Cytoskeleton articles from across Nature Portfolio

Here the authors show that the nucleus undergoes a transient ‘metamorphosis’ within a nuclear–cytoplasmic DNA damage response linked to health and disease. Through this process, the nuclear envelope projects tubules that capture damaged DNA, mediating its repair.

Characterization of nuclear and nucleolar dynamics during adipogenic differentiation of human adipose stem cells points to nucleolar remodeling as an active, mechanoregulated mechanism triggered by cytoskeleton rearrangement.

The authors report that the γ-tubulin ring complex (γ-TuRC), an essential regulator of microtubule formation, selectively nucleates microtubules with 13-protofilaments and characterize the structural transformations associated with this function.

Actomyosin and microtubule-based forces are both important for tissue development, but how these systems interact in space and time remains unclear. Here, the authors study fly wing epithelium growth and determine aspects driving cell shape that are driven by microtubule or actomyosin-generated forces.

This study highlights the essential role of zyxin for podocytes. Zyxin loss in vitro reduced the expression of vinculin, VASP and matrix proteins. In mice, the knockout of zyxin resulted in proteinuria and effacement of podocyte foot processes.

Here the authors perform modelling to reveal that the timescale of actin-VASP interactions plays a critical role in actin ring formation and filament length determines droplet deformation in VASP droplets: predictions from the model were tested against VASP GAB mutant.

After having been largely neglected for more than a century, the tiny marine animal Trichoplax adhaerens is enjoying a revival and is now poised to become a mainstream model organism for the study of epithelial evolution, diversification and specialization.

Despite the constant renewal of their components, cellular actin networks maintain their overall appearance, through a subtle balance of filament assembly and disassembly. This balance is key to the remodelling of cellular architecture. We discuss the significance of in vitro reconstitutions in deciphering the complexity of actin regulation.

In this Tools of the Trade article, Manuela Richter (Dumont lab) describes a method to probe mechanisms of cytoskeletal network re-organization that uses a targeted laser to both trigger network remodelling and track network dynamics.

ESCRT-III seals holes in the nuclear envelope (NE). A study now shows that the Cmp7-directed ESCRT-III cascade that grommets and reseals NE holes after spindle pole body (SPB) extrusion at the end of fission yeast mitosis is complemented by the presence of a proteinaceous diffusion barrier to ensure NE integrity.

The intestinal epithelium serves as a barrier that facilitates interaction between intrinsic and environmental factors. Aging is accompanied by the gradual deterioration of this barrier. We postulate that barrier dysfunction results from defects in epithelial membrane trafficking that exacerbate age-related metabolic imbalances. Herein, we integrate barrier integrity, protein homeostasis, membrane trafficking and intracellular lipid sensing into an age-determining mechanism.

The microtubule motor dynein is regulated by lissencephaly-1 (Lis1) at several points during its complex activation process. Two papers reveal the molecular mechanism for two steps: the beginning, when Lis1 acts as a wedge to disrupt dynein’s autoinhibited conformation; and the end, when microtubule binding ejects Lis1 from the motor.