Abstract Cdc42, a Rho-family GTPase, is a master regulator of cell polarity. Recently, it has been shown that Cdc42 also facilitates proper cytokinesis in the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe. Cdc42 is activated by two partially redundant GEFs, Gef1 and Scd1. Although both GEFs activate Cdc42, their deletion mutants display distinct phenotypes, indicating that they are differentially regulated by an unknown mechanism. During cytokinesis, Gef1 localizes to the division site and activates Cdc42 to initiate ring constriction and septum ingression. Here, we report that the F-BAR protein Cdc15 promotes Gef1 localization to its functional sites. We show that cdc15 promotes Gef1 association with cortical puncta at the incipient division site to activate Cdc42 during ring assembly. Moreover, cdc15 phospho-mutants phenocopy the polarity phenotypes of gef1 mutants. In a hypermorphic cdc15 mutant, Gef1 localizes precociously to the division site and is readily detected at the cortical patches and the cell cortex. Correspondingly, the hypermorphic cdc15 mutant shows increased bipolarity during interphase and precocious Cdc42 activation at the division site during cytokinesis. Finally, loss of gef1 in hypermorphic cdc15 mutants abrogates the increased bipolarity and precocious Cdc42 activation phenotype. We did not see any change in the localization of the other GEF Scd1 in a Cdc15-dependent manner. Our data indicate that Cdc15 facilitates Cdc42 activation at the division site during cytokinesis at the cell cortex to promote bipolarity and this is mediated by promoting Gef1 localization to these sites.
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A Cdc42 GEF, Gef1, through endocytosis organizes F-BAR Cdc15 along the actomyosin ring and promotes concentric furrowing
During cytokinesis, fission yeast coordinates actomyosin ring constriction with septum ingression, resulting in concentric furrow formation by a poorly defined mechanism. We report that cells lacking the Cdc42 activator Gef1, combined with an activated allele of the formin, Cdc12, display non-concentric furrowing. Non-concentrically furrowing cells display uneven distribution of the scaffold Cdc15 along the ring. This suggests that after ring assembly, uniform Cdc15 distribution along the ring enables proper furrow formation. We find that after assembly Cdc15 is recruited to the ring in an Arp2/3 complex-dependent manner and is decreased in the activated cdc12 mutant. Cdc15 at cortical endocytic patches show increased levels and extended lifetimes in gef1 and activated cdc12 mutants. We hypothesize endocytosis helps recruit Cdc15 to assembled rings; uneven Cdc15 distribution at the ring occurs when endocytic patches contain increased Cdc15 levels and patch-association rate is slow. Based on this, we developed a mathematical model that captures experimentally observed Cdc15 distributions along the ring. We propose that, at the ring, Gef1 and endocytic events promote uniform Cdc15 organization to enable proper septum ingression and concentric furrow formation.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1616495
- PAR ID:
- 10479675
- Publisher / Repository:
- Journal of Cell Science
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Journal of Cell Science
- ISSN:
- 0021-9533
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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