title: Quantitative analysis and modeling probe polarity establishment in C. elegans embryos.
abstract: Cell polarity underlies many aspects of metazoan development and homeostasis, and relies notably on a set of PAR proteins located at the cell cortex. How these proteins interact in space and time remains incompletely understood. We performed a quantitative assessment of polarity establishment in one-cell stage Caenorhabditis elegans embryos by combining time-lapse microscopy and image analysis. We used our extensive data set to challenge and further specify an extant mathematical model. Using likelihood-based calibration, we uncovered that cooperativity is required for both anterior and posterior PAR complexes. Moreover, we analyzed the dependence of polarity establishment on changes in size or temperature. The observed robustness of PAR domain dimensions in embryos of different sizes is in agreement with a model incorporating fixed protein concentrations and variations in embryo surface/volume ratio. In addition, we quantified the dynamics of polarity establishment over most of the viable temperatures range of C. elegans. Modeling of these data suggests that diffusion of PAR proteins is the process most affected by temperature changes, although cortical flows appear unaffected. Overall, our quantitative analytical framework provides insights into the dynamics of polarity establishment in a developing system.
authors.affiliation: Swiss Institute for Experimental Cancer Research (ISREC), Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland; The Institute of Bioengineering (IBI), School of Life Sciences, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Simon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Blanchoud
authors.affiliation: Swiss Institute for Experimental Cancer Research (ISREC), Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Coralie
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Busso
authors.affiliation: The Institute of Bioengineering (IBI), School of Life Sciences, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Félix
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Naef
authors.affiliation: Swiss Institute for Experimental Cancer Research (ISREC), Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland. Electronic address: pierre.gonczy@epfl.ch.
authors.forename: Pierre
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Gönczy
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000166:cytology* / Q000196:embryology; D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D016764:Cell Polarity; D008954:Models, Biological; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins; C409406:PAR-1 protein, C elegans; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases