Background
Breast carcinoma-amplified sequence 2 (BCAS2) regulates β-catenin gene splicing. The conditional knockout of BCAS2 expression in the forebrain (BCAS2 cKO) of mice confers impaired learning and memory along with decreased β-catenin expression. Because β-catenin reportedly regulates adult neurogenesis, we wondered whether BCAS2 could regulate adult neurogenesis via β-catenin.
Methods
BCAS2-regulating neurogenesis was investigated by characterizing BCAS2 cKO mice. Also, lentivirus-shBCAS2 was intracranially injected into the hippocampus of wild-type mice to knock down BCAS2 expression. We evaluated the rescue effects of BCAS2 cKO by intracranial injection of adeno-associated virus encoding BCAS2 (AAV-DJ8-BCAS2) and AAV-β-catenin gene therapy.
Results
To show that BCAS2-regulating adult neurogenesis via β-catenin, first, BCAS2 cKO mice showed low SRY-box 2-positive (Sox2+) neural stem cell proliferation and doublecortin-positive (DCX+) immature neurons. Second, stereotaxic intracranial injection of lentivirus-shBCAS2 knocked down BCAS2 in the hippocampus of wild-type mice, and we confirmed the BCAS2 regulation of adult neurogenesis via β-catenin. Third, AAV-DJ8-BCAS2 gene therapy in BCAS2 cKO mice reversed the low proliferation of Sox2+ neural stem cells and the decreased number of DCX+ immature neurons with increased β-catenin expression. Moreover, AAV-β-catenin gene therapy restored neuron stem cell proliferation and immature neuron differentiation, which further supports BCAS2-regulating adult neurogenesis via β-catenin. In addition, cells targeted by AAV-DJ8 injection into the hippocampus included Sox2 and DCX immature neurons, interneurons, and astrocytes. BCAS2 may regulate adult neurogenesis by targeting Sox2+ and DCX+ immature neurons for autocrine effects and interneurons or astrocytes for paracrine effects.
Conclusions
BCAS2 can regulate adult neurogenesis in mice via β-catenin.
To investigate the role of nuclear receptor interaction protein (NRIP) in myoblast fusion, both the primary myoblasts from muscle-specific NRIP-knockout mice and NRIP-null C2C12 cells (KO19 cells) exhibited a significant deficit in the fusion index during myogenesis; on the other hand, overexpressed NRIP in KO19 cells could rescue myotube formation. Furthermore, NRIP was found to interact with actin directly and reciprocally that is an invadosome component for myoblast fusion. Endogenous NRIP colocalized with components of invadosome such as F-actin, Tks5, and cortactin at the tips of cells during C2C12 differentiation, and exogenous NRIP was enriched with actin at the tip of attacking cells during myogenic fusion, implying that NRIP is a novel invadosome component. Using time-lapse microscopy and cell–cell fusion assays further confirmed NRIP directly participates in cell fusion through actin. Moreover, to map the domain of NRIP–actin binding, NRIP interacted with actin either through WD40 domains directly for binding or indirectly through the IQ domain for α-actinin 2 binding with actin. NRIP with actin binding was strongly correlated with invadosome formation and myotube fusion. Collectively, NRIP acts as a novel actin-binding protein through its WD40 or the IQ to form invadosomes that trigger myoblast fusion.
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