Nuclear talin-1 provides a bridge between cell adhesion and gene expression
Alejandro J. Da Silva,
Hendrik S.E. Hästbacka,
Mikael C. Puustinen,
Jenny C. Pessa,
Jens C. Luoto,
Erika Sundström,
Benjamin T. Goult,
Guillaume Jacquemet,
Eva Henriksson,
Lea Sistonen
Affiliations
Alejandro J. Da Silva
Faculty of Science and Engineering, Cell Biology, Åbo Akademi University, 20520 Turku, Finland; Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, 20520 Turku, Finland
Hendrik S.E. Hästbacka
Faculty of Science and Engineering, Cell Biology, Åbo Akademi University, 20520 Turku, Finland; Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, 20520 Turku, Finland
Mikael C. Puustinen
Faculty of Science and Engineering, Cell Biology, Åbo Akademi University, 20520 Turku, Finland; Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, 20520 Turku, Finland
Jenny C. Pessa
Faculty of Science and Engineering, Cell Biology, Åbo Akademi University, 20520 Turku, Finland; Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, 20520 Turku, Finland
Jens C. Luoto
Faculty of Science and Engineering, Cell Biology, Åbo Akademi University, 20520 Turku, Finland; Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, 20520 Turku, Finland
Erika Sundström
Faculty of Science and Engineering, Cell Biology, Åbo Akademi University, 20520 Turku, Finland; Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, 20520 Turku, Finland
Benjamin T. Goult
Department of Biochemistry, Cell & Systems Biology, Institute of Systems, Molecular and Integrative Biology, University of Liverpool, Crown Street, Liverpool L69 7ZB, UK
Guillaume Jacquemet
Faculty of Science and Engineering, Cell Biology, Åbo Akademi University, 20520 Turku, Finland; Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, 20520 Turku, Finland; InFLAMES Research Flagship Center, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, 20520 Turku, Finland; Turku Bioimaging, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, 20520 Turku, Finland
Eva Henriksson
Faculty of Science and Engineering, Cell Biology, Åbo Akademi University, 20520 Turku, Finland; Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, 20520 Turku, Finland; Corresponding author
Lea Sistonen
Faculty of Science and Engineering, Cell Biology, Åbo Akademi University, 20520 Turku, Finland; Turku Bioscience Centre, University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University, 20520 Turku, Finland; Corresponding author
Summary: Talin-1 (TLN1) is best known to activate integrin receptors and transmit mechanical stimuli to the actin cytoskeleton at focal adhesions. However, the localization of TLN1 is not restricted to focal adhesions. By utilizing both subcellular fractionations and confocal microscopy analyses, we show that TLN1 localizes to the nucleus in several human cell lines, where it is tightly associated with the chromatin. Importantly, small interfering RNA (siRNA)-mediated depletion of endogenous TLN1 triggers extensive changes in the gene expression profile of human breast epithelial cells. To determine the functional impact of nuclear TLN1, we expressed a TLN1 fusion protein containing a nuclear localization signal. Our findings revealed that the accumulation of nuclear TLN1 alters the expression of a subset of genes and impairs the formation of cell-cell clusters. This study introduces an additional perspective on the canonical view of TLN1 subcellular localization and function.