Summary
The expression and intracellular distribution patterns of muscle-specific proteins were studied during rabbit embryo development (7–13 dpc) using monoclonal antibodies against titin, myosin, tropomyosin and actin, as well as the intermediate filament proteins desmin, keratin and vimentin. From our panel, titin appeared to be the first muscle-specific protein to be exclusively expressed in the embryonic rabbit heart. Upon differentiation (myocyte and myotube formation), titin reorganizes from dot-like aggregates into a cross-striated pattern (in 9- to 30-somite embryos) via a transiently filamentous distribution. When the expression and organization of the other muscle proteins was studied in relation to titin, it became apparent that tropomyosin followed upon titin with respect to its exclusive expression in the heart anlagen and its organization into a striated pattern. Myosin and desmin were organized into cross-striated patterns after titin and tropomyosin, but this arrangement had not reached its final form in 13-dpc embryos. Actin, keratin and vimentin were distributed in cytoplasmic filaments in the embryonic stages we investigated. Since the first pulsations are already detected in 3-somite embryos, we conclude that the organization of titin, tropomyosin, myosin and desmin into a striated pattern does not seem to be essential for the initiation of muscle cell contraction in the heart anlagen. Furthermore, this study shows that, in comparison with studies on mouse, chick and rat, the sequence of expression of muscle-specific and intermediate filament proteins during cardiomyogenesis is species-dependent, and that their expression and organization varies in time in different regions of the developing heart.
Similar content being viewed by others
Abbreviations
- IFP :
-
intermediate filament proteins
- PBS :
-
phosphate-buffered saline
- FITC :
-
fluorescein isothiocyanate
- TRITC :
-
tetramethylrhodamine isothiocyanate
- TxRd :
-
texas red
- dpc :
-
days post conception
References
Bader D, Masaki T, Fischman DA (1982) Immunohistochemical analysis of myosin heavy chain during avian myogenesis in vivo and in vitro. J Cell Biol 95:763–770
Baldwin HS, Jensen KL, Solursh M (1991) Myogenic cytodifferentiation of the precardiac mesoderm in the rat. Differentiation 47:163–172
Danto BI, Fischman DA (1984) Immunocytochemical analysis of intermediate filaments in embryonic heart cells with monoclonals to desmin. J Cell Biol 98:2179–2191
Debus E, Weber K, Osborn M (1983) Monoclonal antibodies to desmin, the muscle specific intermediate filament. EMBO J 2:2305–2312
Dwinnell LA (1939) Physiological contraction of double hearts in rabbit embryos. Proc Soc Exp Biol Med 42:264–267
Fischman DA (1986) Myofibrillogenesis and the morphologenesis of skeletal muscle. In: Engel AG, Banker BQ (eds) Myology: Basic and Clinical. McGraw-Hill, New York, pp 5–30
Fischman DA, Danto SI (1985) Monoclonal antibodies to desmin: evidence for stage-dependent intermediate filament immunoreactivity during cardiac and skeletal muscle development. Ann NY Acad Sci 455:167–184
Franke WW, Moll R (1987) Cytoskeletal components of lymphoid organs. I. Synthesis of cytokeratins 8 and 18 and desmin in subpopulations of extrafollicular reticulum cells of human lymph nodes, tonsils and spleens. Differentiation 36:145–163
Franke WW, Grund C, Kuhn C, Jackson BW, Illmensee K (1982) Formation of cytoskeletal elements during mouse embryogenesis. III. Primary mesenchymal cells and the first appearance of vimentin filaments. Differentiation 23:43–59
Fulton AB, Isaacs WB (1991) Titin, a huge, elastic sarcomeric protein with a probable role in morphogenesis. BioEssays 13:157–161
Fürst DO, Osborn M, Nave R, Weber K (1988) The organization of titin filaments in the half-sarcomere revealed by monoclonal antibodies in immuno-electronmicroscopy: a map of ten nonrepetitive epitopes starting at the Z-line extends close to the M-line. J Cell Biol 106:1563–1572
Fürst DO, Osborn M, Weber K (1989) Myogenesis in the mouse embryo: differential onset of expression of myogenic proteins and the involvement of titin in myofibril assembly. J Cell Biol 109:517–527
Greaser ML, Handel SE, Wang S-M, Schultz E, Bulinski JC, Lessard JL (1989) Assembly of titin, myosin, actin and tropomyosin into myofibrils in cultured chick cardiomyocytes. In: Stockdale F, Kedes L (eds) Cellular and molecular biology of muscle development. UCLA Symposium on molecular and cellular biology. New Series, vol 93, Liss, New York, pp 246–257
Handel SE, Wang S-M, Greaser ML, Schultz E, Bulinski JC, Lessard JL (1989) Skeletal muscle myofibrillogenesis as revealed with a monoclonal antibody to titin in combination with detection of the alpha and gamma isoforms of actin. Dev Biol 132:35–44
Hill CS, Duran S, Zhongxiang L, Weber K, Holtzer H (1986) Titin and myosin, but not desmin, are linked during myofibrillogenesis in postmitotic mononucleated myoblasts. J Cell Biol 103:2185–2196
Jackson BW, Grund C, Winter S, Franke WW, Illmensee K (1981) Formation of cytoskeletal elements during mouse embryogenesis. II. Epithelial differentiation and intermediate-sized filaments in early post-implantation embryos. Differentiation 20:203–216
Jong F de, Geerts WJC, Lamers WH, Los JA, Moorman AFM (1990) Isomyosin expression pattern during formation of the tubular chicken heart: a three dimensional immunohistochemical analysis. Anat Rec 226:213–227
Karnovsky MJ (1965) A formaldehyde — glutaraldehyde fixation of high osmolarity for use in electron microscopy. J Cell Biol 27:137A-138A
Kuruc K, Franke WW (1988) Transient coexpression of desmin and cytokeratins 8 and 18 in developing myocardial cells of some vertebrate species. Differentiation 38:177–193
Lazarides E, Hubbard BD (1976) Immunological characterization of the 100 Å filaments from muscle. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 76:4344–4348
Lemanski LF (1979) Role of tropomyosin in actin filament formation in embryonic salamander heart cells. J Cell Biol 82:227–238
Lin JJ-C, Chou C-S, Lin JL-C (1985) Monoclonal antibodies against chicken tropomyosin isoforms: production, characterization and application. Hybridoma 4:223–242
Lyons GE, Ontell M, Cox R, Sassoon D, Buckingham M (1990a) The expression of myosin genes in developing skeletal muscle in the mouse embryo. J Cell Biol 111:1465–1476
Lyons GE, Schaffino S, Sassoon D, Barton P, Buckingham M (1990b) Developmental regulation of myosin gene expression in mouse cardiac muscle. J Cell Biol 111:2427–2436
Lyons GE, Buckingham ME, Mannherz HG (1991) α-actin proteins and gene transcripts are colocalized in embryonic mouse muscle. Development 111:451–454
Masaki T, Bader DM, Reinach FC, Shimizu T, Obinata T, Shafiq SA, Fischman DA (1982) Monoclonal antibody analysis of myosin heavy chain and the protein isoforms during myogenesis. In: Pearson M, Epstein H, Kaufman HS, Garrels JL (eds) Molecular and cellular control of muscle development. Cold Spring Harbor Lab Press, pp 405–417
Maruyama K (1986) Connectin, an elastic filamentous protein of striated muscle. Int Rev Cytol 104:81–114
Molengraft F van de, Ramaekers FCS, Jap P, Vooijs P, Mungyer G (1986) Changing intermediate-filament patterns in metastatic hepatocellular carcinoma cells of the guinea pig. Virchows Arch [B] 51:285–301
Muijen van GNP, Ruiter DJ, Warnaar SO (1987) Coexpression of intermediate filament polypeptides in human fetal and adult tissues. Lab Invest 57:359–369
Osborn M, Weber K (1982) Immunofluorescence and immunocytochemical procedure with affinity purified antibodies: tubulincontaining structures. Methods Cell Biol 24:97–132
Osinska HE, Lemanski LF (1989) Immunofluorencent location of desmin and vimentin in developing cardiac muscle of Syrian hamster. Anat Rec 223:406–413
Ramaekers FCS, Huysmans A, Schaart G, Moesker O, Vooijs GP (1987) Tissue distribution of keratin 7 as monitored by a monoclonal antibody. Expl Cell Res 170:235–249
Sassoon DA, Garner I, Buckingham M (1988) Transcripts of α-cardiac and α-skeletal actins are early markers for myogenesis in the mouse embryo. Development 104:155–164
Schaart G, Viebahn C, Langmann W, Ramaekers FCS (1989) Desmin and titin expression in early postimplantation mouse embryos. Development 107:585–596
Schaart G, Pieper FR, Kuijpers HJH, Bloemendal H, Ramaekers FCS (1991) Baby hamster kidney (BHK-21/C13) cells can express striated muscle type proteins. Differentiation 46:105–115
Seidel F (1960) Die Entwicklungsfähigkeiten isolierter Furchungszellen aus dem Ei des Kaninchens Oryctolagus cuniculus. In: Romeis B, Kühn A (eds) Wilhelm Roux' Arch Dev Biol 152:43–127
Skalli O, Gabbiani G, Babaï F, Seemayer TA, Pizzolato G, Schürch W (1988) Intermediate filament proteins and actin isoforms as markers for soft tissue tumor differentiation and origin. II. Rhabdomyosarcomas. Am J Pathol 130:513–531
Smedts F, Ramaekers F, Robben H, Pruszczynski M, van Muijen G, Lane B, Leigh I, Vooijs P (1990) Changing patterns of keratin expression during progression of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia. Am J Pathol 136:657–668
Tokuyasu KT, Maher PA (1987 a) Immunocytochemical studies of cardiac myofibrillogenesis in early chick embryos. I. Presence of immunofluorescent titin spots in premyofibril stages. J Cell Biol 105:2781–2793
Tokuyasu KT, Maher PA (1987 b) Immunocytochemical studies in early chick embryos. II. Generation of α-actinin dots within titin spots at the time of the first myofibril formation. J Cell Biol 105:2795–2801
Traub P (1985) Intermediate filaments. A review. Springer, Berlin Heidelberg New York Tokyo, pp 2–17
Trombitas K, Baatsen PHWW, Lin JJ-C, Lemanski LF, Pollack GH (1990) Immunoelectron microscopic observations on tropomyosin localization in striated muscle. J Muscle Res Cell Motil 11:445–452
Viebahn C, Lane EB, Ramaekers FCS (1988) Keratin and Vimentin expression in early organogenesis of the rabbit embryo. Cell Tissue Res 253:553–562
Wang K, McClure J, Tu A (1979) Titin: Major myofibrillar components of striated muscle. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 76:3698–3702
Wang S-M, Greaser ML (1985) Immunocytochemical studies using a monoclonal antibody to bovine cardiac titin on intact and extracted myofibrils. J Muscle Res Cell Motil 6:293–312
Wang S-M, Greaser ML, Schultz E, Bulinski JC, Lin JJ-C, Lessard JL (1988) Studies on cardiac myofibrillogenesis with antibodies to titin, actin, tropomyosin and myosin. J Cell Biol 107:1075–1083
Wang S-M, Sun M-C, Jeng C-J (1991) Location of the C-terminus of titin at the Z-line region in the sarcomere. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 176:189–193
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
van der Loop, F.T.L., Schaart, G., Langmann, W. et al. Expression and organization of muscle specific proteins during the early developmental stages of the rabbit heart. Anat Embryol 185, 439–450 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00174082
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00174082