Cardiac glycosides inhibit early and late vaccinia virus protein expression.

Cardiac glycosides (CGs) are natural steroid glycosides, which act as inhibitors of the cellular sodium-potassium ATPase pump. Although traditionally considered toxic to human cells, CGs are widely used as drugs for the treatment of cardiovascular-related medical conditions. More recently, CGs have been explored as potential anti-viral drugs and inhibit replication of a range of RNA and DNA viruses. Previously, a compound screen identified CGs that inhibited vaccinia virus (VACV) infection. However, no further investigation of the inhibitory potential of these compounds was performed, nor was there investigation of the stage(s) of the poxvirus lifecycle they impacted. Here, we investigated the anti-poxvirus activity of a broad panel of CGs. We found that all CGs tested were potent inhibitors of VACV replication. Our virological experiments showed that CGs did not impact virus infectivity, binding, or entry. Rather, experiments using recombinant viruses expressing reporter proteins controlled by VACV promoters and arabinoside release assays demonstrated that CGs inhibited early and late VACV protein expression at different concentrations. Lack of virus assembly in the presence of CGs was confirmed using electron microscopy. Thus, we expand our understanding of compounds with anti-poxvirus activity and highlight a yet unrecognized mechanism by which poxvirus replication can be inhibited.

A human urothelial microtissue model reveals shared colonization and survival strategies between uropathogens and commensals.

Urinary tract infection is among the most common infections worldwide, typically studied in animals and cell lines with limited uropathogenic strains. Here, we assessed diverse bacterial species in a human urothelial microtissue model exhibiting full stratification, differentiation, innate epithelial responses, and urine tolerance. Several uropathogens invaded intracellularly, but also commensal Escherichia coli, suggesting that invasion is a shared survival strategy, not solely a virulence hallmark. The E. coli adhesin FimH was required for intracellular bacterial community formation, but not for invasion. Other shared lifestyles included filamentation (Gram-negatives), chaining (Gram-positives), and hijacking of exfoliating cells, while biofilm-like aggregates were formed mainly with Pseudomonas and Proteus. Urothelial cells expelled invasive bacteria in Rab-/LC3-decorated structures, while highly cytotoxic/invasive uropathogens, but not commensals, disrupted host barrier function and strongly induced exfoliation and cytokine production. Overall, this work highlights diverse species-/strain-specific infection strategies and corresponding host responses in a human urothelial microenvironment, providing insights at the microtissue, cell, and molecular level.

A practical guide to starting SEM array tomography-An accessible volume EM technique.

The techniques collectively known as volume electron microscopy (vEM) each come with their own advantages and challenges, making them more or less suitable for any specific project. SEM array tomography (SEM-AT) is certainly no different in this respect. Requiring microtomy skills, and involving more data alignment post imaging, SEM-AT presents challenges to its users, nevertheless, as perhaps the most flexible, cost effective and potentially accessible vEM approach to regular EM facilities, it benefits those same users with multiple advantages due to its inherently non-destructive nature. The general principles and advantages/disadvantages of SEM-AT are described here, together with a step-by-step guide to the workflow, from block trimming, sectioning and collection on coverslips, to alignment of the high-resolution 3D dataset. With a suitable SEM/backscatter electron detector setup, and equipment readily found in an electron microscopy lab, it should be possible to begin to acquire 3D ultrastructural data. With the addition of appropriate SEM-AT imaging software, this process can be significantly enhanced to automatically image hundreds, potentially thousands, of sections. Hardware and software advances and future improvements will only make this easier, to the extent that SEM-AT could become a routine vEM technique throughout the world, rather than the privilege of a small number of experts in limited specialist facilities.

Pathophysiology of Dyt1-Tor1a dystonia in mice is mediated by spinal neural circuit dysfunction.

Dystonia, a neurological disorder defined by abnormal postures and disorganized movements, is considered to be a neural circuit disorder with dysfunction arising within and between multiple brain regions. Given that spinal neural circuits constitute the final pathway for motor control, we sought to determine their contribution to this movement disorder. Focusing on the most common inherited form of dystonia in humans, DYT1-TOR1A, we generated a conditional knockout of the torsin family 1 member A (Tor1a) gene in the mouse spinal cord and dorsal root ganglia (DRG). We found that these mice recapitulated the phenotype of the human condition, developing early-onset generalized torsional dystonia. Motor signs emerged early in the mouse hindlimbs before spreading caudo-rostrally to affect the pelvis, trunk, and forelimbs throughout postnatal maturation. Physiologically, these mice bore the hallmark features of dystonia, including spontaneous contractions at rest and excessive and disorganized contractions, including cocontractions of antagonist muscle groups, during voluntary movements. Spontaneous activity, disorganized motor output, and impaired monosynaptic reflexes, all signs of human dystonia, were recorded from isolated mouse spinal cords from these conditional knockout mice. All components of the monosynaptic reflex arc were affected, including motor neurons. Given that confining the Tor1a conditional knockout to DRG did not lead to early-onset dystonia, we conclude that the pathophysiological substrate of this mouse model of dystonia lies in spinal neural circuits. Together, these data provide new insights into our current understanding of dystonia pathophysiology.

Characterization of the structure and control of the blood-nerve barrier identifies avenues for therapeutic delivery.

The blood barriers of the nervous system protect neural environments but can hinder therapeutic accessibility. The blood-brain barrier (BBB) is well characterized, consisting of endothelial cells with specialized tight junctions and low levels of transcytosis, properties conferred by contacting pericytes and astrocytes. In contrast, the blood-nerve barrier (BNB) of the peripheral nervous system is poorly defined. Here, we characterize the structure of the mammalian BNB, identify the processes that confer barrier function, and demonstrate how the barrier can be opened in response to injury. The homeostatic BNB is leakier than the BBB, which we show is due to higher levels of transcytosis. However, the barrier is reinforced by macrophages that specifically engulf leaked materials, identifying a role for resident macrophages as an important component of the BNB. Finally, we demonstrate the exploitation of these processes to effectively deliver RNA-targeting therapeutics to peripheral nerves, indicating new treatment approaches for nervous system pathologies.

Asymmetric nuclear division in neural stem cells generates sibling nuclei that differ in size, envelope composition, and chromatin organization.

Although nuclei are the defining features of eukaryotes, we still do not fully understand how the nuclear compartment is duplicated and partitioned during division. This is especially the case for organisms that do not completely disassemble their nuclear envelope upon entry into mitosis. In studying this process in Drosophila neural stem cells, which undergo asymmetric divisions, we find that the nuclear compartment boundary persists during mitosis thanks to the maintenance of a supporting nuclear lamina. This mitotic nuclear envelope is then asymmetrically remodeled and partitioned to give rise to two daughter nuclei that differ in envelope composition and exhibit a >30-fold difference in volume. The striking difference in nuclear size was found to depend on two consecutive processes: asymmetric nuclear envelope resealing at mitotic exit at sites defined by the central spindle, and differential nuclear growth that appears to depend on the available local reservoir of ER/nuclear membranes, which is asymmetrically partitioned between the two daughter cells. Importantly, these asymmetries in size and composition of the daughter nuclei, and the associated asymmetries in chromatin organization, all become apparent long before the cortical release and the nuclear import of cell fates determinants. Thus, asymmetric nuclear remodeling during stem cell divisions may contribute to the generation of cellular diversity by initiating distinct transcriptional programs in sibling nuclei that contribute to later changes in daughter cell identity and fate.

Vaccinia virus hijacks ESCRT-mediated multivesicular body formation for virus egress.

Poxvirus egress is a complex process whereby cytoplasmic single membrane-bound virions are wrapped in a cell-derived double membrane. These triple-membrane particles, termed intracellular enveloped virions (IEVs), are released from infected cells by fusion. Whereas the wrapping double membrane is thought to be derived from virus-modified trans-Golgi or early endosomal cisternae, the cellular factors that regulate virus wrapping remain largely undefined. To identify cell factors required for this process the prototypic poxvirus, vaccinia virus (VACV), was subjected to an RNAi screen directed against cellular membrane-trafficking proteins. Focusing on the endosomal sorting complexes required for transport (ESCRT), we demonstrate that ESCRT-III and VPS4 are required for packaging of virus into multivesicular bodies (MVBs). EM-based characterization of MVB-IEVs showed that they account for half of IEV production indicating that MVBs are a second major source of VACV wrapping membrane. These data support a model whereby, in addition to cisternae-based wrapping, VACV hijacks ESCRT-mediated MVB formation to facilitate virus egress and spread.

Acrylamide inhibits vaccinia virus through vimentin-independent anti-viral granule formation.

The replication and assembly of vaccinia virus (VACV), the prototypic poxvirus, occurs exclusively in the cytoplasm of host cells. While the role of cellular cytoskeletal components in these processes remains poorly understood, vimentin-a type III intermediate filament-has been shown to associate with viral replication sites and to be incorporated into mature VACV virions. Here, we employed chemical and genetic approaches to further investigate the role of vimentin during the VACV lifecycle. The collapse of vimentin filaments, using acrylamide, was found to inhibit VACV infection at the level of genome replication, intermediate- and late-gene expression. However, we found that CRISPR-mediated knockout of vimentin did not impact VACV replication. Combining these tools, we demonstrate that acrylamide treatment results in the formation of anti-viral granules (AVGs) known to mediate translational inhibition of many viruses. We conclude that vimentin is dispensable for poxvirus replication and assembly and that acrylamide, as a potent inducer of AVGs during VACV infection, serves to bolster cell's anti-viral response to poxvirus infection.

Abscission Couples Cell Division to Embryonic Stem Cell Fate.

Cell fate transitions are key to development and homeostasis. It is thus essential to understand the cellular mechanisms controlling fate transitions. Cell division has been implicated in fate decisions in many stem cell types, including neuronal and epithelial progenitors. In other stem cells, such as embryonic stem (ES) cells, the role of division remains unclear. Here, we show that exit from naive pluripotency in mouse ES cells generally occurs after a division. We further show that exit timing is strongly correlated between sister cells, which remain connected by cytoplasmic bridges long after division, and that bridge abscission progressively accelerates as cells exit naive pluripotency. Finally, interfering with abscission impairs naive pluripotency exit, and artificially inducing abscission accelerates it. Altogether, our data indicate that a switch in the division machinery leading to faster abscission regulates pluripotency exit. Our study identifies abscission as a key cellular process coupling cell division to fate transitions.

Axonal autophagosome maturation defect through failure of ATG9A sorting underpins pathology in AP-4 deficiency syndrome.

Adaptor protein (AP) complexes mediate key sorting decisions in the cell through selective incorporation of transmembrane proteins into vesicles. Little is known of the roles of AP-4, despite its loss of function leading to a severe early onset neurological disorder, AP-4 deficiency syndrome. Here we demonstrate an AP-4 epsilon subunit knockout mouse model that recapitulates characteristic neuroanatomical phenotypes of AP-4 deficiency patients. We show that ATG9A, critical for autophagosome biogenesis, is an AP-4 cargo, which is retained within the trans-Golgi network (TGN) in vivo and in culture when AP-4 function is lost. TGN retention results in depletion of axonal ATG9A, leading to defective autophagosome generation and aberrant expansions of the distal axon. The reduction in the capacity to generate axonal autophagosomes leads to defective axonal extension and de novo generation of distal axonal swellings containing accumulated ER, underlying the impaired axonal integrity in AP-4 deficiency syndrome.Abbreviations: AP: adaptor protein; AP4B1: adaptor-related protein complex AP-4, beta 1; AP4E1: adaptor-related protein complex AP-4, epsilon 1; ATG: autophagy-related; EBSS: Earle's balanced salt solution; ER: endoplasmic reticulum; GFAP: glial fibrillary acidic protein; GOLGA1/Golgin-97/GOLG97: golgi autoantigen, golgin subfamily a, 1; GOLGA2/GM130: golgi autoantigen, golgin subfamily a, 2; HSP: hereditary spastic paraplegia; LC3/MAP1LC3B: microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3 beta; MAP2: microtubule-associated protein 2; MAPK8IP1/JIP1: mitogen-acitvated protein kinase 8 interacting protein 1; NEFH/NF200: neurofilament, heavy polypeptide; RBFOX3/NeuN (RNA binding protein, fox-1 homolog [C. elegans] 3); SQSTM1/p62: sequestosome 1; TGN: trans-Golgi network; WIPI2: WD repeat domain, phosphoinositide interacting protein 2.

Dynamic trafficking and turnover of JAM-C is essential for endothelial cell migration.

Junctional complexes between endothelial cells form a dynamic barrier that hinders passive diffusion of blood constituents into interstitial tissues. Remodelling of junctions is an essential process during leukocyte trafficking, vascular permeability, and angiogenesis. However, for many junctional proteins, the mechanisms of junctional remodelling have yet to be determined. Here, we used receptor mutagenesis, horseradish peroxidase (HRP), and ascorbate peroxidase 2 (APEX-2) proximity labelling, alongside light and electron microscopy (EM), to map the intracellular trafficking routes of junctional adhesion molecule-C (JAM-C). We found that JAM-C cotraffics with receptors associated with changes in permeability such as vascular endothelial cadherin (VE-Cadherin) and neuropilin (NRP)-1 and 2, but not with junctional proteins associated with the transmigration of leukocytes. Dynamic JAM-C trafficking and degradation are necessary for junctional remodelling during cell migration and angiogenesis. By identifying new potential trafficking machinery, we show that a key point of regulation is the ubiquitylation of JAM-C by the E3 ligase Casitas B-lineage lymphoma (CBL), which controls the rate of trafficking versus lysosomal degradation.

Fibroblastic Reticular Cells Control Conduit Matrix Deposition during Lymph Node Expansion.

Lymph nodes (LNs) act as filters, constantly sampling peripheral cues. This is facilitated by the conduit network, a tubular structure of aligned extracellular matrix (ECM) fibrils ensheathed by fibroblastic reticular cells (FRCs). LNs undergo rapid 3- to 5-fold expansion during adaptive immune responses, but these ECM-rich structures are not permanently damaged. Whether conduit flow or filtering function is affected during LN expansion is unknown. Here, we show that conduits are partially disrupted during acute LN expansion, but FRC-FRC contacts remain connected. We reveal that polarized FRCs deposit ECM basolaterally using LL5-ß and that ECM production is regulated at transcriptional and secretory levels by the C-type lectin CLEC-2, expressed by dendritic cells. Inflamed LNs maintain conduit size exclusion, and flow is disrupted but persists, indicating the robustness of this structure despite rapid tissue expansion. We show how dynamic communication between peripheral tissues and LNs provides a mechanism to prevent inflammation-induced fibrosis in lymphoid tissue.

Nanoscale polarization of the entry fusion complex of vaccinia virus drives efficient fusion.

To achieve efficient binding and subsequent fusion, most enveloped viruses encode between one and five proteins1. For many viruses, the clustering of fusion proteins-and their distribution on virus particles-is crucial for fusion activity2,3. Poxviruses, the most complex mammalian viruses, dedicate 15 proteins to binding and membrane fusion4. However, the spatial organization of these proteins and how this influences fusion activity is unknown. Here, we show that the membrane of vaccinia virus is organized into distinct functional domains that are critical for the efficiency of membrane fusion. Using super-resolution microscopy and single-particle analysis, we found that the fusion machinery of vaccinia virus resides exclusively in clusters at virion tips. Repression of individual components of the fusion complex disrupts fusion-machinery polarization, consistent with the reported loss of fusion activity5. Furthermore, we show that displacement of functional fusion complexes from virion tips disrupts the formation of fusion pores and infection kinetics. Our results demonstrate how the protein architecture of poxviruses directly contributes to the efficiency of membrane fusion, and suggest that nanoscale organization may be an intrinsic property of these viruses to assure successful infection.

HDAC3 Regulates the Transition to the Homeostatic Myelinating Schwann Cell State.

The formation of myelinating Schwann cells (mSCs) involves the remarkable biogenic process, which rapidly generates the myelin sheath. Once formed, the mSC transitions to a stable homeostatic state, with loss of this stability associated with neuropathies. The histone deacetylases histone deacetylase 1 (HDAC1) and HDAC2 are required for the myelination transcriptional program. Here, we show a distinct role for HDAC3, in that, while dispensable for the formation of mSCs, it is essential for the stability of the myelin sheath once formed-with loss resulting in progressive severe neuropathy in adulthood. This is associated with the prior failure to downregulate the biogenic program upon entering the homeostatic state leading to hypertrophy and hypermyelination of the mSCs, progressing to the development of severe myelination defects. Our results highlight distinct roles of HDAC1/2 and HDAC3 in controlling the differentiation and homeostatic states of a cell with broad implications for the understanding of this important cell-state transition.

The regulation of the homeostasis and regeneration of peripheral nerve is distinct from the CNS and independent of a stem cell population.

Peripheral nerves are highly regenerative, in contrast to the poor regenerative capabilities of the central nervous system (CNS). Here, we show that adult peripheral nerve is a more quiescent tissue than the CNS, yet all cell types within a peripheral nerve proliferate efficiently following injury. Moreover, whereas oligodendrocytes are produced throughout life from a precursor pool, we find that the corresponding cell of the peripheral nervous system, the myelinating Schwann cell (mSC), does not turn over in the adult. However, following injury, all mSCs can dedifferentiate to the proliferating progenitor-like Schwann cells (SCs) that orchestrate the regenerative response. Lineage analysis shows that these newly migratory, progenitor-like cells redifferentiate to form new tissue at the injury site and maintain their lineage, but can switch to become a non-myelinating SC. In contrast, increased plasticity is observed during tumourigenesis. These findings show that peripheral nerves have a distinct mechanism for maintaining homeostasis and can regenerate without the need for an additional stem cell population.This article has an associated 'The people behind the papers' interview.

Assessing the effects of mitofusin 2 deficiency in the adult heart using 3D electron tomography.

The effects of mitofusin 2 (MFN2) deficiency, on mitochondrial morphology and the mitochondria-junctional sarcoplasmic reticulum (jSR) complex in the adult heart, have been previously investigated using 2D electron microscopy, an approach which is unable to provide a 3D spatial assessment of these imaging parameters. Here, we use 3D electron tomography to show that MFN2-deficient mitochondria are larger in volume, more elongated, and less rounded; have fewer mitochondria-jSR contacts, and an increase in the distance between mitochondria and jSR, when compared to WT mitochondria. In comparison to 2D electron microscopy, 3D electron tomography can provide further insights into mitochondrial morphology and the mitochondria-jSR complex in the adult heart.

Clathrin-mediated post-fusion membrane retrieval influences the exocytic mode of endothelial Weibel-Palade bodies.

Weibel-Palade bodies (WPBs), the storage organelles of endothelial cells, are essential to normal haemostatic and inflammatory responses. Their major constituent protein is von Willebrand factor (VWF) which, following stimulation with secretagogues, is released into the blood vessel lumen as large platelet-catching strings. This exocytosis changes the protein composition of the cell surface and also results in a net increase in the amount of plasma membrane. Compensatory endocytosis is thought to limit changes in cell size and retrieve fusion machinery and other misplaced integral membrane proteins following exocytosis; however, little is known about the extent, timing, mechanism and precise function of compensatory endocytosis in endothelial cells. Using biochemical assays, live-cell imaging and correlative spinning-disk microscopy and transmission electron microscopy assays we provide the first in-depth high-resolution characterisation of this process. We provide a model of compensatory endocytosis based on rapid clathrin- and dynamin-mediated retrieval. Inhibition of this process results in a change of exocytic mode: WPBs then fuse with previously fused WPBs rather than the plasma membrane, leading, in turn, to the formation of structurally impaired tangled VWF strings.This article has an associated First Person interview with the first authors of the paper.

Alphavirus Restriction by IFITM Proteins.

Interferon inducible transmembrane proteins (IFITMs) are broad-spectrum antiviral factors. In cell culture the entry of many enveloped viruses, including orthomyxo-, flavi-, and filoviruses, is inhibited by IFITMs, though the mechanism(s) involved remain unclear and may vary between viruses. We demonstrate that Sindbis and Semliki Forest virus (SFV), which both use endocytosis and acid-induced membrane fusion in early endosomes to infect cells, are restricted by the early endosomal IFITM3. The late endosomal IFITM2 is less restrictive and the plasma membrane IFITM1 does not inhibit normal infection by either virus. IFITM3 inhibits release of the SFV capsid into the cytosol, without inhibiting binding, internalization, trafficking to endosomes or low pH-induced conformational changes in the envelope glycoprotein. Infection by SFV fusion at the cell surface was inhibited by IFITM1, but was equally inhibited by IFITM3. Furthermore, an IFITM3 mutant (Y20A) that is localized to the plasma membrane inhibited infection by cell surface fusion more potently than IFITM1. Together, these results indicate that IFITMs, in particular IFITM3, can restrict alphavirus infection by inhibiting viral fusion with cellular membranes. That IFITM3 can restrict SFV infection by fusion at the cell surface equivalently to IFITM1 suggests that IFITM3 has greater antiviral potency against SFV.

Type II PI4-kinases control Weibel-Palade body biogenesis and von Willebrand factor structure in human endothelial cells.

Weibel-Palade bodies (WPBs) are endothelial storage organelles that mediate the release of molecules involved in thrombosis, inflammation and angiogenesis, including the pro-thrombotic glycoprotein von Willebrand factor (VWF). Although many protein components required for WPB formation and function have been identified, the role of lipids is almost unknown. We examined two key phosphatidylinositol kinases that control phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate levels at the trans-Golgi network, the site of WPB biogenesis. RNA interference of the type II phosphatidylinositol 4-kinases PI4KIIα and PI4KIIß in primary human endothelial cells leads to formation of an increased proportion of short WPB with perturbed packing of VWF, as exemplified by increased exposure of antibody-binding sites. When stimulated with histamine, these cells release normal levels of VWF yet, under flow, form very few platelet-catching VWF strings. In PI4KIIα-deficient mice, immuno-microscopy revealed that VWF packaging is also perturbed and these mice exhibit increased blood loss after tail cut compared to controls. This is the first demonstration that lipid kinases can control the biosynthesis of VWF and the formation of WPBs that are capable of full haemostatic function.

VPS33B regulates protein sorting into and maturation of α-granule progenitor organelles in mouse megakaryocytes.

Arthrogryposis, renal dysfunction, and cholestasis (ARC) syndrome is caused by deficiencies in the trafficking proteins VPS33B or VIPAR, and is associated with a bleeding diathesis and a marked reduction in platelet α-granules. We generated a tamoxifen-inducible mouse model of VPS33B deficiency, Vps33b(fl/fl)-ER(T2), and studied the platelet phenotype and α-granule biogenesis. Ultrastructural analysis of Vps33b(fl/fl)-ER(T2) platelets identified a marked reduction in α-granule count and the presence of small granule-like structures in agreement with the platelet phenotype observed in ARC patients. A reduction of ∼65% to 75% was observed in the α-granule proteins von Willebrand factor and P-selectin. Although platelet aggregation responses were not affected, a defect in δ-granule secretion was observed. Under arteriolar shear conditions, Vps33b(fl/fl)-ER(T2) platelets were unable to form stable aggregates, and tail-bleeding measurement revealed a bleeding diathesis. Analysis of bone marrow-derived megakaryocytes (MKs) by conventional and immuno-electron microscopy from Vps33b(fl/fl)-ER(T2) mice revealed a reduction in mature type-II multivesicular bodies (MVB II) and an accumulation of large vacuoles. Proteins that are normally stored in α-granules were underrepresented in MVB II and proplatelet extensions. These results demonstrate that abnormal protein trafficking and impairment in MVB maturation in MKs underlie the α-granule deficiency in Vps33b(fl/fl)-ER(T2) mouse and ARC patients.