GEMC1 is a critical regulator of multiciliated cell differentiation.

The generation of multiciliated cells (MCCs) is required for the proper function of many tissues, including the respiratory tract, brain, and germline. Defects in MCC development have been demonstrated to cause a subclass of mucociliary clearance disorders termed reduced generation of multiple motile cilia (RGMC). To date, only two genes, Multicilin (MCIDAS) and cyclin O (CCNO) have been identified in this disorder in humans. Here, we describe mice lacking GEMC1 (GMNC), a protein with a similar domain organization as Multicilin that has been implicated in DNA replication control. We have found that GEMC1-deficient mice are growth impaired, develop hydrocephaly with a high penetrance, and are infertile, due to defects in the formation of MCCs in the brain, respiratory tract, and germline. Our data demonstrate that GEMC1 is a critical regulator of MCC differentiation and a candidate gene for human RGMC or related disorders.

Differential requirements for Tousled-like kinases 1 and 2 in mammalian development.

The regulation of chromatin structure is critical for a wide range of essential cellular processes. The Tousled-like kinases, TLK1 and TLK2, regulate ASF1, a histone H3/H4 chaperone, and likely other substrates, and their activity has been implicated in transcription, DNA replication, DNA repair, RNA interference, cell cycle progression, viral latency, chromosome segregation and mitosis. However, little is known about the functions of TLK activity in vivo or the relative functions of the highly similar TLK1 and TLK2 in any cell type. To begin to address this, we have generated Tlk1- and Tlk2-deficient mice. We found that while TLK1 was dispensable for murine viability, TLK2 loss led to late embryonic lethality because of placental failure. TLK2 was required for normal trophoblast differentiation and the phosphorylation of ASF1 was reduced in placentas lacking TLK2. Conditional bypass of the placental phenotype allowed the generation of apparently healthy Tlk2-deficient mice, while only the depletion of both TLK1 and TLK2 led to extensive genomic instability, indicating that both activities contribute to genome maintenance. Our data identifies a specific role for TLK2 in placental function during mammalian development and suggests that TLK1 and TLK2 have largely redundant roles in genome maintenance.

Different consequences of beta1 integrin deletion in neonatal and adult mouse epidermis reveal a context-dependent role of integrins in regulating proliferation, differentiation, and intercellular communication.

There are conflicting reports of the consequences of deleting beta1 integrins from the epidermis of transgenic mice. Epidermal thinning with normal differentiation and lack of inflammation has been observed; conversely, epidermal thickening, abnormal differentiation, and dermal fibrosis can occur. beta1 integrin deletion results in decreased epidermal proliferation, yet on wounding the proliferative defect is overcome. To distinguish primary from secondary consequences of beta1 integrin loss, we compared epidermal beta1 deletion at E14.5 via K5Cre and 4-hydroxy-tamoxifen induced deletion in adulthood via K14CreER. As reported previously, there was dermo-epidermal splitting, inflammation, reduced proliferation, and hair follicle and sebaceous gland loss in 30-d-old K5Cre beta1-null mice. These changes were not observed 30 d after beta1 integrin deletion in adult epidermis, however, and there were no changes in the hair follicle stem cell compartment. Deletion in adult epidermis revealed a previously unreported correlation between the level of beta1 integrins and proliferation in the interfollicular epidermis that was remarkably consistent with human epidermis. In addition, the number of melanocytes in interfollicular epidermis was greatly increased. Our results highlight the context-dependent effects of beta1 integrin deletion and suggest that inflammation may be responsible for some of the K5Cre beta1-null phenotype.

Inhibition of PI3K/p70 S6K and p38 MAPK cascades increases osteoblastic differentiation induced by BMP-2.

Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) transdifferentiate C2C12 cells from the myogenic to the osteogenic lineage. In this work we examine the role of the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/p70 S6 kinase (PI3K/p70 S6K) and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38 MAPK) cascades in the osteogenic effects of BMP-2. BMP-2 stimulated both cascades transiently (maximal at 1 h and decreasing thereafter). In contrast, BMP-2 had no effect on p42/p44 MAPK (Erks) stimulation. We also analyzed the effects of selective inhibitors of these pathways on the expression of osteogenic markers. Inhibitors of p38 MAPK (SB203580) or the PI3K/p70 S6K pathway (Ly294002 and rapamycin) not only fail to block the osteoblast phenotype induced by BMP-2, measured as induction of Cbfa1 expression and transcriptional activity, but also potentiate the effect of BMP-2 on late osteoblast markers, such as alkaline phosphatase activity and osteocalcin expression. These data suggest that, in contrast to their positive effect on myogenic differentiation, PI3K/p70 S6K and p38 MAPK cascades have a negative role in osteoblast differentiation.

Sulfation is required for bone morphogenetic protein 2-dependent Id1 induction.

Different reports have suggested the dependence of bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) activity on the sulfated glycosaminoglycan (GAG) chains found in proteoglycans. However, the requirement of sulfated molecules in early BMP-2-signaling responses has not been established. We have used sodium chlorate to inhibit sulfation in C2C12 cells and have analyzed BMP-2 induction of Id1. We show here that sulfation inhibition strongly decreases the specific and early induction of Id1 at the transcriptional level. This effect is not reverted by the addition of extracellular components, such as GAGs or extracellular matrix (ECM). The inhibition of GAG incorporation into proteoglycans, or their removal by GAG lyases, does not mimic the negative effect on Id1 expression, while sulfation inhibition also represses the Id1-induction exerted by a constitutively active form of the BMP receptor, suggesting that BMP-2-mediated Id1 induction has an intracellular requirement for sulfated molecules.

Direct binding of Smad1 and Smad4 to two distinct motifs mediates bone morphogenetic protein-specific transcriptional activation of Id1 gene.

Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) are potent inhibitors of myoblast differentiation and inducers of bone formation both in vivo and in vitro. Expression of Id1, a negative regulator of basic helix-loop-helix transcription factors, is up-regulated by BMPs and contributes to the antimyogenic effects of this family of cytokines. In this report, we have identified a specific BMP-2 immediate early response enhancer in the human Id1 gene. Transcriptional activation of the enhancer was increased by overexpression of BMP-responsive Smads, and Smad4 and was completely abrogated in Smad4-deficient cells. Deletion analysis demonstrates that the responsive region is composed of two separate DNA binding elements, a set of overlapping GC boxes, which bind BMP-regulated Smads upon BMP stimulation, and three repeats of CAGAC boxes. Gel shift and oligonucleotide pull-down assays demonstrated that these two types of motifs were capable of binding their corresponding Smads. However, deletion or mutation of either DNA binding element was nonadditive, since disruption of either GC or CAGAC boxes resulted in complete or severe loss of BMP-2 responsiveness. These data suggest the simultaneous requirement of two independent DNA binding elements to allow functional cooperativity of BMP-regulated Smads and Smad4 in BMP-activated gene promoters.