A spatially restricted molecule of the extracellular matrix is contributed both maternally and zygotically in the sea urchin embryo.

The extracellular matrix of the early sea urchin embryo is known to have an important functional role in morphogenesis and in the regulation of cell type specific gene expression. We have undertaken an immuno-cDNA screen to identify the constituents of the embryonic blastocoelic-extracellular matrix. Here we describe a newly identified member of the extracellular matrix that we have designated ECM 3. The transcript encoding ECM 3 is approximately 9.5 kb in length and partial DNA sequence contains no significant similarity to other sequences in the Genbank. This transcript is present in eggs and early embryos, and early in gastrulation the transcript accumulation increases approximately 25 fold. In situ RNA hybridization shows that the mRNA is present uniformly throughout eggs and early embryos, but beginning at mesenchyme blastula stage, RNA accumulation is selective to cells of the ectoderm except at the animal pole, where ECM 3 mRNA is greatly reduced. In this species, Lytechinus variegatus, the animal pole ectoderm is the site of fusion with the invaginating endoderm during formation of the mouth. In situ analysis of protein expression using a monospecific polyclonal antisera made against recombinant ECM 3 polypeptides shows that during gastrulation the ECM 3 protein accumulates selectively in the basal lamina and blastocoelar regions adjacent to the ectoderm in all regions except for the ectoderm at the animal pole. The ECM 3 protein is not detected in other regions of the blastocoel e.g. adjacent to the endoderm. ECM 3 is also contributed maternally; the ECM 3 protein is synthesized during oogenesis and stored in oocytes within membrane-bound vesicles in the vicinity of Golgi complexes. Following fertilization ECM 3 is selectively secreted basally into the nascent blastocoel. No accumulation is detected in apical regions of the blastomeres or in the hyaline layer/apical lamina. This newly described molecule of the extracellular matrix thus demonstrates expression regulated both by secretion and by cell type specific gene expression, and shows a correlation between a microenvironment of the extracellular matrix and a morphogenetic event.

Synaptotagmin I is involved in the regulation of cortical granule exocytosis in the sea urchin.

Cortical granules are stimulus-dependent secretory vesicles found in the egg cortex of most vertebrates and many invertebrates. Upon fertilization, an increase in intracellular calcium levels triggers cortical granules to exocytose enzymes and structural proteins that permanently modify the extracellular surface of the egg to prevent polyspermy. Synaptotagmin is postulated to be a calcium sensor important for stimulus-dependent secretion and to test this hypothesis for cortical granule exocytosis, we identified the ortholog in two sea urchin species that is present selectively on cortical granules. Characterization by RT-PCR, in-situ RNA hybridization, Western blot and immunolocalization shows that synaptotagmin I is expressed in a manner consistent with it having a role during cortical granule secretion. We specifically tested synaptotagmin function during cortical granule exocytosis using a microinjected antibody raised against the entire cytoplasmic domain of sea urchin synaptotagmin I. The results show that synaptotagmin I is essential for normal cortical granule dynamics at fertilization in the sea urchin egg. Identification of this same protein in other developmental stages also shown here will be important for interpreting stimulus-dependent secretory events for signaling throughout embryogenesis.

Ectodermally derived steel/stem cell factor functions non-cell autonomously during primitive erythropoiesis in Xenopus.

Signals derived from nonhematopoietic tissues are essential for normal primitive erythropoiesis in vertebrates, but little is known about the nature of these signals. In Xenopus, unidentified factors secreted by ectodermal cells during gastrulation are required to enable the underlying ventral mesoderm to form blood. Steel is expressed in the ectoderm of early Xenopus embryos and is known to regulate definitive erythroid progenitor survival and differentiation in other organisms, making it an excellent candidate regulator of primitive erythropoiesis. In this study, we tested whether steel signaling is required for primitive red blood cell differentiation in mice and frogs. We show that Xsl is expressed in the ectoderm in Xenopus gastrulae and that c-kit homologs are expressed in the underlying mesoderm at the same stages of development. We present loss of function data in whole Xenopus embryos and explants that demonstrate a requirement for ectodermally derived steel to signal through c-kit in the mesoderm to support early steps in the differentiation of primitive erythroid but not myeloid cells. Finally, we show that primitive erythropoiesis is not disrupted in mouse embryos that lack c-kit function. Our data suggest a previously unrecognized and unique function of steel/c-kit during primitive erythropoiesis in Xenopus.

Proprotein convertase genes in Xenopus development.

Proprotein convertases (PCs) are a family of serine endoproteases that proteolytically activate many precursor proteins within various secretory pathway compartments. Loss-of-function studies have demonstrated a critical role for these proteases in embryonic patterning and adult homeostasis, yet little is known about how substrate selectivity is achieved. We have identified Xenopus orthologs of three PCs: furin, PC6, and PC4. In addition to previously described isoforms of PC6 and furin, four novel splice isoforms of PC6, which are predicted to encode constitutively secreted proteases, and a putative transmembrane isoform of PC4 were identified. Furin and PC6 are expressed in dynamic, tissue-specific patterns throughout embryogenesis, whereas PC4 transcripts are restricted primarily to germ cells and brain in adult frogs.

XPACE4 is a localized pro-protein convertase required for mesoderm induction and the cleavage of specific TGFbeta proteins in Xenopus development.

XPACE4 is a member of the subtilisin/kexin family of pro-protein convertases. It cleaves many pro-proteins to release their active proteins, including members of the TGFbeta family of signaling molecules. Studies in mouse suggest it may have important roles in regulating embryonic tissue specification. Here, we examine the role of XPACE4 in Xenopus development and make three novel observations: first, XPACE4 is stored as maternal mRNA localized to the mitochondrial cloud and vegetal hemisphere of the oocyte; second, it is required for the endogenous mesoderm inducing activity of vegetal cells before gastrulation; and third, it has substrate-specific activity, cleaving Xnr1, Xnr2, Xnr3 and Vg1, but not Xnr5, Derriere or ActivinB pro-proteins. We conclude that maternal XPACE4 plays an important role in embryonic patterning by regulating the production of a subset of active mature TGFbeta proteins in specific sites.

Cortical granule translocation is microfilament mediated and linked to meiotic maturation in the sea urchin oocyte.

Cortical granules exocytose after the fusion of egg and sperm in most animals, and their contents function in the block to polyspermy by creating an impenetrable extracellular matrix. Cortical granules are synthesized throughout oogenesis and translocate en masse to the cell surface during meiosis where they remain until fertilization. As the mature oocyte is approximately 125 micro m in diameter (Lytechinus variegatus), many of the cortical granules translocate upwards of 60 micro m to reach the cortex within a 4 hour time window. We have investigated the mechanism of this coordinated vesicular translocation event. Although the stimulus to reinitiate meiosis in sea urchin oocytes is not known, we found many different ways to reversibly inhibit germinal vesicle breakdown, and used these findings to discover that meiotic maturation and cortical granule translocation are inseparable. We also learned that cortical granule translocation requires association with microfilaments but not microtubules. It is clear from endocytosis assays that microfilament motors are functional prior to meiosis, even though cortical granules do not use them. However, just after GVBD, cortical granules attach to microfilaments and translocate to the cell surface. This latter conclusion is based on organelle stratification within the oocyte followed by positional quantitation of the cortical granules. We conclude from these studies that maturation promoting factor (MPF) activation stimulates vesicle association with microfilaments, and is a key regulatory step in the coordinated translocation of cortical granules to the egg cortex.