Life in the fast lane: actin-based motility of plant peroxisomes

• Published in: Canadian journal of botany Vol. 80; no. 4; pp. 430 - 441
• Main Authors: Collings, D.A, Harper, J.D.I, Marc, J, Overall, R.L, Mullen, R.T
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Ottawa, Canada NRC Research Press 01.04.2002; Canadian Science Publishing NRC Research Press
• Subjects: actin; Allium porrum; animal proteins; Botany; Cells; cytoskeleton; epidermis; Flowers & plants; green fluorescent protein; Leeks; microfilaments; microtubules; Motility; movement; peroxisomes; Proteins; Scyphozoa
• ISSN: 0008-4026; 1916-2790; 1480-3305; 1916-2804
• DOI: 10.1139/b02-036

Peroxisomal shape, distribution, motility, and interactions with cytoskeletal elements were examined during interphase in living leek (Allium porrum L.) epidermal cells transiently transformed with a construct encoding the green fluorescent protein bearing a carboxy-terminal type 1 peroxisomal targeting signal. Confocal laser scanning microscopy and time-course analysis revealed that labeled peroxisomes were either spherical or rod-shaped and possessed several types of motility including random oscillations, slow and fast directional and bidirectional movements, and stop-and-go movements. Co-localization studies indicated that most peroxisomes were in close association with actin filaments, while treatment of cells with the actin-disrupting drug cytochalasin D blocked all types of peroxisomal movements. In contrast, the overall spatial organization of peroxisomes and the microtubule cytoskeleton were different, and the microtubule-destabilizing agent oryzalin had no obvious effect on peroxisomal motility. These data indicate that the peroxisome in plant cells is a highly dynamic compartment that is dependent upon the actin cytoskeleton, not microtubules, for its subcellular distribution and movements.Key words: actin filaments, cytoskeleton, green fluorescent protein, leek, microtubules, peroxisomes.