title: Organization of actin cytoskeleton during early endothelial regeneration in vitro.
abstract: The pattern of early cell movement after an experimental 'wound' and the organization of actin in stationary and moving cultured endothelial cells have been studied by means of: time-lapse photography; indirect immunofluorescence using anti-actin antibodies with and without pretreatment with the actin destabilizing factor present in human plasma; and differential centrifugation and densitometric analysis of stained sodium dodecylsulphate/polyacrylamide gels in order to evaluate the total and relative amounts of G and F-actin. Up to 5 h after a single scratch, movement consists of a coordinate spreading and translocation of a band of about 10 cells from the wound edge. Compared to stationary cells, moving endothelial cells show: no significant changes in the intensity and distribution of immunofluorescent staining with anti-actin antibodies, but an increased sensitivity of cytoplasmic actin, including stress fibres, to the actin-destabilizing factor purified from human plasma; and no significant change in the total amount of actin, but a decreased relative amount of F-actin and a corresponding increased relative amount of G-actin. We conclude that endothelial cell movement in vitro is accompanied by a rapid change in the state of actin organization characterized by an overall decrease in cytoplasmic F-actin.
mesh_terms: D000199:Actins / Q000032:analysis* / Q000502:physiology; D000818:Animals; D001011:Aorta / Q000032:analysis / Q000502:physiology* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D002417:Cattle; D002465:Cell Movement; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D003599:Cytoskeleton / Q000502:physiology*; D004727:Endothelium / Q000032:analysis / Q000502:physiology / Q000648:ultrastructure; D007381:Intermediate Filament Proteins / Q000032:analysis; D012038:Regeneration; D014746:Vimentin
chemical_list: D000199:Actins; D007381:Intermediate Filament Proteins; D014746:Vimentin