Mutation of zebrafish Snapc4 is associated with loss of the intrahepatic biliary network
- Authors
- Schaub, M., Nussbaum, J., Verkade, H., Ober, E.A., Stainier, D.Y., and Sakaguchi, T.F.
- ID
- ZDB-PUB-120111-24
- Date
- 2012
- Source
- Developmental Biology 363(1): 128-137 (Journal)
- Registered Authors
- Ober, Elke, Sakaguchi, Takuya, Schaub, Madeline, Stainier, Didier, Verkade, Heather
- Keywords
- liver, snRNA, SNAP190, SNAPC2, biliary epithelial cells, vanishing bile duct
- MeSH Terms
-
- Epithelial Cells/metabolism
- Epithelial Cells/ultrastructure
- Gene Regulatory Networks
- Microscopy, Confocal
- Mutation*
- PubMed
- 22222761 Full text @ Dev. Biol.
Biliary epithelial cells line the intrahepatic biliary network, a complex three-dimensional network of conduits. The loss of differentiated biliary epithelial cells is the primary cause of many congenital liver diseases. We identified a zebrafish snapc4 (small nuclear RNA-activating complex polypeptide 4) mutant in which biliary epithelial cells initially differentiate but subsequently disappear. In these snapc4 mutant larvae, the biliary epithelial cells undergo apoptosis, leading to the degeneration of the intrahepatic biliary network. Consequently, in snapc4 mutant larvae, biliary transport of ingested fluorescent lipids to the gallbladder is blocked. Snapc4 is the largest subunit of the protein complex that regulates small nuclear RNA (snRNA) transcription. The snapc4s445 mutation causes a truncation of the C-terminus thereby deleting the domain responsible for a specific interaction with Snapc2, a vertebrate specific subunit of the SNAP complex. This mutation leads to a hypomorphic phenotype, as only a subset of snRNA transcripts are quantitatively altered in snapc4s445 mutant larvae. snapc2 knockdown also disrupts the intrahepatic biliary network in a similar fashion as in snapc4s445 mutant larvae. These data indicate that the physical interaction between Snapc2 and Snapc4 is important for the expression of a subset of snRNAs and biliary epithelial cell survival in zebrafish.
