Spatiotemporal control of actomyosin contractility by MRCKβ signaling drives phagocytosis

Abstract

Phagocytosis requires actin dynamics, but whether actomyosin contractility plays a role in this morphodynamic process is unclear. Here, we show that in the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), particle binding to Mer Tyrosine Kinase (MerTK), a widely expressed phagocytic receptor, stimulates phosphorylation of the Cdc42 GEF Dbl3, triggering activation of MRCKβ/myosin-II and its coeffector N-WASP, membrane deformation, and cup formation. Continued MRCKβ/myosin-II activity then drives recruitment of a mechanosensing bridge, enabling cytoskeletal force transmission, cup closure, and particle internalization. In vivo, MRCKβ is essential for RPE phagocytosis and retinal integrity. MerTK-independent activation of MRCKβ signaling by a phosphomimetic Dbl3 mutant rescues phagocytosis in retinitis pigmentosa RPE cells lacking functional MerTK. MRCKβ is also required for efficient particle translocation from the cortex into the cell body in Fc receptor–mediated phagocytosis. Thus, conserved MRCKβ signaling at the cortex controls spatiotemporal regulation of actomyosin contractility to guide distinct phases of phagocytosis in the RPE and represents the principle phagocytic effector pathway downstream of MerTK.