FBN-1, a fibrillin-related protein, is required for resistance of the epidermis to mechanical deformation during C. elegans embryogenesis.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 25798732.
- Also identified by DOI 10.7554/eLife.06565 and PMC identifier 4395870.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
During development, biomechanical forces contour the body and provide shape to internal organs. Using genetic and molecular approaches in combination with a FRET-based tension sensor, we characterized a pulling force exerted by the elongating pharynx (foregut) on the anterior epidermis during C. elegans embryogenesis. Resistance of the epidermis to this force and to actomyosin-based circumferential constricting forces is mediated by FBN-1, a ZP domain protein related to vertebrate fibrillins. fbn-1 was required specifically within the epidermis and FBN-1 was expressed in epidermal cells and secreted to the apical surface as a putative component of the embryonic sheath. Tiling array studies indicated that fbn-1 mRNA processing requires the conserved alternative splicing factor MEC-8/RBPMS. The conserved SYM-3/FAM102A and SYM-4/WDR44 proteins, which are linked to protein trafficking, function as additional components of this network. Our studies demonstrate the importance of the apical extracellular matrix in preventing mechanical deformation of the epidermis during development.
Medical subject headings
- Caenorhabditis elegans
- Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins
- Embryonic Development
- Epidermis
- Microfilament Proteins
- Stress, Mechanical