Drosophila germ granules are structured and contain homotypic mRNA clusters

Tatjana Trcek, Markus Grosch, Andrew York, Hari Shroff, Timothée Lionnet and Ruth Lehmann ()
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Tatjana Trcek: HHMI, Skirball Institute of Biomolecular Medicine, NYU School of Medicine
Markus Grosch: HHMI, Skirball Institute of Biomolecular Medicine, NYU School of Medicine
Andrew York: Section on High Resolution Optical Imaging, National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, NIH
Hari Shroff: Section on High Resolution Optical Imaging, National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, NIH
Timothée Lionnet: Transcription Imaging Consortium, Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Ruth Lehmann: HHMI, Skirball Institute of Biomolecular Medicine, NYU School of Medicine

Nature Communications, 2015, vol. 6, issue 1, 1-12

Abstract: Abstract Germ granules, specialized ribonucleoprotein particles, are a hallmark of all germ cells. In Drosophila, an estimated 200 mRNAs are enriched in the germ plasm, and some of these have important, often conserved roles in germ cell formation, specification, survival and migration. How mRNAs are spatially distributed within a germ granule and whether their position defines functional properties is unclear. Here we show, using single-molecule FISH and structured illumination microscopy, a super-resolution approach, that mRNAs are spatially organized within the granule whereas core germ plasm proteins are distributed evenly throughout the granule. Multiple copies of single mRNAs organize into ‘homotypic clusters’ that occupy defined positions within the center or periphery of the granule. This organization, which is maintained during embryogenesis and independent of the translational or degradation activity of mRNAs, reveals new regulatory mechanisms for germ plasm mRNAs that may be applicable to other mRNA granules.

Date: 2015
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DOI: 10.1038/ncomms8962

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