Cell biology articles within Nature Communications

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  • Article
    | Open Access

    Insulin receptor levels at the cell surface are reduced in insulin resistance, for reasons that are not fully understood. Here, the authors identify the E3 ubiquitin ligase MARCH1 as a direct regulator of basal insulin receptor surface levels and, therefore, insulin signalling.

    • Arvindhan Nagarajan
    • , Max C. Petersen
    •  & Narendra Wajapeyee

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Programmed Death ligand-1 (PD-L1) protein mediates immune suppression in cancer. Here, the authors show that in breast cancer, PD-L1 expression can be up regulated post-translationally by glycosylation, which in turn acts through inhibiting GSK3β-mediated PD-L1 degradation.

    • Chia-Wei Li
    • , Seung-Oe Lim
    •  & Mien-Chie Hung

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The DNA damage response induces a reversible arrest at different cell cycle stages. Here the authors find that loss of the APC/C inhibitor Emi1 in antephase (late G2) results in hypersensitivity to DNA damage and cell cycle exit at DNA damage levels that induce a reversible arrest in early G2.

    • Femke M. Feringa
    • , Lenno Krenning
    •  & René H. Medema

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Nuclear envelope transmembrane proteins (NETs) can reside in the outer or inner nuclear membrane, but distinguishing which membrane they reside in, and their translocation rate, is technically challenging. Here the authors develop a FRAP-based super-resolution microscopy method to obtain this information for several NETs.

    • Krishna C Mudumbi
    • , Eric C Schirmer
    •  & Weidong Yang

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The activity of the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C) needs to be regulated in time and space to perform different functions. Here the authors show that Spd2 localizes the APC/C activator Fzr at the centrosomes to promote optimal APC/C activity towards its centrosomal substrate Aurora A.

    • Francesco Meghini
    • , Torcato Martins
    •  & Yuu Kimata

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The interaction between myosin motors and F-actin is well described, but the impact of actin organization on contractility is not well described. Here the authors use a 2D biomimetic system and computational modelling to show that contractility of isotropic actomyosin is cooperative, and contraction velocity scales with myosin activation area.

    • Ian Linsmeier
    • , Shiladitya Banerjee
    •  & Michael P. Murrell

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Organizers are regions in the embryo that induce cell fate and impart pattern on neighbouring regions. Here, the authors search for new organizers based on a common gene signature, and show that the Anterior Intestinal Portal endoderm induces cardiac identity, specifies ventricle and inhibits atrial character.

    • Claire Anderson
    • , Mohsin A. F. Khan
    •  & Claudio D. Stern

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The centrosome is a large intracellular structure that serves as the microtubule-organising center, but how it is accurately assembled is not known. Here the authors generate a ‘domain-level’ centrosome interactome and show that Plk4 positions the essential centriole component Asterless by phosphorylating Cep135.

    • Brian J. Galletta
    • , Carey J. Fagerstrom
    •  & Nasser M. Rusan

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Perilipin 5 has been implicated as a modulator of lipase activity and a scaffold linking lipid droplets to mitochondria. Here the authors show that PKA stimulates Peripilin 5 interaction with nuclear PGC-1a and SIRT1 to promote transcription of genes regulating mitochondrial biogenesis and respiration.

    • Violeta I. Gallardo-Montejano
    • , Geetu Saxena
    •  & Perry E. Bickel

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Epithelia are barriers against environmental insults and express the transcription factor aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR). Here the authors show that AhR regulates multiciliogenesis via cyclin O and Multicilin in a Notch-dependent manner and that this is blocked by toxic ligands.

    • Matteo Villa
    • , Stefania Crotta
    •  & Andreas Wack

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Targeting PML in acute promyelocytic leukaemia has changed the outcome of patients with this disease. Here, the authors demonstrated that PML is also a potential therapeutic target in breast cancer where it specifically regulates cancer initiating cells and tumour progression through the transcriptional regulation of SOX9.

    • Natalia Martín-Martín
    • , Marco Piva
    •  & Arkaitz Carracedo

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Human mutations in the NDE1 gene have been associated with cortical malformations and severe microcephaly. Here, the authors show in embryonic rat brains that NDE1-depleted neural progenitors arrest at three specific cell cycle stages before mitosis, resulting in a severe decrease in neurogenesis.

    • David J. Doobin
    • , Shahrnaz Kemal
    •  & Richard B. Vallee

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Cohesin is a ring-shaped protein complex that structures chromatin and mediates sister chromatid cohesion. Here the authors rigidify cohesin using engineered Smc1 and Smc3 and generated 3D models showing how Pds5B forms an integral part of the cohesin ring.

    • Michael T. Hons
    • , Pim J. Huis in ‘t Veld
    •  & Jan-Michael Peters

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The ‘genome guardian’ p53 has a well-established role in suppressing tumour development after DNA damage. Here the authors show that expression of the ubiquitin-like protein ISG15 is regulated by p53 which in turn is modified by ISG15 to enhance binding to target gene promoters.

    • Jong Ho Park
    • , Seung Wook Yang
    •  & Chin Ha Chung

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Oxaliplatin resistance in colorectal cancers is a major clinical problem, and predictive markers are urgently needed. Here, the authors show that miR-625-3pexpression reduces the sensitivity of colorectal cancer cells to oxaliplatin by targeting the kinase MAP2K6, an activator of the MAPK14 pathway.

    • Mads Heilskov Rasmussen
    • , Iben Lyskjær
    •  & Claus Lindbjerg Andersen

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Bacteria of the genus Streptomyces form cellular filaments (hyphae) in which sporadic peptidoglycan cell walls separate multinucleate compartments. Here, Yagüe et al. show that young hyphae are further compartmentalized by cross-membranes lacking detectable peptidoglycan.

    • Paula Yagüe
    • , Joost Willemse
    •  & Ángel Manteca

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Super-resolution fluorescent imaging typically makes use of intense phototoxic illumination. Here the authors achieve live-cell super-resolution imaging using low-illumination standard microscopes with the aid of a new analytical approach called Super-Resolution Radial Fluctuations (SRRF), provided as an ImageJ plugin.

    • Nils Gustafsson
    • , Siân Culley
    •  & Ricardo Henriques

  • Article
    | Open Access

    In conditions of energy stress cells reduce transcription of ribosomal RNA (rRNA) to maintain cell survival. Here, the authors show that energy stress induces an AMPK-dependent phosphorylation of Sirt7, which promotes its ubiquitin-independent degradation by REGγ, resulting in the down-regulation of rRNA transcription and cell survival.

    • Lianhui Sun
    • , Guangjian Fan
    •  & Chuangui Wang

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The ULK1 complex is required during autophagosome nucleation, but where autophagic membranes initiate is unknown. Here the authors use super-resolution microscopy to propose that autophagosomes originate from tubulovesicular structures in the ER that align with ATG9 vesicles and recruit ULK1.

    • Eleftherios Karanasios
    • , Simon A. Walker
    •  & Nicholas T. Ktistakis

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Reactivation of the inactive X chromosome (Xi) has modelled epigenetic reprogramming in mouse. Here, by using cell fusion between human female fibroblasts and mouse embryonic stem cells, the authors show a complex hierarchy of epigenetic changes that are required to reactivate the genes on the human Xi chromosome.

    • Irene Cantone
    • , Hakan Bagci
    •  & Amanda G. Fisher

  • Article
    | Open Access

    MEF2C is a transcription factor required for B-cell proliferation. Here the authors show that MEF2C is also needed in B-cell development and recovery from stress by inducing expression of DNA repair factors that prevent double stranded breaks and enable VDJ recombination.

    • Wenyuan Wang
    • , Tonis Org
    •  & Hanna K. A. Mikkola

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Mitochondrial complex I deficiency is the most common respiratory chain defect in mitochondrial disease in children and currently there is no effective treatment. In this study, the authors show that succinate prodrugs can alleviate metabolic decompensation in Leigh syndrome patient fibroblasts.

    • Johannes K. Ehinger
    • , Sarah Piel
    •  & Eskil Elmér

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The transport of secretory proteins from the endoplasmic reticulum to the Golgi depends on COPII-coated vesicles. Here, the authors show that activation-induced alternative splicing of Sec16 controls adaptation of COPII transport to increased secretory cargo upon T cell activation.

    • Ilka Wilhelmi
    • , Regina Kanski
    •  & Florian Heyd

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Polarisation of epithelial cells causes lumen formation, which is mediated by apical membrane initiation site (AMIS) and FIP5, but how this is regulated is unclear. Here, the authors identify cingulin as a FIP-5 interacting protein, recruiting the Rac1-WAVE/Scar complex to the AMIS and branched actin formation.

    • Anthony J. Mangan
    • , Daniel V. Sietsema
    •  & Rytis Prekeris

  • Article
    | Open Access

    In honeybees, pheromones produced by the queen inhibit reproduction by workers and enforce a eusocial division of labour. Here, Duncan, Hyink and Dearden show that this inhibition is mediated by the Notch signalling pathway in the workers' ovaries.

    • Elizabeth J. Duncan
    • , Otto Hyink
    •  & Peter K. Dearden

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Protein phosphatase Cdc25 controls cell cycle transitions by dephosphorylating CDK substrates. Here, the authors show that the Cdc25A isoform regulates glycolysis through dephosphorylation of pyruvate kinase PKM2, resulting in β-catenin activation and consequent upregulation of the transcription of glycolytic genes.

    • Ji Liang
    • , Ruixiu Cao
    •  & Zhimin Lu

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Mrf4 is a transcription factor important for muscle development, but despite high expression its function in adults is unknown. Here the authors show that interfering with Mrf4 in adult mice leads to muscle hypertrophy by activating MEF2-dependent transcription and promoting protein synthesis.

    • Irene Moretti
    • , Stefano Ciciliot
    •  & Stefano Schiaffino

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Ephrins are transmembrane proteins involved in cell-cell communication, and implicated in cancer cell growth and progression. Here, the authors show that EphrinB2 expression is reduced in glioma cells both by genetic and epigenetic alterations and under hypoxia, through a HIF1α-mediated direct regulation of ZEB2, which enhances invasion and anti-angiogenic resistance.

    • C. Depner
    • , H. zum Buttel
    •  & A. Acker-Palmer

  • Article
    | Open Access

    GRIP1 cooperates with the glucocorticoid receptor to repress inflammatory genes. Here the authors show that GRIP1 also controls macrophage polarization, by promoting KLF4-driven activation in response to IL-4, and that mice lacking GRIP1 in macrophages develop severe metabolic dysfunction on a high-fat diet.

    • Maddalena Coppo
    • , Yurii Chinenov
    •  & Inez Rogatsky

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The BubR1/Bub3 complex regulates chromosome segregation to enable proper kinetochore-microtubule interactions and is also required for the spindle assembly checkpoint. Here the authors show that two distinct pools of BubR1/Bub3 exist at kinetochores to support both known functions of BubR1/Bub3.

    • Gang Zhang
    • , Blanca Lopez Mendez
    •  & Jakob Nilsson

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Phosphorylation of L-type calcium CaV channels by protein kinase A is essential for several physiological events. Here, the authors show how this kinase regulates CaV1.4 activity, suggesting a general regulatory mechanism for all L-type calcium channels.

    • Lingjie Sang
    • , Ivy E. Dick
    •  & David T. Yue

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Alcohol abuse is a risk factor for acute respiratory distress syndrome, flooding of the lungs due to compromised barrier function. Here the authors report that alcohol upregulates claudin-5 that is then recruited to tight junctions in alveolar epithelial cells, causing the displacement of claudin-18 from ZO-1 and diminished barrier function.

    • Barbara Schlingmann
    • , Christian E. Overgaard
    •  & Michael Koval

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Plexins are semaphorin receptors and are well known for their roles in neuronal pathfinding. Here the authors describe a role for Plexin A in healing damaged epithelia in Drosophila and zebrafish. In Drosophila, Plexin A inhibits the GTPase Rap1 to allow epithelial remodelling to facilitate wound repair.

    • Sa Kan Yoo
    • , Heath G. Pascoe
    •  & Iswar K. Hariharan

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The molecular signals regulating the decision of neural stem cells (NSC) to proliferate versus differentiate are unclear. Here, the authors identify the nuclear receptor NR5A2 as coordinating cell-cycle exit with differentiation of NSCs via direct actions on Ink4, Prox1, Notch1 and JAK/STAT.

    • Athanasios Stergiopoulos
    •  & Panagiotis K. Politis

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