title: Developmentally programmed germ cell remodelling by endodermal cell cannibalism.
abstract: Primordial germ cells (PGCs) in many species associate intimately with endodermal cells, but the significance of such interactions is largely unexplored. Here, we show that Caenorhabditis elegans PGCs form lobes that are removed and digested by endodermal cells, dramatically altering PGC size and mitochondrial content. We demonstrate that endodermal cells do not scavenge lobes PGCs shed, but rather, actively remove lobes from the cell body. CED-10 (Rac)-induced actin, DYN-1 (dynamin) and LST-4 (SNX9) transiently surround lobe necks and are required within endodermal cells for lobe scission, suggesting that scission occurs through a mechanism resembling vesicle endocytosis. These findings reveal an unexpected role for endoderm in altering the contents of embryonic PGCs, and define a form of developmentally programmed cell remodelling involving intercellular cannibalism. Active roles for engulfing cells have been proposed in several neuronal remodelling events, suggesting that intercellular cannibalism may be a more widespread method used to shape cells than previously thought.
authors.affiliation: Helen L. and Martin S. Kimmel Center for Biology and Medicine at the Skirball Institute of Biomolecular Medicine, NYU School of Medicine, New York, New York 10016, USA.
authors.forename: Yusuff
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Abdu
authors.affiliation: Helen L. and Martin S. Kimmel Center for Biology and Medicine at the Skirball Institute of Biomolecular Medicine, NYU School of Medicine, New York, New York 10016, USA.
authors.forename: Chelsea
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Maniscalco
authors.affiliation: Advanced Imaging Center, Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, Virginia 20147, USA.
authors.forename: John M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Heddleston
authors.affiliation: Advanced Imaging Center, Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, Virginia 20147, USA.
authors.forename: Teng-Leong
authors.initials: TL
authors.lastname: Chew
authors.affiliation: Helen L. and Martin S. Kimmel Center for Biology and Medicine at the Skirball Institute of Biomolecular Medicine, NYU School of Medicine, New York, New York 10016, USA.|Department of Cell Biology, NYU School of Medicine, New York, New York 10016, USA.
authors.forename: Jeremy
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Nance
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000166:cytology; D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D065150:Cellular Reprogramming; D057899:Cytophagocytosis; D034281:Dynamins / Q000378:metabolism; D004707:Endoderm / Q000166:cytology*; D005854:Germ Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism; D008928:Mitochondria / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins; D034281:Dynamins