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Neutral endopeptidase (Endopeptidase 24.11; NEP; neprilysin), an integral membrane protein, and villin, a major microvillar cytoskeletal actin-binding protein, are both typically associated with brush border epithelia. In this study, cRNA probes were hybridized in situ to investigate the expression of NEP and villin genes in embryo and adult mouse enterocytes. During development, villin mRNAs were easily detected in the immature digestive tract well before establishment of the brush border. In 17-day-old embryos, a transient elevation of villin mRNA occurred just prior to a dramatic increase in microvilli length and density. NEP only appeared by day 17 as the embryonic gut began to become functional. It therefore appears that the onset of transcription of specialized cytoskeletal proteins from the brush border preceded that of intrinsic membrane-bound enzyme from microvilli. In the adult intestinal fold, both mRNAs were expressed along the whole length of the villus with maximal expression at its base. In contrast, both proteins were uniformly expressed along the whole crypt-villus axis. Quantitative analysis revealed an asymmetric intracellular distribution of both mRNAs that were differentially polarized in the apical cytoplasm of enterocytes.

The actin binding sites of actobindin and thymosin beta 4, two small polypeptides that inhibit actin polymerization by interacting with monomeric actin, have been localized using peptide mimetics. Both sites are functionally similar and extend over 20 residues and are located in the NH2-terminus of the polypeptides. They can be dissected into two functional entities: a conserved hexapeptide motif (LKHAET or LKKTET), which forms the major contact site through electrostatic interactions with actin, and a non-conserved NH2-terminal segment preceding the motif, which exerts the inhibitory activity on actin polymerization probably by steric hindrance. The introduction of a glutamic acid at the third position in the motif, creating LKEAET or LKETET sequences, which are similar to those found in some F-actin binding proteins, converts the peptide's inhibitory phenotype into an F-actin stimulatory property. These results allow the proposal of a simple model for G- to F-actin modulation.

An actin-binding protein of M(r) 105,000 has been isolated from anuran amphibian intestinal mucosa. Polyclonal antibodies directed against chicken and pig intestinal villins and anti-porcine villin headpiece monoclonal antibody crossreact with the amphibian M(r) 105,000 protein. Furthermore, the latter possesses an NH2-terminal sequence that is very homologous to those of avian and mammalian villins. In addition, polyclonal antibodies directed against amphibian intestinal M(r) 105,000 protein crossreact with chicken and mouse intestinal epithelial cell villins. These data indicate that the amphibian intestinal M(r) 105,000 protein is immunologically and structurally related to villin, an actin-binding protein expressed in specific epithelial tissues in vertebrates. Morphological, immunocytochemical and immunoblotting techniques were then used to investigate the expression of villin during embryonic and larval intestinal development of Xenopus laevis. Villin is not found in the egg or the endoderm of the early embryo. It is first detected just before hatching in the apical domain of endodermal cells at a time when few surface microvilli are visible by transmission electron microscopy. In the newly hatched larva, villin accumulates as these cells differentiate. These results provide a detailed developmental profile of Xenopus intestinal villin expression and demonstrate that this protein is a useful marker for the presumptive intestinal endoderm.

The actin-binding protein villin induces microvillus growth and reorganization of the cytoskeleton in cells that do not normally produce this protein. Transfection of mutagenized villin cDNAs into CV-1 cells was used to show that a conserved, COOH-terminally located cluster of charged amino acid residues (KKEK) is crucial for the morphogenic activity of villin in vivo. In vitro experiments with a 22 amino acid synthetic peptide corresponding to this region of villin provide evidence that this motif is part of an F-actin-binding site that induces G-actin to polymerize. Chemical cross-linking of actin to this peptide, the effects of amino acid substitutions in peptides, and the behavior of villin variants further corroborate the participation of the KKEK sequence in actin contacts.

The function of villin, an actin-binding protein, has been investigated by transfecting fibroblasts with cloned human cDNAs encoding wild-type villin or functional villin domains. Synthesis of large amounts of villin induced the growth of numerous long microvilli on cell surfaces together with the redistribution of F-actin. These microvilli contained a cytoskeleton of F-actin, and their appearance was frequently accompanied by the disappearance of stress fibers. The complete villin gene sequence was required to exert its morphogenic effect. Villin lacking one actin-binding domain (113 amino acids), located at its carboxyterminal end, did not induce growth if microvilli or stress fiber disruption. Our results indicate that villin plays a key role in vivo in the morphogenesis of microvilli.

Villin is an evolutionarily well conserved, Ca2+ regulated actin-binding protein, and a major structural component of the brush border of specialized absorptive cells. Using paraffin sections and an affinity purified polyclonal anti-villin antibody, we have investigated the early expression of villin during mouse embryogenesis. Villin is first detectable at the early post-implantation stage in visceral endodermal cells at the periphery of the egg cylinder. In this extra embryonic layer, the expression of villin increases and then persists until full term gestation. In the embryo, villin first appears in gut anlage during the axial rotation. Using the same methodology, villin expression is also demonstrated in differentiating embryoid bodies from a teratocarcinoma. Both in extra embryonic and embryonic extracts, villin expression is confirmed by immunoblot and Northern blot analysis which reveal, respectively, a single polypeptide of 93 kd and an mRNA of 3.4 kb in length, two well defined parameters for adult mouse villin gene expression. The results presented here show that paraffin sections allow very sensitive and highly resolutive detection of antigens in early embryogenesis. They provide a detailed developmental profile of villin expression and demonstrate the usefulness of villin as a marker for epithelial cells involved in absorptive processes.

We have investigated the presence of villin (a Ca2+-regulated actin binding protein) in various tissues (normal or malignant) and in established cell lines by using sensitive immunochemical techniques on cell extracts and immunofluorescence analysis on frozen sections. Our results show that villin is a marker that can be used to distinguish normal differentiated epithelial cells from the simple epithelia lining the gastrointestinal tract and renal tubules. Villin is found in the absorptive cells of the small and large intestines, in the duct cells of pancreas and biliary system, and in the cells of kidney proximal tubules. Furthermore, undifferentiated normal and tumoral cells of intestinal origin in vivo and in cell culture express villin. Therefore, expression of villin is seen in cells that do not necessarily display the morphological features characteristic of their terminally differentiated state, such as the microvilli-lined brush border. We suggest the possible clinical implications of using villin as a marker in the diagnosis of metastatic adenocarcinomas.

Brush border in enterocytes is a cell surface specialization intimately associated with terminal differentiation of these cells. HT29-18, a clone derived from the HT-29 human colonic adenocarcinoma cell line, and HT29-18-C1, a subclone from HT29-18 described in the companion paper (Huet, C., C. Sahuquillo-Merino, E. Coudrier, and D. Louvard, 1987, J. Cell Biol., 105:345-357), undergo terminal differentiation with brush borders in the absence of glucose or upon replacement of glucose by galactose in the medium. Taking advantage of this clone and its subclone which can be manipulated in vitro, we have studied the synthesis and subcellular distribution of villin, one major protein in the microvillus core of the brush border. For this study, a monoclonal antibody against villin (BDID2C3) has been isolated and characterized in detail. In addition an ELISA has been set up to measure villin accurately in total cell extracts. Villin content in differentiated HT29-18 cells is close to that seen in normal human colonic cells but 10 times lower in undifferentiated HT29-18 cells. The rate of villin synthesis is dramatically increased in the course of enterocytic differentiation, while villin is remarkably stable after synthesis. We have recently shown, using a cDNA probe for villin, that this change is controlled either at the transcription level or by RNA stabilization (Pringault, E., M. Arpin, A. Garcia, J. Finidori, and D. Louvard, 1986, EMBO (Eur. Mol. Biol. Organ.) J., 5:3119-3124). As shown by immunofluorescence and immunogold labelings, villin is targeted to the brush border area of differentiated HT29-18 cells but remains diffusely distributed in undifferentiated ones.