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2439 Janelia Publications

Showing 1-10 of 2439 results
03/27/24 | Altruistic feeding and cell-cell signaling during bacterial differentiation actively enhance phenotypic heterogeneity
Taylor B. Updegrove , Thomas Delerue , V. Anantharaman , Hyomoon Cho , Carissa Chan , Thomas Nipper , Hyoyoung Choo-Wosoba , Lisa Jenkins , Lixia Zhang , Yijun Su , Hari Shroff , Jiji Chen , Carole Bewley , L. Aravind , Kumaran S Ramamurthi
bioRxiv. 03/2024:. doi: 10.1101/2024.03.27.587046

Starvation triggers bacterial spore formation, a committed differentiation program that transforms a vegetative cell into a dormant spore. Cells in a population enter sporulation non-uniformly to secure against the possibility that favorable growth conditions, which puts sporulation-committed cells at a disadvantage, may resume. This heterogeneous behavior is initiated by a passive mechanism: stochastic activation of a master transcriptional regulator. Here, we identify a cell-cell communication pathway that actively promotes phenotypic heterogeneity, wherein Bacillus subtilis cells that start sporulating early utilize a calcineurin-like phosphoesterase to release glycerol, which simultaneously acts as a signaling molecule and a nutrient to delay non-sporulating cells from entering sporulation. This produced a more diverse population that was better poised to exploit a sudden influx of nutrients compared to those generating heterogeneity via stochastic gene expression alone. Although conflict systems are prevalent among microbes, genetically encoded cooperative behavior in unicellular organisms can evidently also boost inclusive fitness.

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03/20/24 | Detecting abnormal cell behaviors from dry mass time series
Bailly R, Malfante M, Allier C, Paviolo C, Ghenim L, Padmanabhan K, Bardin S, Mars J
Scientific Reports. 03/2024;14(1):. doi: 10.1038/s41598-024-57684-w

The prediction of pathological changes on single cell behaviour is a challenging task for deep learning models. Indeed, in self-supervised learning methods, no prior labels are used for the training and all of the information for event predictions are extracted from the data themselves. We present here a novel self-supervised learning model for the detection of anomalies in a given cell population, StArDusTS. Cells are monitored over time, and analysed to extract time-series of dry mass values. We assessed its performances on different cell lines, showing a precision of 96% in the automatic detection of anomalies. Additionally, anomaly detection was also associated with cell measurement errors inherent to the acquisition or analysis pipelines, leading to an improvement of the upstream methods for feature extraction. Our results pave the way to novel architectures for the continuous monitoring of cell cultures in applied research or bioproduction applications, and for the prediction of pathological cellular changes.

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01/03/24 | Diversification of small RNA pathways underlies germline RNA interference incompetence in wild Caenorhabditis elegans strains.
Chou HT, Valencia F, Alexander JC, Bell AD, Deb D, Pollard DA, Paaby AB
Genetics. 01/2024;226(1):. doi: 10.1093/genetics/iyad191

The discovery that experimental delivery of dsRNA can induce gene silencing at target genes revolutionized genetics research, by both uncovering essential biological processes and creating new tools for developmental geneticists. However, the efficacy of exogenous RNA interference (RNAi) varies dramatically within the Caenorhabditis elegans natural population, raising questions about our understanding of RNAi in the lab relative to its activity and significance in nature. Here, we investigate why some wild strains fail to mount a robust RNAi response to germline targets. We observe diversity in mechanism: in some strains, the response is stochastic, either on or off among individuals, while in others, the response is consistent but delayed. Increased activity of the Argonaute PPW-1, which is required for germline RNAi in the laboratory strain N2, rescues the response in some strains but dampens it further in others. Among wild strains, genes known to mediate RNAi exhibited very high expression variation relative to other genes in the genome as well as allelic divergence and strain-specific instances of pseudogenization at the sequence level. Our results demonstrate functional diversification in the small RNA pathways in C. elegans and suggest that RNAi processes are evolving rapidly and dynamically in nature.

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03/25/24 | Evaluation of the Cytosolic Uptake of HaloTag Using a pH-Sensitive Dye
Giancola JB, Grimm JB, Jun JV, Petri YD, Lavis LD, Raines RT
ACS Chemical Biology. 03/2024:. doi: 10.1021/acschembio.3c0071310.1021/acschembio.3c00713.s001

The efficient cytosolic delivery of proteins is critical for advancing novel therapeutic strategies. Current delivery methods are severely limited by endosomal entrapment, and detection methods lack sophistication in tracking the fate of delivered protein cargo. HaloTag, a commonly used protein in chemical biology and a challenging delivery target, is an exceptional model system for understanding and exploiting cellular delivery. Here, we employed a combinatorial strategy to direct HaloTag to the cytosol. We established the use of Virginia Orange, a pH-sensitive fluorophore, and Janelia Fluor 585, a similar but pH-agnostic fluorophore, in a fluorogenic assay to ascertain protein localization within human cells. Using this assay, we investigated HaloTag delivery upon modification with cell-penetrating peptides, carboxyl group esterification, and cotreatment with an endosomolytic agent. We found efficacious cytosolic entry with two distinct delivery methods. This study expands the toolkit for detecting the cytosolic access of proteins and highlights that multiple intracellular delivery strategies can be used synergistically to effect cytosolic access. Moreover, HaloTag is poised to serve as a platform for the delivery of varied cargo into human cells.

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03/21/24 | Focal adhesions contain three specialized actin nanoscale layers
Kumari R, Ven K, Chastney M, Kokate SB, Peränen J, Aaron J, Kogan K, Almeida-Souza L, Kremneva E, Poincloux R, Chew T, Gunning PW, Ivaska J, Lappalainen P
Nature Communications. 03/2024;15(1):. doi: 10.1038/s41467-024-46868-7

Focal adhesions (FAs) connect inner workings of cell to the extracellular matrix to control cell adhesion, migration and mechanosensing. Previous studies demonstrated that FAs contain three vertical layers, which connect extracellular matrix to the cytoskeleton. By using super-resolution iPALM microscopy, we identify two additional nanoscale layers within FAs, specified by actin filaments bound to tropomyosin isoforms Tpm1.6 and Tpm3.2. The Tpm1.6-actin filaments, beneath the previously identified α-actinin cross-linked actin filaments, appear critical for adhesion maturation and controlled cell motility, whereas the adjacent Tpm3.2-actin filament layer beneath seems to facilitate adhesion disassembly. Mechanistically, Tpm3.2 stabilizes ACF-7/MACF1 and KANK-family proteins at adhesions, and hence targets microtubule plus-ends to FAs to catalyse their disassembly. Tpm3.2 depletion leads to disorganized microtubule network, abnormally stable FAs, and defects in tail retraction during migration. Thus, FAs are composed of distinct actin filament layers, and each may have specific roles in coupling adhesions to the cytoskeleton, or in controlling adhesion dynamics.

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02/20/24 | More than just 'added value': The perils of not establishing shared core facilities in resource-constrained communities.
Rahmoon MA, Hobson CM, Aaron JS, Balasubramanian H, Chew T
J Microsc. 02/2024:. doi: 10.1111/jmi.13277

The accelerating pace of technological advancements necessitates specialised expertise and cutting-edge instruments to maintain competitive research in life sciences. Core facilities - collaborative laboratories equipped with state-of-the-art tools and staffed by expert personnel - are vital resources that support diverse scientific endeavours. However, their adoption in lower-income communities has been comparatively stagnant due to both financial and cultural challenges. This paper explores the perils of not supporting core facilities on national research enterprises, underscoring the need for balanced investments in discovery science and crucial infrastructure support. We explore the implications from the perspectives of funders, university leaders and lab heads. We advocate for a paradigm shift to recognise these facilities as essential components of national research efforts. Core facilities are positioned not as optional but as strategic investments that can catalyse breakthroughs, particularly in environments with limited resources.

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03/22/24 | Visualization of Glutamatergic Neurotransmission in Diverse Model Organisms with Genetically Encoded Indicators
Aggarwal A, Chan J, Waring AK, Negrean A, Marvin JS, Podgorski K, Looger LL, Kukley M
New Technologies for Glutamate Interaction: Neurons and Glia;2780:3–34. doi: 10.1007/978-1-0716-3742-5_1

Glutamate is the principal excitatory neurotransmitter, and occasionally subserves inhibitory roles, in the vertebrate nervous system. Glutamatergic synapses are dense in the vertebrate brain, at \textasciitilde1/μm3. Glutamate is released from and onto diverse components of the nervous system, including neurons, glia, and other cells. Methods for glutamate detection are critically important for understanding the function of synapses and neural circuits in normal physiology, development, and disease. Here we describe the development, optimization, and deployment of genetically encoded fluorescent glutamate indicators. We review the theoretical considerations governing glutamate sensor properties from first principles of synapse biology, microscopy, and protein structure-function relationships. We provide case studies of the state-of-the-art iGluSnFR glutamate sensor, encompassing design and optimization, mechanism of action, in vivo imaging, data analysis, and future directions. We include detailed protocols for iGluSnFR imaging in common preparations (bacteria, cell culture, and brain slices) and model organisms (worm, fly, fish, rodent).

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03/20/24 | Interactive simulation and visualization of point spread functions in single molecule imaging.
Magdalena C. Schneider , Fabian Hinterer , Alexander Jesacher , Gerhard J. Schütz
Optics Communications. 2024-03-20:. doi: 10.1016/j.optcom.2024.130463

The point spread function (PSF) is fundamental to any type of microscopy, most importantly so for single-molecule localization techniques, where the exact PSF shape is crucial for precise molecule localization at the nanoscale. Optical aberrations and fixed fluorophore dipoles often result in non-isotropic and distorted PSFs, impairing and biasing conventional fitting approaches. Further, PSF shapes are deliberately modified in PSF engineering approaches for providing improved sensitivity, e.g., for 3D localization or determination of dipole orientation. As this can lead to highly complex PSF shapes, a tool for visualizing expected PSFs would facilitate the interpretation of obtained data and the design of experimental approaches. To this end, we introduce a comprehensive and accessible computer application that allows for the simulation of realistic PSFs based on the full vectorial PSF model. Our tool incorporates a wide range of microscope and fluorophore parameters, including orientationally constrained fluorophores, as well as custom aberrations, transmission and phase masks, thus enabling an accurate representation of various imaging conditions. An additional feature is the simulation of crowded molecular environments with overlapping PSFs. Further, our app directly provides the Cramér–Rao bound for assessing the best achievable localization precision under given conditions. Finally, our software allows for the fitting of custom aberrations directly from experimental data, as well as the generation of a large dataset with randomized simulation parameters, effectively bridging the gap between simulated and experimental scenarios, and enhancing experimental design and result validation.

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03/20/24 | Motor neurons generate pose-targeted movements via proprioceptive sculpting.
Gorko B, Siwanowicz I, Close K, Christoforou C, Hibbard KL, Kabra M, Lee A, Park J, Li SY, Chen AB, Namiki S, Chen C, Tuthill JC, Bock DD, Rouault H, Branson K, Ihrke G, Huston SJ
Nature. 2024 Mar 20:. doi: 10.1038/s41586-024-07222-5

Motor neurons are the final common pathway through which the brain controls movement of the body, forming the basic elements from which all movement is composed. Yet how a single motor neuron contributes to control during natural movement remains unclear. Here we anatomically and functionally characterize the individual roles of the motor neurons that control head movement in the fly, Drosophila melanogaster. Counterintuitively, we find that activity in a single motor neuron rotates the head in different directions, depending on the starting posture of the head, such that the head converges towards a pose determined by the identity of the stimulated motor neuron. A feedback model predicts that this convergent behaviour results from motor neuron drive interacting with proprioceptive feedback. We identify and genetically suppress a single class of proprioceptive neuron that changes the motor neuron-induced convergence as predicted by the feedback model. These data suggest a framework for how the brain controls movements: instead of directly generating movement in a given direction by activating a fixed set of motor neurons, the brain controls movements by adding bias to a continuing proprioceptive-motor loop.

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03/06/24 | Cell division machinery drives cell-specific gene activation during differentiation in .
Chareyre S, Li X, Anjuwon-Foster BR, Updegrove TB, Clifford S, Brogan AP, Su Y, Zhang L, Chen J, Shroff H, Ramamurthi KS
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2024-03-06;121(13):e2400584121. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2400584121

When faced with starvation, the bacterium transforms itself into a dormant cell type called a "spore". Sporulation initiates with an asymmetric division event, which requires the relocation of the core divisome components FtsA and FtsZ, after which the sigma factor σ is exclusively activated in the smaller daughter cell. Compartment-specific activation of σ requires the SpoIIE phosphatase, which displays a biased localization on one side of the asymmetric division septum and associates with the structural protein DivIVA, but the mechanism by which this preferential localization is achieved is unclear. Here, we isolated a variant of DivIVA that indiscriminately activates σ in both daughter cells due to promiscuous localization of SpoIIE, which was corrected by overproduction of FtsA and FtsZ. We propose that the core components of the redeployed cell division machinery drive the asymmetric localization of DivIVA and SpoIIE to trigger the initiation of the sporulation program.

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