Epithelial cells often require polarization in two axes for their function, ubiquitous apical-basal polarity and a second axis within the plane of the epithelium, called Planar Cell Polarity (PCP). Typical mammalian PCP examples are highlighted by the organization of the skin and many internal organs, e.g. the inner ear with its sensory cilia and, importantly, also include directed cell migration during mammalian gastrulation and neural tube closure. In Drosophila, all adult cuticular structures show PCP features. The establishment of PCP in Drosophila serves as a paradigm to study PCP determination in development and disease. PCP is coordinated by the activity of the Frizzled (Fz) receptor (with Wnt family members as their ligands) and it's associated signaling cascade (Fz/PCP signaling), which is highly conserved throughout evolution and regulates many aspects of coordinated cellular polarization, including directed cell migration. Although the frame work of the signaling pathway(s) regulating PCP is beginning to be established, the specific links between PCP-signaling and the resulting cellular responses, including the regulation of cell adhesion and cell motility are only beginning to be dissected. Similarly, the cell adhesion effectors of the PCP pathway(s) are largely unknown. The scope of this application is to dissect the mechanistic regulatory interactions between PCP associated signaling pathways and the respective cell adhesion factors, using the Drosophila eye paradigm as a model. Based on our preliminary studies we hypothesize that regulatory input from Fz/PCP, Notch and receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK)/Ras signaling converges on E-cadherin/catenin, Nectin/Afadin, and Integrin/ECM mediated cell adhesion/cell motility regulation. Strikingly, all signaling pathways involved (Wnt/Fz-PCP, Notch and RTK/Ras-signaling) employ a non-canonical pathway branch. The components of these cell adhesion specific signaling branches are only being discovered now, and thus an exciting new signaling network is emerging. We will use a combination of Drosophila in vivo studies, live imaging in the fly eye, and biochemical experiments to define the mechanistic regulatory interactions between the signaling components and the cell adhesion factors, leading to a highly regulated cell motility process. Several components of the signaling pathways and cell adhesion modules are critically linked to cancer and other diseases, and are also associated with stem cell biology. Thus the information acquired in this application will not only advance our understanding of regulated cellular motility but will also be of medical relevance in several disease associated contexts.

Public Health Relevance

Wnt/Fz-planar cell polarity, RTK/Ras, and Notch signaling pathways are implicated in many developmental patterning contexts and also linked to several congenital diseases, ranging from hearing defects to cancer. This application addresses the mechanistic regulatory inputs of these signaling pathways to cell adhesion molecules specific to directed cell motility, cell polarity, and associated organ morphogenesis. The information acquired here will be of importance for our molecular understanding of organogenesis and several medical disorders.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01GM102811-04
Application #
8910761
Study Section
Intercellular Interactions (ICI)
Program Officer
Nie, Zhongzhen
Project Start
2012-09-01
Project End
2016-08-31
Budget Start
2015-09-01
Budget End
2016-08-31
Support Year
4
Fiscal Year
2015
Total Cost
$346,432
Indirect Cost
$141,432
Name
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Department
Biology
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
078861598
City
New York
State
NY
Country
United States
Zip Code
10029
Humphries, Ashley Ceinwen; Mlodzik, Marek (2018) From instruction to output: Wnt/PCP signaling in development and cancer. Curr Opin Cell Biol 51:110-116
Collu, Giovanna M; Jenny, Andreas; Gaengel, Konstantin et al. (2018) Prickle is phosphorylated by Nemo and targeted for degradation to maintain Prickle/Spiny-legs isoform balance during planar cell polarity establishment. PLoS Genet 14:e1007391
Bigenzahn, Johannes W; Collu, Giovanna M; Kartnig, Felix et al. (2018) LZTR1 is a regulator of RAS ubiquitination and signaling. Science 362:1171-1177
Wu, Jun; Mlodzik, Marek (2017) Wnt/PCP Instructions for Cilia in Left-Right Asymmetry. Dev Cell 40:423-424
Weber, Ursula; Mlodzik, Marek (2017) APC/CFzr/Cdh1-Dependent Regulation of Planar Cell Polarity Establishment via Nek2 Kinase Acting on Dishevelled. Dev Cell 40:53-66
Carvajal-Gonzalez, Jose Maria; Mulero-Navarro, Sonia; Mlodzik, Marek (2016) Centriole positioning in epithelial cells and its intimate relationship with planar cell polarity. Bioessays 38:1234-1245
Carvajal-Gonzalez, Jose Maria; Mulero-Navarro, Sonia; Smith, Michael et al. (2016) A Novel Frizzled-Based Screening Tool Identifies Genetic Modifiers of Planar Cell Polarity in Drosophila Wings. G3 (Bethesda) 6:3963-3973
Carvajal-Gonzalez, Jose Maria; Roman, Angel-Carlos; Mlodzik, Marek (2016) Positioning of centrioles is a conserved readout of Frizzled planar cell polarity signalling. Nat Commun 7:11135
Mlodzik, Marek (2016) The Dishevelled Protein Family: Still Rather a Mystery After Over 20 Years of Molecular Studies. Curr Top Dev Biol 117:75-91
Kelly, Lindsay K; Wu, Jun; Yanfeng, Wang A et al. (2016) Frizzled-Induced Van Gogh Phosphorylation by CK1? Promotes Asymmetric Localization of Core PCP Factors in Drosophila. Cell Rep 16:344-356

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