title: Localized cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase activity is required for myogenic cell fusion.
abstract: Multinucleated myotubes are formed by fusion of mononucleated myogenic progenitor cells (myoblasts) during terminal skeletal muscle differentiation. In addition, myoblasts fuse with myotubes, but terminally differentiated myotubes have not been shown to fuse with each other. We show here that an adenylate cyclase activator, forskolin, and other reagents that elevate intracellular cyclic AMP (cAMP) levels induced cell fusion between small bipolar myotubes in vitro. Then an extra-large myotube, designated a "myosheet," was produced by both primary and established mouse myogenic cells. Myotube-to-myotube fusion always occurred between the leading edge of lamellipodia at the polar end of one myotube and the lateral plasma membrane of the other. Forskolin enhanced the formation of lamellipodia where cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA) was accumulated. Blocking enzymatic activity or anchoring of PKA suppressed forskolin-enhanced lamellipodium formation and prevented fusion of multinucleated myotubes. Localized PKA activity was also required for fusion of mononucleated myoblasts. The present results suggest that localized PKA plays a pivotal role in the early steps of myogenic cell fusion, such as cell-to-cell contact/recognition through lamellipodium formation. Furthermore, the localized cAMP-PKA pathway might be involved in the specification of the fusion-competent areas of the plasma membrane in lamellipodia of myogenic cells.
authors.affiliation: Department of Regenerative Medicine, National Institute for Longevity Sciences, National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology, 36-3 Gengo, Morioka, Oobu, Aichi 474-8522, Japan.
authors.forename: Atsushi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mukai
authors.forename: Naohiro
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Hashimoto
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D002459:Cell Fusion; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D005576:Colforsin / Q000494:pharmacology; D000242:Cyclic AMP / Q000378:metabolism*; D017868:Cyclic AMP-Dependent Protein Kinases / Q000378:metabolism*; D005455:Fluorescent Antibody Technique; D051379:Mice; D032342:Muscle Cells / Q000378:metabolism; D018485:Muscle Fibers, Skeletal / Q000166:cytology / Q000201:enzymology*; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D005576:Colforsin; D000242:Cyclic AMP; D017868:Cyclic AMP-Dependent Protein Kinases