1. MRTF transcription and Ezrin-dependent plasma membrane blebbing are required for entotic invasion
- Author
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Christian Baarlink, Laura Soto Hinojosa, Manuel Holst, and Robert Grosse
- Subjects
0301 basic medicine ,Serum Response Factor ,Entosis ,Transcription, Genetic ,genetic structures ,Motility ,macromolecular substances ,Biology ,Cell Membrane Structures ,03 medical and health sciences ,Ezrin ,Cell Line, Tumor ,Report ,Serum response factor ,Humans ,Bleb (cell biology) ,Cytoskeleton ,Transcription factor ,Research Articles ,Actin ,Cell Biology ,eye diseases ,Up-Regulation ,Cell biology ,Cytoskeletal Proteins ,030104 developmental biology ,Trans-Activators ,sense organs - Abstract
In this study, the authors show that the MRTF–SRF transcriptional pathway modulates sustained plasma membrane blebbing and entotic cell-in-cell invasion via regulation of the expression of the ERM protein Ezrin., Entosis is a nonapoptotic form of cell death initiated by actomyosin-dependent homotypic cell-in-cell invasion that can be observed in malignant exudates during tumor progression. We previously demonstrated formin-mediated actin dynamics at the rear of the invading cell as well as nonapoptotic plasma membrane (PM) blebbing in this cellular motile process. Although the contractile actin cortex involved in bleb-driven motility is well characterized, a role for transcriptional regulation in this process has not been studied. Here, we explore the impact of the actin-controlled MRTF–SRF (myocardin-related transcription factor–serum response factor) pathway for sustained PM blebbing and entotic invasion. We find that cortical blebbing is tightly coupled to MRTF nuclear shuttling to promote the SRF transcriptional activity required for entosis. Furthermore, PM blebbing triggered SRF-mediated up-regulation of the metastasis-associated ERM protein Ezrin. Notably, Ezrin is sufficient and important to sustain bleb dynamics for cell-in-cell invasion when SRF is suppressed. Our results highlight the critical role of the actin-regulated MRTF transcriptional pathway for bleb-associated invasive motility, such as during entosis.
- Published
- 2017
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