Anchor cell invasion into the vulval epithelium in C. elegans.
An understanding of cell-invasive behavior has been limited by the lack of in vivo models where this activity can be clearly visualized and manipulated. We show that a single cell in the Caenorhabditis elegans gonad, the anchor cell (AC), initiates uterine-vulval contact through a cell invasion event. Using genetic analysis, laser ablations, and cell-specific markers, we demonstrate that AC invasion is predominantly stimulated by the 1 degrees vulval lineage cells, which generate a diffusible signal that promotes AC invasive behavior toward these cells and further targets invasive processes between the two central 1 degrees vulval lineage cells. We also show that AC invasion is regulated by the AC response to this cue, as well as a vulval-independent mechanism that weakly drives invasion. These studies dissect the regulatory mechanisms that underlie a simple cell-invasive behavior in vivo, and introduce AC invasion as a model for understanding key checkpoints controlling cell invasion.
Sherwood
David R
DR
Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Division of Biology, California Institute of Technology, 1200 East California Boulevard, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA.
Sternberg
Paul W
PW
D000818:Animals; D030801:Animals, Genetically Modified; D015415:Biomarkers; D015820:Cadherins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000196:embryology* / Q000235:genetics; D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D019070:Cell Lineage; D002465:Cell Movement / Q000235:genetics; D004848:Epithelium / Q000196:embryology; D005260:Female; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D006066:Gonads / Q000166:cytology / Q000196:embryology; D049452:Green Fluorescent Proteins; D008164:Luminescent Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D009154:Mutation; D015398:Signal Transduction; D019076:Transgenes; D014599:Uterus / Q000166:cytology / Q000196:embryology; D014844:Vulva / Q000166:cytology / Q000196:embryology
D015415:Biomarkers; D015820:Cadherins; D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins; D008164:Luminescent Proteins; D049452:Green Fluorescent Proteins