture as key regulators of myosin penetration into the cortex, and show that increasing myosin penetration increases cortical tension. Our study reveals that the spatial coordination of myosin and actin at the cortex regulates cell surface mechanics, and unveils an important mechanism whereby myosin size controls its action by limiting minifilament penetration into the cortical actin network. More generally, our findings suggest that protein size could regulate function in dense cytoskeletal structures.
(© 2021. The Author(s).)
Databáze: MEDLINE
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