Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 4, 2026
10:40
Assessment of Dictyostelium discoideum Response to Acute Mechanical Stimulation
Published on: November 9, 2017
Steering in quadruplet: the complex signaling pathways directing chemotaxis
Erin C Rericha1, Carole A Parent
1Institute for Research in Electronics and Applied Physics, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA.
Science Signaling
|June 5, 2008
Summary
Redundant signaling pathways in Dictyostelium discoideum aid cell migration. Phospholipase A2 (PLA2) and guanylyl cyclase (GC) pathways compensate for missing signals, offering insights into conserved mechanisms.
Area of Science:
- Cellular biology
- Biochemistry
- Developmental biology
Background:
- Cellular signaling pathways are crucial for directional sensing and migration.
- In Dictyostelium discoideum, complex and redundant pathways regulate chemotaxis.
- Cell differentiation leads to the emergence of alternative signaling cascades.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of redundant signaling pathways in Dictyostelium discoideum chemotaxis.
- To identify compensatory mechanisms for the lack of phosphatidylinositol-3,4,5-trisphosphate accumulation.
- To explore the potential conservation of these pathways in higher eukaryotes.
Main Methods:
- Utilized Dictyostelium discoideum as a model organism.
- Studied signaling cascades involved in chemotactic directional sensing and migration.
- Examined the function of phospholipase A2 (PLA2) and guanylyl cyclase (GC) pathways.
Main Results:
- Identified that phospholipase A2 (PLA2) compensates in early-developed cells.
- Found that guanylyl cyclase (GC) compensates in later-developed, polarized cells.
- Demonstrated the complexity and redundancy of signaling networks during cell differentiation.
Conclusions:
- Redundant pathways, including PLA2 and GC, are critical for Dictyostelium discoideum chemotaxis.
- These findings suggest potential conserved mechanisms in mammalian cell migration.
- Highlights avenues for future research into eukaryotic cell signaling.
More Related Videos
08:24Imaging G Protein-coupled Receptor-mediated Chemotaxis and its Signaling Events in Neutrophil-like HL60 Cells
Published on: September 14, 2016
09:40Imaging G-protein Coupled Receptor (GPCR)-mediated Signaling Events that Control Chemotaxis of Dictyostelium Discoideum
Published on: September 20, 2011
Related Concept Videos
01:21Chemotaxis and Direction of Cell Migration
Cells can detect chemical cues in their environment and reorganize the cytoskeleton to migrate toward them or away from them. This directional migration, called chemotaxis, is essential during embryogenesis and development, immune response, tissue repair and regeneration, and reproduction. These chemical cues can either attract or repel the cell's movement. For example, axon development is determined by a combination of chemoattractants and chemorepellents that direct the growing axon towards...
01:27Chemotaxis in E. coli
Chemotaxis in Escherichia coli is a sensory-driven motility mechanism that enables bacteria to navigate chemical gradients, moving toward beneficial environments while avoiding harmful conditions. This process relies on a signal transduction system integrating external chemical cues with flagellar motor control.Chemoreceptors and Signal DetectionE. coli detects chemical gradients through methyl-accepting chemotaxis proteins (MCPs), which are membrane-bound chemoreceptors that sense attractants...
01:21Cell Polarization by Rho Proteins
Cell polarity is the asymmetric distribution of cellular and membrane components, making one side of the cell different from the other. This polarity is essential to many processes such as embryogenesis, axon migration, glucose transport across epithelial cells, and directional cell migration. A migrating cell responds to intracellular or extracellular signals via molecular cascades that reorganize the actin cytoskeleton to establish this polarity. In these cells, the Rho family proteins Cdc42,...
01:32Cytoskeletal Coordination in Cell Migration
A migrating cell changes its shape during the cyclic events of attachment and detachment from the substratum and repositions the cell organelles correspondingly. These complex events are orchestrated by the dynamic cytoskeletal network comprising actin filaments, intermediate filaments, and microtubules. Cytoskeletal crosstalk — the direct and indirect communication between the different components — is crucial for this coordination. Direct communication involves various linker proteins that...
01:09Cell Migration
Cell migration, the process by which cells move from one location to another, is essential for the proper development and viability of organisms throughout their life. When cells are not able to migrate properly to their ordained locations, various disorders may occur. For example, disruption in cell migration causes chronic inflammatory diseases such as arthritis.
01:30Bacterial Signaling
Bacterial signaling can occur within bacteria (intracellular) or between bacteria (intercellular). At times, a group of bacteria behaves like a community. To achieve this, they engage in quorum sensing, the perception of higher cell density that causes changes in gene expression. Quorum sensing involves both extracellular and intracellular signaling. The signaling cascade starts with a molecule called an autoinducer (AI). Individual bacteria produce AIs that move out of the bacterial cell...