SETDB1 fuels the lung cancer phenotype by modulating epigenome, 3D genome organization and chromatin mechanical properties.

Imbalance in the finely orchestrated system of chromatin-modifying enzymes is a hallmark of many pathologies such as cancers, since causing the affection of the epigenome and transcriptional reprogramming. Here, we demonstrate that a loss-of-function mutation (LOF) of the major histone lysine methyltransferase SETDB1 possessing oncogenic activity in lung cancer cells leads to broad changes in the overall architecture and mechanical properties of the nucleus through genome-wide redistribution of heterochromatin, which perturbs chromatin spatial compartmentalization. Together with the enforced activation of the epithelial expression program, cytoskeleton remodeling, reduced proliferation rate and restricted cellular migration, this leads to the reversed oncogenic potential of lung adenocarcinoma cells. These results emphasize an essential role of chromatin architecture in the determination of oncogenic programs and illustrate a relationship between gene expression, epigenome, 3D genome and nuclear mechanics.

A mechano-osmotic feedback couples cell volume to the rate of cell deformation.

Mechanics has been a central focus of physical biology in the past decade. In comparison, how cells manage their size is less understood. Here, we show that a parameter central to both the physics and the physiology of the cell, its volume, depends on a mechano-osmotic coupling. We found that cells change their volume depending on the rate at which they change shape, when they spontaneously spread or when they are externally deformed. Cells undergo slow deformation at constant volume, while fast deformation leads to volume loss. We propose a mechanosensitive pump and leak model to explain this phenomenon. Our model and experiments suggest that volume modulation depends on the state of the actin cortex and the coupling of ion fluxes to membrane tension. This mechano-osmotic coupling defines a membrane tension homeostasis module constantly at work in cells, causing volume fluctuations associated with fast cell shape changes, with potential consequences on cellular physiology.

Compromised nuclear envelope integrity drives TREX1-dependent DNA damage and tumor cell invasion.

Although mutations leading to a compromised nuclear envelope cause diseases such as muscular dystrophies or accelerated aging, the consequences of mechanically induced nuclear envelope ruptures are less known. Here, we show that nuclear envelope ruptures induce DNA damage that promotes senescence in non-transformed cells and induces an invasive phenotype in human breast cancer cells. We find that the endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-associated exonuclease TREX1 translocates into the nucleus after nuclear envelope rupture and is required to induce DNA damage. Inside the mammary duct, cellular crowding leads to nuclear envelope ruptures that generate TREX1-dependent DNA damage, thereby driving the progression of in situ carcinoma to the invasive stage. DNA damage and nuclear envelope rupture markers were also enriched at the invasive edge of human tumors. We propose that DNA damage in mechanically challenged nuclei could affect the pathophysiology of crowded tissues by modulating proliferation and extracellular matrix degradation of normal and transformed cells.

Inhibition of HIV infection by structural proteins of the inner nuclear membrane is associated with reduced chromatin dynamics.

The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) enters the nucleus to establish infection, but the role of nuclear envelope proteins in this process is incompletely understood. Inner nuclear transmembrane proteins SUN1 and SUN2 connect nuclear lamins to the cytoskeleton and participate in the DNA damage response (DDR). Increased levels of SUN1 or SUN2 potently restrict HIV infection through an unresolved mechanism. Here, we find that the antiviral activities of SUN1 and SUN2 are distinct. HIV-1 and HIV-2 are preferentially inhibited by SUN1 and SUN2, respectively. We identify DNA damage inducers that stimulate HIV-1 infection and show that SUN1, but not SUN2, neutralizes this effect. Finally, we show that chromatin movements and nuclear rotations are associated with the effects of SUN proteins and Lamin A/C on infection. These results reveal an emerging role of chromatin dynamics and the DDR in the control of HIV infection by structural components of the nuclear envelope.

Nuclear deformations, from signaling to perturbation and damage.

During cell growth and motility in crowded tissues or interstitial spaces, cells must integrate multiple physical and biochemical environmental inputs. After a number of recent studies, the view of the nucleus as a passive object that cells have to drag along has become obsolete, placing the nucleus as a central player in sensing some of these inputs. In the present review, we will focus on changes in nuclear shape caused by external and internal forces. Depending on their magnitude, nuclear deformations can generate signaling events that modulate cell behavior and fate, or be a source of perturbations or even damage, having detrimental effects on cellular functions. On very large deformations, nuclear envelope rupture events become frequent, leading to uncontrolled nucleocytoplasmic mixing and DNA damage. We will also discuss the consequences of repeated compromised nuclear integrity, which can trigger DNA surveillance mechanisms, with critical consequences to cell fate and tissue homeostasis.

Nuclear fragility, blaming the blebs.

Although textbook pictures depict the cell nucleus as a simple ovoid object, it is now clear that it adopts a large variety of shapes in tissues. When cells deform, because of cell crowding or migration through dense matrices, the nucleus is subjected to large constraints that alter its shape. In this review, we discuss recent studies related to nuclear fragility, focusing on the surprising finding that the nuclear envelope can form blebs. Contrary to the better-known plasma membrane blebs, nuclear blebs are unstable and almost systematically lead to nuclear envelope opening and uncontrolled nucleocytoplasmic mixing. They expand, burst, and repair repeatedly when the nucleus is strongly deformed. Although blebs are a major source of nuclear instability, they are poorly understood so far, which calls for more in-depth studies of these structures.