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Published on: April 30, 2019
A screen for morphological complexity identifies regulators of switch-like transitions between discrete cell shapes
Zheng Yin1, Amine Sadok, Heba Sailem
1NCI Center for Modeling Cancer Development, The Methodist Hospital Research Institute, Weill Cornell Medical College, 6670 Bertner Avenue, R6 South, Houston, Texas 77030, USA.
Nature Cell Biology
|June 11, 2013
Summary
Cellular morphology is complex. This study reveals that cell shapes exist in discrete forms, with genes like PTEN regulating transitions between these shapes and maintaining conserved functions across species.
Area of Science:
- Cell Biology
- Developmental Biology
- Genetics
Background:
- Cellular morphology is crucial for biological functions, yet the underlying mechanisms governing cell shape diversity remain unclear.
- It is debated whether cell shape is a continuous spectrum or comprises discrete forms.
- Understanding cell shape regulation is vital for developmental processes and disease states like cancer.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantitatively characterize cell shape and determine if cell morphologies exist as discrete or continuous variables.
- To identify genes that regulate the diversity of cell shapes within a population.
- To investigate the conserved role of identified shape-regulating genes in mammalian cells.
Main Methods:
- Development of quantitative methods for cell shape description.
- Utilized Drosophila haemocytes in culture to analyze cell morphology.
- Performed an RNA interference (RNAi) screen to identify genes influencing cell shape heterogeneity.
- Investigated the function of specific genes, including PTEN, in mouse and human melanoma cells.
Main Results:
- Drosophila haemocytes in culture exhibit five discrete morphologies, indicating cell shape is not continuous.
- Most genes identified in the RNAi screen regulate transitions between existing shapes, rather than creating new ones.
- A subset of genes, including PTEN, reduce population heterogeneity, favoring rounded or elongated cell forms.
- These PTEN-regulating genes demonstrate conserved functions in controlling cell shape in mouse and human metastatic melanoma cells.
Conclusions:
- Cellular morphology is governed by discrete forms, not a continuous spectrum.
- Gene regulation primarily controls transitions between these discrete cell shapes.
- Conserved gene networks, including those involving PTEN, regulate cell shape across different species and in cancer contexts.
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