Biology subjects

Leikina, E.

Publications and source records attributed to Leikina, E..

5 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2025

Elevated surface La promotes hyperfusion and contributes to impaired resorption in osteopetrosis.

The skeleton is a living, biological tissue responding to the biomechanical demands placed upon it throughout life. The individual bones creating this physiological system are each shaped by a multinucleated cell type - the osteoclast - that sculpts each bone in collaboration with local cellular partners, which offer chemical and even tactile feedback of many sorts. Unfortunately, the perturbation of osteoclast formation and function underpins a broad range of human skeletal pathologies, including osteopetrosis - a systemic pathology characterized by impaired osteoclast resorption leading to skeletal thickening, brittle bones, frailty, and lethality. Here, we describe a molecular dysfunction observed in murine and human models of two forms of osteoclast-rich, autosomal recessive osteopetrosis, and our approach for exploiting this molecular dysfunction to correct pathologic osteoclast hyperfusion and resorptive impairment. We find that La - a manager of osteoclast fusion and subsequent resorptive activity - is greatly elevated at the surface of osteoclasts upon loss of SNX10 or OSTM1. Using inhibitory antibodies, we suppress excessive La surface function in these mutant osteoclasts, impede osteopetrotic hyperfusion and restore osteoclast resorptive function. We share these observations as proofs-of-principle that osteoclast fusion represents a viable therapeutic target for addressing osteoclast dysfunction in diseases underpinned by excessive osteoclast multinucleation and perturbed resorptive function.

cell biology↗

bioRxiv2025

PHOSPHATIDYLSERINE EXPOSURE AND EXTRACELLULAR ANNEXIN A5 WEAKEN THE ACTIN CORTEX IN OSTEOCLAST FUSION

Diverse cell-cell fusions involve intracellular Ca2+ signaling, non-apoptotic exposure of phosphatidylserine (PS) at the surface of fusion-committed cells and binding of extracellular Annexin A5 (Anx A5). Here we focus on the cell fusion stage of formation of bone-resorbing multinucleated osteoclasts and report that each of the listed hallmarks of cell fusion represents a step in a novel bidirectional signaling pathway. A rise in intracellular Ca{superscript 2} activates a lipid scramblase that translocates PS from the inner to the outer leaflet of the plasma membrane. This redistribution is enhanced by extracellular Anx A5 binding to cell surface PS. Depletion of PS in the inner leaflet weakens actin cortex-plasma membrane attachment mediated by ezrin/radixin/moesin (ERM) proteins, as evidenced by the preferential localization of cortex detachment areas within PS-enriched regions at the surface of the cells. Weakening of the cortex-membrane connection by Anx A5 or by adding an inhibitor of the ERM proteins promotes osteoclast fusion. We propose that this pathway facilitates osteoclast fusion and other cell-cell fusions by promoting membrane deformations required for formation of prefusion membrane contacts. Additionally, the elevated tension in the cortex detachment region of the membrane, suggested by our theoretical analysis, promotes fusion pore expansion.

cell biology↗

bioRxiv2024

Formation of multinucleated osteoclasts depends on an oxidized species of cell surface associated La protein

The bone-resorbing activity of osteoclasts plays a critical role in the life-long remodeling of our bones that is perturbed in many bone loss diseases. Multinucleated osteoclasts are formed by the fusion of precursor cells, and larger cells - generated by an increased number of cell fusion events - have higher resorptive activity. We find that osteoclast fusion and bone-resorption are promoted by reactive oxygen species (ROS) signaling and by an unconventional low molecular weight species of La protein, located at the osteoclast surface. Here, we develop the hypothesis that Las unique regulatory role in osteoclast multinucleation and function is controlled by a ROS switch in La trafficking. Using antibodies that recognize reduced or oxidized species of La, we find that differentiating osteoclasts enrich an oxidized species of La at the cell surface, which is distinct from the reduced La species conventionally localized within cell nuclei. ROS signaling triggers the shift from reduced to oxidized La species, its dephosphorylation and delivery to the surface of osteoclasts, where La promotes multinucleation and resorptive activity. Moreover, intracellular ROS signaling in differentiating osteoclasts oxidizes critical cysteine residues in the C-terminal half of La, producing this unconventional La species that promotes osteoclast fusion. Our findings suggest that redox signaling induces changes in the location and function of La and may represent a promising target for novel skeletal therapies.

cell biology↗

bioRxiv2022

Cell Surface-Bound La Protein Regulates The Cell Fusion Stage Of Osteoclastogenesis

Multinucleated osteoclasts, essential for skeletal remodeling in health and diseases, are formed by fusion of osteoclast precursors with each fusion event raising their bone-resorbing activity. Here we report that nuclear RNA chaperone, La protein moonlights as an osteoclast fusion regulator. Monocyte-to-osteoclast differentiation starts with a drastic decrease in La levels. Then La reappears as a proteasecleaved species at the cell surface where it promotes fusion by mechanisms independent of La-RNA interactions. Appearance-and-disappearance of cell-surface La act as an on-and-off switch of the fusion activity with fusion slowing down when surface La is replaced in mature osteoclasts by full-length nuclear La. Inhibiting surface La in a novel explant model of fibrous dysplasia inhibits excessive osteoclast formation characteristic of this disease, highlighting Las potential as a therapeutic target. One-Sentence SummaryA nuclear RNA chaperon moves to the surface of osteoclasts to control their formation and function in bone metabolism.

cell biology↗

bioRxiv2016

Arabidopsis HAP2/GCS1 is a gamete fusion protein homologous to somatic and viral fusogens

Cell-cell fusion is inherent to any form of sexual reproduction. Loss of HAPLESS 2/GENERATIVE CELL SPECIFIC 1 (HAP2/GCS1) proteins results in gamete fusion failure in different organisms but their exact role is unclear. Here we show that Arabidopsis HAP2/GCS1 expression in mammalian cells is sufficient to promote cell-cell fusion. Hemifusion and complete fusion depend on HAP2/GCS1 presence in both fusing cells. Furthermore, expression of HAP2 on the surface of pseudotyped vesicular stomatitis virus and on the target cells results in HAP2-dependent virus-cell fusion. This bilateral requirement can be bypassed by replacing the plant gene with C. elegans EFF-1 somatic cell fusogen in one of the fusing cells or the virus, indicating that HAP2/GCS1 and EFF-1 share a similar fusion mechanism. Structural modeling of the HAP2/GCS1 protein family predicts that they are homologous to EFF-1 and class II fusion proteins from enveloped viruses (e.g. dengue and Zika viruses). We name this superfamily FUSEXINS: FUSion proteins essential for sexual reproduction and EXoplasmic merger of plasma membranes. Thus, Fusexins unify the origin and evolution of sexual reproduction, enveloped virus entry into cells and somatic cell fusion.

cell biology↗