Temperature-induced changes in nuclear pore complex frequencies nuclear envelope surface areas and nuclear volumes in light-synchronized Euglena

Abstract

An autotrophic culture of Euglena, synchronized using a day: night (D:N), 14:10-h cycle, was subjected to a 21.5 → 31.5 °C temperature shift and then to a reversed shift in temperature after three D:N cycles at 31.5 °C. Nuclear pore complex (NPC) number per square micrometre and nuclear surface area and volume determinations were made on G1 cells at various intervals. Cells sampled immediately prior to the 21.5 → 31.5 °C shift had a mean value of 37.68 NPC∙μm−2 nuclear envelope surface area, 30.40 NPCs/μm2 after three D:N cycles at.31.5 °C and 39.98 NPCs/μm2 after three D:N cycles at the resumed culture temperature of 21.5 °C. Thus temperature changes affect NPC numbers per square micrometre and these changes are reversible.Mean nuclear surface area was 125.76 μm2 immediately prior to the 21.5 → 31.5 °C shift, and decreased over two D:N cycles at 31.5 °C to 101.30 μm2 by the end of the third D:N cycle. Nuclear envelope surface area, one and two D:N cycles after the 31.5 → 21.5 °C shift, was approximately equal that prior to the 21.5 → 31.5 °C shift. After the third D:N cycle, however, nuclear surface area had increased to 173.05 μm2. The changes in nuclear surface area resulted in large differences in the estimates of the total number of NPCs per nucleus. Euglena immediately prior to the 21.5 → 31.5 °C temperature shift had 4739 NPCs/nucleus; immediately prior to the 31.5 → 21.5 °C shift had 3079 NPCs/nucleus; and had 6919 NPCs/nucleus at 21.5 °C and three D:N cycles after the 31.5 → 21.5 °C shift. Estimates of the number of NPCs per cubic micrometre of nuclear volume were almost identical between these samples.