HSF4 regulates lens fiber cell differentiation by activating p53 and its downstream regulators

Gao, Meng; Huang, Yuwen; Wang, Ling; Huang, Mi; Liu, Fei; Liao, Shengjie; Yu, Shanshan; Lu, Zhao**g; Han, Shanshan; Hu, Xuebin; Qu, Zhen; Liu, **liang; Assefa Yimer, Tinsae; Yang, Lifang; Tang, Zhaohui; Li, David Wan-Cheng; Liu, Mugen

doi:10.1038/cddis.2017.478

HSF4 regulates lens fiber cell differentiation by activating p53 and its downstream regulators

Original Article
Open access
Published: 05 October 2017

Volume 8, page e3082, (2017)
Cite this article

Download PDF

You have full access to this open access article

Cell Death & Disease

HSF4 regulates lens fiber cell differentiation by activating p53 and its downstream regulators

Download PDF

Meng Gao¹^na1,
Yuwen Huang¹^na1,
Ling Wang²^na1,
Mi Huang³,
Fei Liu¹,
Shengjie Liao³,
Shanshan Yu¹,
Zhao**g Lu¹,
Shanshan Han¹,
Xuebin Hu¹,
Zhen Qu¹,
**liang Liu¹,
Tinsae Assefa Yimer¹,
Lifang Yang¹,
Zhaohui Tang¹,
David Wan-Cheng Li² &
…
Mugen Liu¹

2833 Accesses
Explore all metrics

Abstract

Cataract refers to opacities of the lens that impede the passage of light. Mutations in heat shock transcription factor 4 (HSF4) have been associated with cataract; however, the mechanisms regarding how mutations in HSF4 cause cataract are still obscure. In this study, we generated an hsf4 knockout zebrafish model using TALEN technology. The mutant zebrafish developed an early-onset cataract with multiple developmental defects in lens. The epithelial cells of the lens were overproliferated, resulting in the overabundance of lens fiber cells in hsf4^null zebrafish lens. Consequently, the arrangement of the lens fiber cells became more disordered and irregular with age. More importantly, the terminal differentiation of the lens fiber cell was interrupted as the organelles cannot be cleaved in due time. In the cultured human lens epithelial cells, HSF4 could stabilize and retain p53 in the nucleus to activate its target genes such as fas cell surface death receptor (Fas) and Bcl-2-associated X apoptosis regulator (Bax). In the hsf4^null fish, both p53 and activated-caspase3 were significantly decreased. Combined with the finding that the denucleation defect could be partially rescued through microinjection of p53, fas and bax mRNA into the mutant embryos, we directly proved that HSF4 promotes lens fiber cell differentiation by activating p53 and its downstream regulators. The data we presented suggest that apoptosis-related genes are involved in the lens fiber cell differentiation. Our finding that HSF4 functions in the upstream to activate these genes highlighted the new regulatory modes of HSF4 in the terminal differentiation of lens fiber cell.

Absence of S100A4 in the mouse lens induces an aberrant retina-specific differentiation program and cataract

Article Open access 26 January 2021

p53 Regulates Developmental Apoptosis and Gene Expression to Modulate Lens Differentiation

The cataract-linked RNA-binding protein Celf1 post-transcriptionally controls the spatiotemporal expression of the key homeodomain transcription factors Pax6 and Prox1 in lens development

Article 27 June 2020

Main

Cataract is a major cause of adult blindness and congenital cataract is a major cause of childhood blindness.¹ At least 44 genetic loci and over 40 genes have been linked to congenital or early-onset cataract.^{2, 3, 4} Heat shock transcription factor 4 (HSF4) has been associated with isolated cataract⁵ and it belongs to the heat shock transcription factor family (including HSF1, HSF2, HSF3 and HSF4). These HSFs can respond to various stress stimuli and protect cells against proteotoxic damage.^{6, 7} More importantly, HSFs are also involved in regulating differentiation and development.⁸ HSF4 differs from other HSFs in that it lacks C-terminal HR-C domain, which is responsible for the negative regulation of trimerization.^{7, 9} Moreover, whereas HSF1 and HSF2 are expressed in most tissues, HSF4 is predominantly expressed in the lens.^{10, 11}

To investigate the function of HSF4, three Hsf4 knockout mouse models have been constructed.^{12, 13, 14} All these three models developed early postpartum cataract. Histological analysis revealed that the nucleus and some cellular organelles of the secondary fiber cell persisted and the number of the epithelial cell increased. Associated with the altered biological processes, expression levels of the Hsf4 target genes were significantly changed. These genes include the ones encoding heat shock proteins (Hsp70, Hsp60 and Hsp27), diverse types of γ-crystallins, various forms of fibroblast growth factors or the cognate receptor (FGF1, 2, 4, 7 and FGFR1), the beaded filament proteins (Bfsp1/2)^{12, 13, 14} and several other target genes (SKAP2, Vimentin).^{15, 16} Besides the knockout models, the HSF4 p.Arg116His mutation and the Hsf4(exon1)-DBD-EGFP hybrid gene transgenic mouse models have also been constructed. Both models developed postnatal lamellar cataract, which is similar to the phenotype caused by the mutations in the DBD of human HSF4 gene.^{17, 18} These transgenic mice provide excellent models to study the lamellar cataract. Together, these studies revealed important functional aspects of the HSF4 gene. However, the exact mechanisms by which Hsf4 regulates lens development and whose mutations cause cataract still remain largely unknown.

Lens differentiation is a process through which an epithelial cell containing a full spectrum of cellular organelles is converted into a fiber cell characterized by the accumulation of high concentrations of lens-specific proteins and the loss of essential organelles.¹⁹ Recent studies demonstrated that lens differentiation is regulated by the same set of regulators responsible for the control of apoptosis.^{19, 20} These regulators include the tumor suppressor p53,^{21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28} Bcl-2 family members,^{25, 29, 30, 31, 46} Tumor suppressor p53 has been implicated in regulating lens development. During mouse lens development, the expression of p53/Mdm2 was spatiotemporally regulated.²⁴ Loss of p53 activity through expression of viral genes or the endogenous gene knockout induces posterior subcapsular cataracts.^{21, 47, 48} Besides, overexpressing human p53 in mouse lens led to microphthalmia.²² At the molecular level, p53 has been shown to regulate both major lens transcription factors c-Maf, Prox-1²⁶ and differentiation-related crystalline genes.^{49, 50} In addition, p53 regulates numerous apoptotic genes, some of which are implicated in regulating lens differentiation. For example, Fas and Bax mediate both extrinsic and intrinsic death pathways, which are merged to activate the downstream executional caspase3. It has been discovered that caspase3 is a key regulator of lens development.^{29, 30, 31, Full size image}

hsf4 knockout in zebrafish causes early-onset cataract

A slit lamp examination of the hsf4^null zebrafish eye revealed clear presence of cataract formation at different stages including 2M, 3M and 12M (Figure 2a). By 12M, the hsf4^null zebrafish lens became completely opaque (Figure 2a). In contrast, the WT lenses were transparent at all ages examined (Figure 2a). Defects in degenerating organelles are major causes of cataract. Thus, by observing denucleation status we can detect the onset of this defect. Using semiquantitative reverse transcription and polymerase chain reaction, we first determined that hsf4 was highly expressed in eyes at 48 hpf (Supplementary Figure 1). Shortly after that, denucleation began at 50 hpf, indicating that hsf4 was critically important in this process. Consistent with the expression pattern, no significant difference was observed between WT and hsf4^null zebrafish before 48 hpf. After 2 dpf, great differences have been discovered. The WT zebrafish completed denucleation of the primary fiber cells before 3 dpf, and the secondary fiber cells successfully disintegrated their nuclei. In contrast, in hsf4^null zebrafish lens, almost all the primary fiber cells in the lens core contained nuclei at 3 dpf. By 5 dpf, there were some nuclei still remaining in the lens core. The denucleation of the primary fiber cells eventually completed at 7 dpf, which indicated that the denucleation of the primary fiber cells was delayed but not abrogated when hsf4 was deleted (Figure 2b).

The denucleation of the secondary fiber cells seemed more severely affected within hsf4^null zebrafish. By the ages of 2 and 6M, we discovered that most of the fiber cells in hsf4^null lens contained intact nuclei, which were deposited together and even reached the most inner part of the lens. In the WT lens, however, the denucleation of the fiber cells was normal for we could only detect nuclei in the superficial differentiating fiber cells (Figure 2e). To our surprise, we found some spherical nuclei in the secondary fiber cells (Figures 2c–e). When the lens fiber cell differentiation initiates, nuclei start to elongate and become ovoid. Studies in bovine and chicken revealed that the volume and shape of the nuclei changed during disintegration.^{55, 56} Normally, the breakdown of the nucleus is a very rapid process; thus, the degenerating spherical nuclei are seldom found. The spherical nuclei we detected in the hsf4^null lens maybe the fiber cells that were about to degrade. As the hsf4^null lens contained an overwhelming majority of secondary fiber cells with ovoid nuclei, we reasoned that only a small proportion of the secondary fiber cells could disintegrate their nuclei in an hsf4-independent manner. Without hsf4, the denucleation of the secondary fiber cells appeared to come to a standstill.

hsf4 loss interrupts terminal differentiation of Zebrafish lens fiber cells

Previous research discovered that nuclei were preserved in the differentiating fiber cells as confirmed in hsf4^null zebrafish; it is not clear whether the cellular non-nucleus organelles are also preserved in hsf4 knockouts. Thus, we performed transmission electron microscopy of 5-M-old hsf4^null and WT zebrafish. As shown in Figure 3Af, the WT lens fiber cells were transparent and organelle-free, i.e., no dark stained structures interfering with the focusing of inside structure. In contrast, the fiber cells of the hsf4^null zebrafish contained intact organelles, mitochondria, endosome and lysosome besides nuclei, suggesting that organelle degradation was also interrupted without hsf4 (Figure 3Aa–e). In the inner part of the lens, we could also detect intact nucleus (Figure 3Ac) and also observed that the connection between cortical lens fiber cells was loose (Figure 3Aa and b. In addition, the mutant fiber cells contained clustered vesicular structures (Figure 3Ad and e). These structures were early endosome, late endosome (LE) and LE–lysosome fusion body as observed from enlarged figures (Figure 3c). Usually, LE will be degraded when it is translocated to and fused with lysosome at the perinuclear region. In the hsf4^null zebrafish lens, however, the deposited endosomes were mislocalized and left undegraded. Together, our study clearly revealed that the non-nucleus organelle degradation was also interrupted in the hsf4^null lens fiber cells.

hsf4 loss interrupts balanced cell proliferation and differentiation, which leads to pathological lens fiber architecture in Zebrafish lens

To testify whether the number of the lens epithelium cell was also increased in hsf4^null zebrafish, we performed paraffin section and DAPI staining on 5-M-old zebrafish. Under microscopy observation, we confirmed that the epithelial cells were overproliferated. In adult lens, the proliferation activity at the central region of the lens epithelium is extremely low; thus, overproliferation was more obvious and significant in the germinal zone (Supplementary Figure 2).

We performed frozen section and phalloidin staining to determine whether the overproliferated cells at the germinal zone would produce excessive number of lens fiber cells. Under microscopy observation, we found that the fiber cell was labeled with phalloidin immunofluorescence, forming a hexagonal fluorescence circle. However, these circles stack together to generate a regular structure (Supplementary Figure 4). The WT lenses from every time point we checked displayed the regular arrangement pattern. In contrast, notable differences showed in hsf4^null lenses. Compared with the WT lens, the fluorescence signals in hsf4^null lens were denser but well organized at 2M, suggesting that more fiber cells existed in hsf4^null lens (Figure 4a). At 6M, the standard arrangement pattern was severely interrupted (Figure 4b). By the age of 8M, the signals almost completely disappeared (Figure 4c). In addition, we could also find some nuclei mislocalized in the anterior region of the 6 and 8M hsf4^null lenses. The above findings indicated that the arrangement of the fiber cells was disturbed (Figures 4b and c). Together, these results suggest that the overproliferation of the lens epithelial cells contributes to the excessive accumulation of fiber cells in the hsf4^null lens with age, which causes chaotic arrangement of the fiber cells in the limited space, leading to cataractogenesis.

HSF4-governed p53 stability and nuclear localization are essential to activate the Fas-mediated apoptotic signaling pathway

Continued with our previous research, we further investigated the roles of HSF4 and p53 in fiber cell differentiation. Firstly, we confirmed that HSF4 could stabilize p53 in human lens epithelial cell lines (HLECs). As expected, cells expressing GFP-HSF4 showed a stark enrichment of endogenous p53 in the nuclei (Figure 5a). Moreover, the endogenous p53 was predominantly localized in nuclei in a diffused pattern in cells transfected with GFP vector. In contrast, p53 was more focused and oriented in the nuclei but not in the cytoplasm of the cells expressing GFP-HSF4 fusion protein (Figure 5a). Western blot analysis of p53 levels in the separated nuclear and cytoplasmic fractions confirmed our immunofluorescence data (Figure 5b). On the other hand, p53 was obviously decreased in the nucleus when HSF4 was silenced using either of two HSF4-specific siRNAs (Figure 5c).

As previous studies have revealed that apoptotic regulators are implicated in regulation of lens differentiation, we tested Fas and Bax, two target genes of p53 that encode proteins mediating extrinsic and intrinsic apoptotic pathways. First, through real-time PCR analysis, we found out that both Fas and Bax were significantly upregulated when HSF4 was overexpressed in HLECs (Figure 6a). In contrast, if HSF4 was silenced both Fas and Bax mRNA were significantly decreased (Figure 6b). Western blot results confirmed the changes of Fas and Bax at the protein level parallel with them at the mRNA level (Figures 6d–g). In addition, we noticed that the executor caspase3 was significantly activated in the cells expressing GFP-HSF4 compared with GFP control (Figure 6d). Consistent with this observation, the cleaved-caspase3 was decreased when we silenced HSF4 in HLECs (Figure 5f). Second, we determined whether HSF4-mediated upregulation of Fas and Bax was p53-dependent. To do so, the p53-null H1299 cells were transiently transfected with GFP vector or GFP-HSF4 fusion protein expression constructs. After 48 h, these cells were harvested for real-time PCR and western blot analysis. The results showed that both Fas and Bax were not altered at either mRNA or protein level (Figures 6c and h). Increased activation of caspase3 could not be detected in H1299 cells expressing GFP-HSF4 (Figure 6h). Thus, our results demonstrated that the activation of the Fas-mediated apoptotic signaling pathway by HSF4 was p53-dependent.

hsf4 loss can be partially rescued by overexpression of hsf4, p53 and fas

As HSF4 can regulate p53 stability and control Fas and Bax in a p53-dependent manner, we next sought to determine the functions of HSF4 regulation of p53 and its downstream target genes in governing lens development. To do so, we extracted proteins from hsf4^null and WT zebrafish lenses. Western blot analysis revealed that p53 was significantly downregulated in hsf4^null lens (Figures 7a and b). As p53 was downregulated, the activation of caspase3 was also significantly decreased, whereas the protein level of procaspase3 was not affected at two different time points we tested (Figures 7a and b). Together, these results demonstrated that HSF4 can induce caspase activation by stabilizing p53 in vivo.

To further test the functions of HSF4-controlled p53 and its target gene in regulating lens differentiation, we overexpressed these genes to determine whether they can rescue the denucleation defect in hsf4^null lens. To do so, we collected hsf4^null embryos and performed microinjection using hsf4, p53 and fas mRNA. As we have shown that the hsf4^null zebrafish displayed obvious defects in degrading the nuclei of the lens fiber cells after 3 dpf, we collected the injected embryos at 3 and 5d. Through frozen section and DAPI staining, we found that hsf4, p53 and fas could partially rescue the denucleation defect in hsf4^null lens (Figure 7c). These results demonstrated that hsf4 can regulate lens fiber cell differentiation by regulating p53 and its downstream apoptotic regulators.

Discussion

By constructing and analyzing the hsf4^null zebrafish, we demonstrated the following: (1) hsf4^null zebrafish develops an early-onset cataract and the pathologic condition remained with age; (2) the overproliferation of the lens epithelial cells contributes to excessive accumulation of the lens fiber cells, which interrupt lens normal arrangement pattern and lead to cataractogenesis; (3) at the cellular level, the denucleation of the primary fiber cell is much delayed in hsf4^null lens, and this becomes even more severe in the differentiation progress of secondary fiber cells. Both nuclei and other cellular organelles including mitochondria, endosome and lysosome cannot be disintegrated. This is another reason for cataractogenesis; (4) at the molecular level, by stabilizing p53, HSF4 can regulate both extrinsic and intrinsic apoptotic pathways to mediate its control of lens differentiation. Loss of HSF4 leads to downregulation of p53, inactivation of the p53-dependent death with clear attenuation of caspase3 activation and eventual halt of the lens differentiation. Together, our results reveal a fundamental mechanism by which HSF4 controls normal lens development and prevents cataractogenesis.

HSF4 is a major factor governing lens differentiation

The hsf4^null zebrafish developed an early-onset cataract with multiple defects as we summarized above. However, while the studies from the laboratories of both Nakai¹² and Mivechi¹³ reported clear microphthalmia, we did not notice any obvious changes in eye size. Our results are consistent with the Hsf4^null mouse model reported by Hu¹⁴ and the transgenic mouse models.^{17, 18} We noticed that the two models with microphthalmia were generated from C57Bl/6 mice, whereas the mouse models with normal eye size were generated from S129 mice. We speculate that the difference of the genetic background causes inconsistency in the observed eye size. Of course, other possibilities could not be ruled out.

It is noteworthy that besides the nuclei and mitochondria, we found other membrane-bound organelles, including endosomes and lysosomes, persisting in hsf4^null lens. Under normal conditions, the matured LEs translocate to and fuse with lysosome at perinucleus regions to proceed to the unidirectional degradative pathway. Without hsf4, the LEs and lysosomes were mislocated. When the distribution of endosome and lysosome disperses throughout the cytoplasm, the degradation activity will be affected. Our previous studies have shown that HSF4 can upregulate lysosome activity in HLECs.⁵⁷ Furthermore, the p53 and Bax could increase the lysosome membrane permeabilization to trigger cell death. Thus, the accumulation of matured LE in the hsf4^null lens might be caused by the decreased activity of lysosome. However, the exact mechanisms of why the distribution of the endosomes becomes dispersal and how hsf4 affects this process remain to be further investigated.

HSF4 stabilizes its key function mediator p53 to regulate lens differentiation at different levels

The balanced p53 activity in the ocular lens is essential for normal lens development. In ocular lens, HSF4 is one of the key factors to stabilize p53. It does so in different ways. First, HSF4 can stabilize p53 through the direct interaction with each other.⁵² Secondly, HSF4 relies on its target gene products αB-crystallin and vimentin to stabilize p53.¹⁶ αB-crystallin can interact with p53 to stabilize the later.⁵⁸ The HSF4-regulated upregulation of p53 can initiate cell apoptosis signaling, leading to the apoptotic cleavage of vimentin. The cleavage of vimentin leads to the release of cytosolic p53 for nuclear translocation, thus stabilizing p53 and amplifying cell death signal.⁵⁹ Finally, HSF4 can stabilize p53 through p53 target genes. The HSF4 target, αB-crystallin gene, is also regulated by p53 and αB-crystallin can interact with p53 to stabilize the later.⁵⁸

HSF4 regulates p53-mediated extrinsic and intrinsic death pathways to control lens differentiation

It has been well documented that the same set of regulators can be used for control of both apoptosis and lens differentiation.^{19, 20} In this regard, the HSF4-stabilized p53 has an important role. First, p53 can regulate major lens transcription factors such as C-Maf and Prox-1 to promote lens differentiation.²⁶ Second, it directly regulates the differentiation-related genes including members of the α-, β- and γ-crystallin genes.^{49, 50, 58} The promoted expression of β- and γ-crystallin genes are symbols of lens differentiation, thus hel** cell maturation in lens fiber. In addition, p53 can regulate a large of number apoptosis regulators. Among these regulators, Bcl-2, Bax and Bak are members of the intrinsic death pathways, which have been shown to participate in lens differentiation.^{29, 30, 31, Cell culture, plasmids, transfection and small interfering RNA}

The HLEC and the human lung carcinoma cell line (H1299) we used in this study were cultured in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium (DMEM, Gibco, Grand Island, NY, USA) containing 10% fetal bovine serum (FBS, Gibco). The plasmids we used to express human HSF4 and p53 have been illustrated in our published work.53 To construct the zebrafish hsf4 eukaryotic expression vector, we extracted total RNA from the zebrafish lens. Through the reverse transcription, we obtained cDNA of the zebrafish lens. Using the lens cDNA as a template, we got the whole-lens zebrafish hsf4. After we got the zebrafish hsf4, we cloned it into the p3XFLAG-CMV-7.1 vector. Plasmids were transfected into HLECs and H1299 cells with Lipofectamine 3000 Reagent (Thermo Fisher, Wilmington, DE, USA) in Opti-MEMI Reduced SerumMedium (Gibco) and incubated for 6 h. After 48 h, cells were harvested for RNA and protein extraction. HSF4-specific interfering RNA was purchased from RiboBio, Guangzhou, China. The HSF4 siRNA duplexes were as follows: No1: 5′-GCAAGCUGAUCCAGUGUCU-3′ and No2: 5′-CGCCAACUCAACAUGUACG-3′. Stealth RNAi-negative control (NC) was used as a NC. The exact procedures for HSF4 silencing were performed as we have illustrated in our published paper; overexpression and knockdown of various genes were conducted as described before.⁵²

Real-time PCR

Total RNAs were extracted from the cultured cells using RNAiso Plus reagent (Takara, Kusatsu, Japan). The RNA (1 μg) was reverse-transcribed into cDNA using MMLV reverse transcriptase (Invitrogen) andoligo(dT) primer (Takara). We took these cDNAs as templates to detect the mRNA levels of the specified genes by quantitative PCR, which were performed on the StepOnePlus real-time PCR System (Life Technologies, Carlsbad, CA, USA) using AceQ qPCR SYBR Green Master Mix (Vazyme, Nan**g, China). The data were analyzed using the 2ΔΔCT method in the StepOne software (version 2.3, ABI, Carlsbad, CA, USA). Significance was determined by two-tailed Student’s t-test.

Following primers have been used for the RT-PCT study:

HSF4: 5′-GAGATACCTGACAGGGGGCCTCTG-3′ and 5′-GGAACCAAGGGCTGCATCAAGGAC-3′,

p53: 5′-GGCCCATCCTCACCATCATCACA-3′ and 5′-TGCGCCGGTCTCTCCCAGGA-3′,

Fas: 5′-GGCTTTGTCTGTCTCCT-3′ and 5′-CCTACCTCTGGTTCTTACGT-3′,

Bax: 5′-GAAGTCCAATGTCCAGCCCA-3′ and 5′-AGTGTCTCAAGCGCATCGGG-3′,

Actin: 5′-TGACGTGGACATCCGCAAAG-3′ and 5′-CTGGAAGGTGGACAGCGAGG-3′.

Frozen section

The eyeballs were isolated from the adult zebrafish and were fixed in the 4% paraformaldehyde (diluted in PBS) immediately. The eyes could be fixed at room temperature for 4–6 h or at 4 °C overnight. For the next step, we washed the tissue with PBS for three times and 15 min each time. The sucrose was diluted to a final concentration of 30% in the PBS. The zebrafish eyeballs were dehydrated in the 30% sucrose solution overnight at 4 °C. The tissue settled down at the bottom of the tubes when the dehydration was completed. And then, we embedded the eyeball in the OCT compound and then frozen them at −25 °C. Embedded tissues were sliced along the vertical meridian of each eyeball and sectioned each slice to 20 μm thickness. For the small fish that was <10 days of age, the whole body was fixed for the frozen section and each slice was 8 μm thick.

Immunofluorescence and DAPI staining

We performed immunofluorescence on the cryosections and the cultured cells. For the cryosections, they were dried at room temperature to protect them from being detached. For the next step, the sections were washed with PBS for 10 min to remove the OCT compound, permeabilized in PDT (PBS containing 1% DMSO and 0.1% Triton X-100) for 10 min and blocked with 10% normal goat serum in PBDT (PDT containing 1% BSA) for 1 h at room temperature. The Alexa Fluor 568 phalloidin (Invitrogen) was diluted with PBS at the ratio of 1 : 50. The diluted phalloidin was added onto the slides and then incubated for 2 h at 37 °C. The slides were washed three times with PBS. DAPI was used to label the nucleus at the concentration of 5 μg/ml. The sections were then rinsed three times with PBS, and mounted with a glycerol-based liquid mountant under coverslips. For the cultured cells, we washed the cells with PBS for three times to remove the medium and fixed them in 4% paraformaldehyde and permeabilized with 0.5% Triton X-100 for 15 min. The cells were blocked for 1 h at the room temperature with 5% BSA in PBS and then incubated with p53 primary antibody (1 : 100, Proteintech, Wuhan, China) overnight at 4 °C. Afterward we removed the primary antibody through washing them with PBS for three times. The cells were incubated with the secondary antibody conjugated with Alexa Fluorescence 568 (1 : 1000, Invitrogen, Carlsbad, CA, USA) in 37 °C for 1 h. Nuclei were stained with DAPI (1 : 5000, Sigma, St. Louis, MO, USA). Fluorescence images were acquired using a confocal laser-scanning microscope (FluoView FV1000 confocal microscope, Olympus Imaging, Tokyo, Japan).

Transmission electron microscopy

Adult zebrafish eyes were isolated and fixed in 2.5% glutaraldehyde in 0.1 M PBS buffer (pH 7.0) overnight at 4 °C. After three washes (15 min each) with 0.1 M PBS buffer, the eyes were further fixed in 1% osmium tetroxide in 0.1 M PBS buffer for 2 h at room temperature. After three washes (15 min each) with 0.1 MPBS buffer, the eyes were dehydrated in 50, 70, 80, 90, 95 and 100% ethanol successively (20 min each) and incubated in acetone for 20 min at room temperature. The eyes were treated with 50% (1 h), 75% (3 h) and 100% (overnight) epoxy resin (mixed with acetone, v/v), and then heated at 70 °C overnight. Embedded eyes were sliced to ultrathin sections (70 nm) using an Reichert-Jung ultramicrotome (Leica, Wetzlar, Germany). Sections were stained with 3% uranyl acetate and 3% lead citrate for 15 min and were visualized with a transmission electron microscope system (HT7700, Hitachi, Tokyo, Japan).

Western blot

For the cultured cells and the lens isolated from the eyeballs, both were lysed in RIPA cell lysis buffer (Beyotime, Shanghai, China) with cocktail protease inhibitor (Roche, Basel, Switzerland). After the ultrasonic decomposition and centrifugation, the protein extraction was completed. Protein concentration was determined using the BCA Protein Assay Kit (Beyotime). We mixed the protein lysates with loading buffer and boiled them for 10 min at 100 °C. And then, we placed the protein samples on the ice for 3 min before loading. The protein samples were separated by 12% SDS-PAGE and transferred to nitrocellulose membranes (Millipore, Danvers, MA, USA). Then, we blocked the membranes in the 5% skim milk dissolved in TBST buffer (20 mM Tris–HCl, 150 mM NaCl, 0.05% Tween 20, pH 7.6) for 1 h at the room temperature. For the next step, we washed the membranes with TBST buffer and incubated them with the diluted solution of primary antibodies overnight at 4 °C with gentle agitation. And then we washed the membranes with TBST buffer three times for 5 min each time. To visualize the result, we incubated the membranes in HRP-conjugated secondary antibodies (1 : 20 000; Thermo, Wilmington, DE, USA) for 2 h at room temperature. After incubation, the membranes were washed for another three times (5 min each time) with TBST buffer. The signals were detected using a ChemiDoc XRS (Bio-Rad Laboratories, Berkeley, CA, USA), with Super Signal Sensitivity Substrate (Thermo), and quantified with Quantity One software (Bio-Rad Laboratories, Berkeley, CA, USA).

Statistical analysis

All experiments were repeated at least three times. Significance was determined by two-tailed Student’s t-test.

Publisher’s Note:

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

References

Silvio P Mariotti. Global Data on Visual Impairments. WHO: Geneva, 2012, pp. 1–17.
Google Scholar
Hejtmancik JF . Congenital cataracts and their molecular genetics. Semin Cell Dev Biol 2008; 19: 134–149.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Shiels A, Bennett TM, Hejtmancik JF . Cat-Map: putting cataract on the map. Mol Vis 2010; 16: 2007–2015.
CAS PubMed PubMed Central Google Scholar
Shiels A, Hejtmancik JF . Mutations and mechanisms in congenital and age-related cataracts. Exp Eye Res 2017; 156: 95–102.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Bu L, ** Y, Shi Y, Chu R, Ban A . Mutant DNA-binding domain of HSF4 is associated with autosomal dominant lamellar and Marner cataract. Nat Genet 2002; 31: 276–278.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Morimoto RI . Cells in stress: transcriptional activation of heat shock genes. Science 1993; 259: 1409–1410.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Morimoto RI . Regulation of the heat shock transcriptional response: cross talk between a family of heat shock factors, molecular chaperones, and negative regulators. Genes Dev 1998; 12: 3788–3796.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Akerfelt M, Trouillet D, Mezger V, Sistonen L . Heat shock factors at a crossroad between stress and development. Ann NY Acad Sci 2007; 1113: 15–27.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Nakai A, Tanabe M, Kawazoe Y, Inazawa J, Morimoto RI, Nagata K . HSF4, a new member of the human heat shock factor family which lacks properties of a transcriptional activator. Mol Cell Biol 1997; 17: 469–481.
CAS PubMed PubMed Central Google Scholar
Tanabe M, Sasai N, Nagata K, Liu XD, Liu PC, Thiele DJ et al. The mammalian HSF4 gene generates both an activator and a repressor of heat shock genes by alternative splicing. J Biol Chem 1999; 274: 27845–27856.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Somasundaram T, Bhat SP . Developmentally dictated expression of heat shock factors: exclusive expression of HSF4 in the postnatal lens and its specific interaction with alphaB-crystallin heat shock promoter. J Biol Chem 2004; 279: 44497–44503.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Fujimoto M, Izu H, Seki K, Fukuda K, Nishida T . HSF4 is required for normal cell growth and differentiation during mouse lens development. EMBO J 2004; 23: 4297–4306.
CAS PubMed PubMed Central Google Scholar
Min J, Zhang Y, Moskophidis D, Mivechi NF . Unique contribution of heat shock transcription factor 4 in ocular lens development and fiber cell differentiation. Genesis 2004; 40: 205–217.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Shi X, Cui B, Wang Z, Weng L, Xu Z . Removal of Hsf4 leads to cataract development in mice through down-regulation of γS-crystallin and Bfsp expression. BMC Mol Biol 2009; 10: 10.
PubMed PubMed Central Google Scholar
Zhou L, Zhang Z, Zheng Y, Zhu Y, Wei Z, Xu H et al. SKAP2, a novel target of HSF4b, associates with NCK2/F-actin at membrane ruffles and regulates actin reorganization in lens cell. J Cell Mol Med 2011; 15: 783–795.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Mou L, Xu JY, Li W, Lei X, Wu Y, Xu G et al. Identification of vimentin as a novel target of HSF4 in lens development and cataract by proteomic analysis. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 2010; 51: 396–404.
PubMed Google Scholar
**g Z, Gangalum RK, Bhat AM, Nagaoka Y, Jiang M, Bhat SP . HSF4 mutation p.Arg116His found in age-related cataracts and in normal populations produces childhood lamellar cataract in transgenic mice. Hum Mutat 2014; 35: 1068–1071.
CAS PubMed PubMed Central Google Scholar
Gangalum RK, **g Z, Bhat AM, Lee J, Nagaoka Y, Deng SX et al. Expression of the HSF4 DNA binding domain-EGFP hybrid gene recreates early childhood lamellar cataract in transgenic mice. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 2014; 55: 7227–7240.
CAS PubMed PubMed Central Google Scholar
Yan Q, Liu J, Wan-Cheng LiD . Apoptosis in lens development and pathology. Differentiation 2006; 74: 195–211.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Dahm R . Lens fibre cell differentiation - a link with apoptosis? Ophthalmic Res 1999; 31: 163–183.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Pan H, Griep AE . Altered cell cycle regulation in the lens of HPV-16 E6 or E7 transgenic mice: implications for tumor suppressor gene function in development. Genes Dev 1994; 8: 1285–1299.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Nakamura T, Pichel JG, Williamssimons L, Westphal H . An apoptotic defect in lens differentiation caused by human p53 is rescued by a mutant allele. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 1995; 92: 6142–6146.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Pan H, Griep AE . Temporally distinct patterns of p53-dependent and p53-independent apoptosis during mouse lens development. Genes Dev 1995; 9: 2157–2169.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Geatrell JC, Mui Iryn Gan P, Mansergh FC, Kisiswa L, Jarrin M, Williams LA et al. Apoptosis gene profiling reveals spatio-temporal regulated expression of the p53/Mdm2 pathway during lens development. Exp Eye Res 2009; 88: 1137–1151.
CAS PubMed PubMed Central Google Scholar
Deng M, Chen P, Liu F, Fu S, Tang H, Fu Y et al. The p53-Bak apoptotic signaling axis plays an essential role in regulating differentiation of the ocular lens. Curr Mol Med 2012; 12: 901–916.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Liu FY, Tang XC, Deng M, Chen P, Ji W, Zhang X et al. The tumor suppressor p53 regulates c-Maf and Prox-1 to control lens differentiation. Curr Mol Med 2012; 12: 917–928.
PubMed Google Scholar
Wang WL, Li Q, Xu J, Cvekl A . Lens fiber cell differentiation and denucleation are disrupted through expression of the N-terminal nuclear receptor box of NCOA6 and result in p53-dependent and p53-independent apoptosis. Mol Biol Cell 2010; 21: 2453–2468.
CAS PubMed PubMed Central Google Scholar
Babizhayev MA, Li DW, Kasus JA, Zoric L, Alió JL (eds). Roles of p53 in Ocular Development and Pathogenesis. Studies on the Cornea and Lens. Chapter 15, Springer Publisher, Inc,: NY, USA, p275–285..
Fromm L, Overbeek PA . Inhibition of cell death by lens-specific overexpression of bcl-2 in transgenic mice. Dev Genet 1997; 20: 276–287.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Wride MA, Parker E, Sanders EJ . Members of the bcl-2 and caspase families regulate nuclear degeneration during chick lens fibre differentiation. Dev Biol 1999; 213: 142–156.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Sanders EJ, Parker E . Retroviral overexpression of bcl-2 in the embryonic chick lens influences denucleation in differentiating lens fiber cells. Differentiation 2003; 71: 425–433.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Mao Y, Liu J, **ang H, Li DW . Human αA- and αB-crystallins bind to Bax and Bcl-XS to sequester their translocation during staurosporine-induced apoptosis. Cell Death Differ 2004; 11: 512–526.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Weber GF, Menko AS . The canonical intrinsic mitochondrial death pathway has a non-apoptotic role in signaling lens cell differentiation. J Biol Chem 2005; 280: 22135–22145.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Ishizaki Y, Jacobson MD, Raff MC . A role for caspases in lens fiber differentiation. J Cell Biol 1998; 140: 153–158.
CAS PubMed PubMed Central Google Scholar
Li DW, **ang H, Mao YW, Wang J . Caspase-3 is a major caspase mediating apoptosis during rat lens development and cataract formation. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 41: S323.
Li DW, **ang H, Mao Y, Wang J, Fass U, Zhang X et al. Caspase-3 is actively involved in okadaic acid-induced lens epithelial cell apoptosis. Exp Cell Res 2001; 266: 279–291.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Lee A, Morrow JS, Fowler VM . Caspase remodeling of the spectrin membrane skeleton during lens development and aging. J Biol Chem 2001; 276: 20735–20742.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Foley JD, Rosenbaum H, Griep AE . Temporal regulation of VEID-7-amino-4-trifluoromethylcoumarin cleavage activity and caspase-6 correlates with organelle loss during lens development. J Biol Chem 2004; 279: 32142–32150.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Morozov V . Caspase-dependent secondary lens fiber cell disintegration in A-/ B-crystallin double-knockout mice. Development 2006; 133: 813–821.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Yamashita M, Mizusawa N, Hojo M, Yabu T . Extensive apoptosis and abnormal morphogenesis in pro-caspase-3 transgenic zebrafish during development. J Exp Biol 2008; 211: 1874–1881.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Liu J, Schlosser R, Ma W, Dong Z, Feng H, Liu L et al. Human αA- and αB-crystallins prevent UVA-induced apoptosis through regulation of PKCα, RAF/MEK/ERK and AKT signaling pathways. Exp Eye Res 2004; 79: 393–403.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Mehlen P, Kretz-Remy C, Preville X, Arrigo AP . Human hsp27, Drosophila hsp27 and human alphaB-crystallin expression-mediated increase in glutathione is essential for the protective activity of these proteins against TNFalpha-induced cell death. EMBO J 1996; 15: 2695–2706.
CAS PubMed PubMed Central Google Scholar
Mehlen P, Schulze-Osthoff K, Arrigo AP . Small stress proteins as novel regulators of apoptosis. Heat shock protein 27 blocks Fas/APO-1- and staurosporine-induced cell death. J Biol Chem 1996; 271: 16510.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Andley UP, Song Z, Wawrousek EF, Fleming TP, Bassnett S . Differential protective activity of αA- and αB-crystallin in lens epithelial cells. J Biol Chem 2000; 275: 36823–36831.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Li DW, Liu JP, Mao YW, **ang H, Wang J, Ma WY et al. Calcium-activated RAF/MEK/ERK signaling pathway mediates p53-dependent apoptosis and is abrogated by alpha B-crystallin through inhibition of RAS activation. Mol Biol Cell 2005; 16: 4437–4453.
CAS PubMed PubMed Central Google Scholar
Wride MA, Sanders EJ . Nuclear degeneration in the develo** lens and its regulation by TNFα. Exp Eye Res 1998; 66: 371–383.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Wiley LA, Rajagopal R, Dattilo LK, Beebe DC . The tumor suppressor gene Trp53 protects the mouse lens against posterior subcapsular cataracts and the BMP receptor Acvr1 acts as a tumor suppressor in the lens. Dis Model Mech 2011; 4: 484–495.
CAS PubMed PubMed Central Google Scholar
Reichel MB, Ali RR, D'Esposito F, Clarke AR, Luthert PJ, Bhattacharya SS et al. High frequency of persistent hyperplastic primary vitreous and cataracts in p53-deficient mice. Cell Death Differ 1998; 5: 156–162.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Ji WK, Tang XC, Yi M, Chen PQ, Liu FY, Hu XH et al. p53 directly regulates alphaA- and betaA3/A1-crystallin genes to modulate lens differentiation. Curr Mol Med 2013; 13: 968–978.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Hu XH, Nie Q, Yi M, Li TT, Wang ZF, Huang ZX et al. The tumor suppressor, p53 regulates the gammaA-crystallin gene during mouse lens development. Curr Mol Med 2014; 14: 1197–1204.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Zandy AJ . Role of the executioner caspases during lens development. J Biol Chem 2005; 280: 30263–30272.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Huang M, Li D, Huang Y, Cui X, Liao S, Wang J et al. HSF4 promotes G1/S arrest in human lens epithelial cells by stabilizing p53. Biochim Biophys Acta 2015; 1853: 1808–1817.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Doyle EL, Booher NJ, Standage DS, Voytas DF, Brendel VP, VanDyk JK et al. TAL Effector-Nucleotide Targeter (TALE-NT) 2.0: tools for TAL effector design and target prediction. Nucleic Acids Res 2012; 40: W117–W122.
CAS PubMed PubMed Central Google Scholar
Swan CL, Evans TG, Sylvain N, Krone PH . Zebrafish HSF4: a novel protein that shares features of both HSF1 and HSF4 of mammals. Cell Stress Chaperones 2012; 17: 623–637.
CAS PubMed PubMed Central Google Scholar
Dahm R, Gribbon C, Quinlan RA, Prescott AR . Changes in the nucleolar and coiled body compartments precede lamina and chromatin reorganization during fibre cell denucleation in the bovine lens. Eur J Cell Biol 1998; 75: 237–246.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Sanwal M, Muel AS, Chaudun E, Courtois Y, Counis MF . Chromatin condensation and terminal differentiation process in embryonic chicken lens in vivo and in vitro. Exp Cell Res 1986; 167: 429–439.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Cui X, Liu H, Li J, Guo K, Han W, Dong Y et al. Heat shock factor 4 regulates lens epithelial cell homeostasis by working with lysosome and anti-apoptosis pathways. Int J Biochem Cell Biol 2016; 79: 118–127.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Watanabe G, Kato S, Nakata H, Ishida T, Ohuchi N, Ishioka C . αB-crystallin: a novel p53-target gene required for p53-dependent apoptosis. Cancer Sci 2009; 100: 2368–2375.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Yang X, Wang J, Liu C, Grizzle WE, Yu S, Zhang S et al. Cleavage of p53-vimentin complex enhances tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand-mediated apoptosis of rheumatoid arthritis synovial fibroblasts. Am J Pathol 2005; 167: 705–719.
CAS PubMed PubMed Central Google Scholar
Hueber A, Eichholtz CD, Kociok N, Esser JM, Esser PJ . Lens epithelial cells express CD95 and CD95 ligand treatment induces cell death and DNA fragmentation in vitro. Eur J Ophthalmol 2003; 13: 241–245.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar
Zhao B, Mei Y, Schipma MJ, Roth EW, Bleher R, Rappoport JZ et al. Nuclear condensation during mouse erythropoiesis requires caspase-3-mediated nuclear opening. Dev Cell 2016; 36: 498–510.
CAS PubMed PubMed Central Google Scholar
Hu WF, Gong L, Cao Z, Ma H, Ji W, Deng M et al. AlphaA- and alphaB-crystallins interact with caspase-3 and Bax to guard mouse lens development. Curr Mol Med 2012; 12: 177–187.
CAS PubMed Google Scholar

Download references

Acknowledgements

We are grateful to Dr. Yanzhong Hu (Henan University, School of Medicine) for the kind gift of HSF4 antibody. This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (nos. 81270983, 81371064, 31471194, 81500762, 81570824 and 81600773), the Fundamental Research Funds of the State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University and the Program of Introducing Talents of Discipline to Universities by Ministry of Education of PR China (B08029).

Author information

Meng Gao, Yuwen Huang and Ling Wang: These authors are joint First Authors.

Authors and Affiliations

Key Laboratory of Molecular Biophysics of Ministry of Education, College of Life Science and Technology, Center for Human Genome Research, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430074, Hubei, China
Meng Gao, Yuwen Huang, Fei Liu, Shanshan Yu, Zhao**g Lu, Shanshan Han, Xuebin Hu, Zhen Qu, **liang Liu, Tinsae Assefa Yimer, Lifang Yang, Zhaohui Tang & Mugen Liu
State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510060, China
Ling Wang & David Wan-Cheng Li
Key Discipline of Pharmacy of Hubei Department of Education, Key Laboratory of Kidney Disease Pathogenesis and Intervention of Hubei Province, Medical College, Hubei Polytechnic University, Huangshi, Hubei 435003, China
Mi Huang & Shengjie Liao

Authors

Meng Gao
View author publications
You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar
Yuwen Huang
View author publications
You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar
Ling Wang
View author publications
You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar
Mi Huang
View author publications
You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar
Fei Liu
View author publications
You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar
Shengjie Liao
View author publications
You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar
Shanshan Yu
View author publications
You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar
Zhao**g Lu
View author publications
You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar
Shanshan Han
View author publications
You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar
Xuebin Hu
View author publications
You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar
Zhen Qu
View author publications
You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar
**liang Liu
View author publications
You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar
Tinsae Assefa Yimer
View author publications
You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar
Lifang Yang
View author publications
You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar
Zhaohui Tang
View author publications
You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar
David Wan-Cheng Li
View author publications
You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar
Mugen Liu
View author publications
You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to David Wan-Cheng Li or Mugen Liu.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Edited by B Zhivotovsky

Supplementary Information accompanies this paper on Cell Death and Disease website

Supplementary information

Supplementary Information (DOCX 4580 kb)

Rights and permissions

Cell Death and Disease is an open-access journal published by Nature Publishing Group. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Gao, M., Huang, Y., Wang, L. et al. HSF4 regulates lens fiber cell differentiation by activating p53 and its downstream regulators. Cell Death Dis 8, e3082 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1038/cddis.2017.478

Download citation

Received: 25 April 2017
Revised: 27 July 2017
Accepted: 17 August 2017
Published: 05 October 2017
Issue Date: October 2017
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/cddis.2017.478
Springer Nature Limited

HSF4 regulates lens fiber cell differentiation by activating p53 and its downstream regulators

Abstract

Similar content being viewed by others

Absence of S100A4 in the mouse lens induces an aberrant retina-specific differentiation program and cataract

p53 Regulates Developmental Apoptosis and Gene Expression to Modulate Lens Differentiation

The cataract-linked RNA-binding protein Celf1 post-transcriptionally controls the spatiotemporal expression of the key homeodomain transcription factors Pax6 and Prox1 in lens development

Main

hsf4 knockout in zebrafish causes early-onset cataract

hsf4 loss interrupts terminal differentiation of Zebrafish lens fiber cells

hsf4 loss interrupts balanced cell proliferation and differentiation, which leads to pathological lens fiber architecture in Zebrafish lens

HSF4-governed p53 stability and nuclear localization are essential to activate the Fas-mediated apoptotic signaling pathway

hsf4 loss can be partially rescued by overexpression of hsf4, p53 and fas

Discussion

HSF4 is a major factor governing lens differentiation

HSF4 stabilizes its key function mediator p53 to regulate lens differentiation at different levels

HSF4 regulates p53-mediated extrinsic and intrinsic death pathways to control lens differentiation

Real-time PCR

Frozen section

Immunofluorescence and DAPI staining

Transmission electron microscopy

Western blot

Statistical analysis

Publisher’s Note:

References

Acknowledgements

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Corresponding authors

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

Additional information

Supplementary information

Supplementary Information (DOCX 4580 kb)

Rights and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Navigation

HSF4 regulates lens fiber cell differentiation by activating p53 and its downstream regulators

Abstract

Similar content being viewed by others

Absence of S100A4 in the mouse lens induces an aberrant retina-specific differentiation program and cataract

p53 Regulates Developmental Apoptosis and Gene Expression to Modulate Lens Differentiation

The cataract-linked RNA-binding protein Celf1 post-transcriptionally controls the spatiotemporal expression of the key homeodomain transcription factors Pax6 and Prox1 in lens development

Main

hsf4 knockout in zebrafish causes early-onset cataract

hsf4 loss interrupts terminal differentiation of Zebrafish lens fiber cells

hsf4 loss interrupts balanced cell proliferation and differentiation, which leads to pathological lens fiber architecture in Zebrafish lens

HSF4-governed p53 stability and nuclear localization are essential to activate the Fas-mediated apoptotic signaling pathway

hsf4 loss can be partially rescued by overexpression of hsf4, p53 and fas

Discussion

HSF4 is a major factor governing lens differentiation

HSF4 stabilizes its key function mediator p53 to regulate lens differentiation at different levels

HSF4 regulates p53-mediated extrinsic and intrinsic death pathways to control lens differentiation

Real-time PCR

Frozen section

Immunofluorescence and DAPI staining

Transmission electron microscopy

Western blot

Statistical analysis

Publisher’s Note:

References

Acknowledgements

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Corresponding authors

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

Additional information

Supplementary information

Supplementary Information (DOCX 4580 kb)

Rights and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Share this article

Search

Navigation