Macroscopic stiffening of embryonic tissues via microtubules, RhoGEF and the assembly of contractile bundles of actomyosin.

ABSTRACT: During morphogenesis, forces generated by cells are coordinated and channeled by the viscoelastic properties of the embryo. Microtubules and F-actin are considered to be two of the most important structural elements within living cells accounting for both force production and mechanical stiffness. In this paper, we investigate the contribution of microtubules to the stiffness of converging and extending dorsal tissues in Xenopus laevis embryos using cell biological, biophysical and embryological techniques. Surprisingly, we discovered that depolymerizing microtubules stiffens embryonic tissues by three- to fourfold. We attribute tissue stiffening to Xlfc, a previously identified RhoGEF, which binds microtubules and regulates the actomyosin cytoskeleton. Combining drug treatments and Xlfc a

SUBMITTER: Zhou J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2910388 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature