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Characterization of the cell polarity gene crumbs during the early development and maintenance of the squid–vibrio light organ symbiosis

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Abstract

The protein Crumbs is a determinant of apical–basal cell polarity and plays a role in apoptosis of epithelial cells and their protection against photodamage. Using the squid–vibrio system, a model for development of symbiotic partnerships, we examined the modulation of the crumbs gene in host epithelial tissues during initiation and maintenance of the association. The extracellular luminous symbiont Vibrio fischeri colonizes the apical surfaces of polarized epithelia in deep crypts of the Euprymna scolopes light organ. During initial colonization each generation, symbiont harvesting is potentiated by the biochemical and biophysical activity of superficial ciliated epithelia, which are several cell layers from the crypt epithelia where the symbionts reside. Within hours of crypt colonization, the symbionts induce the cell death mediated regression of the remote superficial ciliated fields. However, the crypt cells directly interacting with the symbiont are protected from death. In the squid host, we characterized the gene and encoded protein during light organ morphogenesis and in response to symbiosis. Features of the protein sequence and structure, phylogenetic relationships, and localization patterns in the eye supported assignment of the squid protein to the Crumbs family. In situ hybridization revealed that the crumbs transcript shows opposite expression at the onset of symbiosis in the two different regions of the light organ: elevated levels in the superficial epithelia were attenuated whereas low levels in the crypt epithelia were turned up. Although a rhythmic association in which the host controls the symbiont population over the day–night cycle begins in the juvenile upon colonization, cycling of crumbs was evident only in the adult organ with peak expression coincident with maximum symbiont population and luminescence. Our results provide evidence that crumbs responds to symbiont cues that induce developmental apoptosis and to symbiont population dynamics correlating with luminescence-based stress throughout the duration of the host-microbe association.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health RO1-A150661 (to MM-N and EG Ruby), RO1-OD11024 (to EG Ruby and MM-N), and the National Science Foundation IOS 0817232 (to MM-N and EG Ruby). EACH-H was supported by NRSA T-32 GM07215. We are grateful for the assistance in various ways from the following individuals: Nell Bekiares, Mahdi Belcaid, Fangmin Chen, Eric Koch, Ben Krasity, Natacha Kremer, Silvia Moriano-Gutierrez, Kiel Nikolakakis, and Julia Schwartzman. We also appreciate the thoughtful comments from two anonymous reviewers.

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Correspondence to Suzanne M. Peyer or Margaret J. McFall-Ngai.

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Communicated by Mark Q. Martindale

Appendix

Appendix

Table 1 Primers for RACE-PCR, RT-PCR, qRT-PCR, and ISH and probes for HCR-FISH

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Peyer, S.M., Heath-Heckman, E.A.C. & McFall-Ngai, M.J. Characterization of the cell polarity gene crumbs during the early development and maintenance of the squid–vibrio light organ symbiosis. Dev Genes Evol 227, 375–387 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00427-017-0576-5

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