We recently reported that reducing the levels of BRG1, the catalytic subunit of mammalian SWI/SNF chromatin remodeling enzymes, induces alterations in nuclear shape in a breast epithelial cell line. Immunostaining the BRG1 knockdown cells with nuclear lamina antibodies revealed a significantly increased frequency of grooves, or invaginations, in the nuclei. Disruption of each of the major cytop...

*Correspondence to: Jörg Großhans; Email: [email protected] Changes in nuclear morphology are observed in diverse developmental processes as well as in pathological conditions. Modification of nuclear membrane and nuclear lamina protein levels results in altered nuclear shapes, as it has been demonstrated in experimental systems ranging from yeast to human cells. The imp...

Altered nuclear shape is a defining feature of cancer cells. The mechanisms underlying nuclear dysmorphia in cancer remain poorly understood. Here we identify PPP1R12A and PPP1CB, two subunits of the myosin phosphatase complex that antagonizes actomyosin contractility, as proteins safeguarding nuclear integrity. Loss of PPP1R12A or PPP1CB causes nuclear fragmentation, nuclear envelope rupture, ...

Defects in nuclear morphology often correlate with the onset of disease, including cancer, progeria, cardiomyopathy, and muscular dystrophy. However, the mechanism by which a cell controls its nuclear shape is unknown. Here, we use adhesive micropatterned surfaces to control the overall shape of fibroblasts and find that the shape of the nucleus is tightly regulated by the underlying cell adhes...

BACKGROUND The shape of a nucleus depends on the nuclear lamina, which is tightly associated with the inner nuclear membrane and on the interaction with the cytoskeleton. However, the mechanism connecting the differentiation state of a cell to the shape changes of its nucleus are not well understood. We investigated this question in early Drosophila embryos, where the nuclear shape changes from...

How do the properties of atomic nuclei change when they acquire a large amount of internal energy? How do nuclear properties vary with their temperature? The giant dipole resonance (GDR) built upon highly excited states has provided a probe for addressing this question. For example, this resonance is strongly coupled to the nuclear shape degrees of freedom. Measurements of the GDR have provided...

The nuclear lamina is the structural scaffold of the nuclear envelope that plays multiple regulatory roles in chromatin organization and gene expression as well as a structural role in nuclear stability. The lamina proteins, also referred to as lamins, determine nuclear lamina organization and define the nuclear shape and the structural integrity of the cell nucleus. In addition, lamins are con...

The relationship between sperm nuclear shape and bull fertility was determined. Two groups of bulls, 3 per group, were selected. Bulls differed in fertility based on lifetime nonreturn rates. Digital images of propidium iodide-stained sperm from each bull were collected and shape-evaluated by Fourier harmonic amplitudes 0 to 5. A discriminant function (P < .05) was constructed based on harmonic...