Pre-existing tissue mechanical hypertension at adherens junctions disrupts apoptotic extrusion in epithelia

Abstract

Apical extrusion is a tissue-intrinsic process that allows epithelia to eliminate unfit or surplus cells. This is exemplified by the early extrusion of apoptotic cells, which is critical to maintain the epithelial barrier and prevent inflammation. Apoptotic extrusion is an active mechanical process, which involves mechanotransduction between apoptotic cells and their neighbours, as well as local changes in tissue mechanics. Here we report that the pre-existing mechanical tension at adherens junctions conditions the efficacy of apoptotic extrusion. Specifically, increasing baseline mechanical tension by overexpression of a phosphomimetic Myosin II regulatory light chain (MRLC) compromises apoptotic extrusion. This occurs when tension is increased in either the apoptotic cell or its surrounding epithelium. Further, we find that the pro-inflammatory cytokine, TNF, stimulates Myosin II and increases baseline AJ tension to disrupt apical extrusion, causing apoptotic cells to be retained in monolayers. Importantly, reversal of mechanical tension with an inhibitory MRLC mutant or tropomyosin inhibitors is sufficient to restore apoptotic extrusion in TNF-treated monolayers. Together, these findings demonstrate that baseline levels of tissue tension are important determinants of apoptotic extrusion, which can potentially be co-opted by pathogenetic factors to disrupt the homeostatic response of epithelia to apoptosis.