Biology subjects

Mollereau, B.

Publications and source records attributed to Mollereau, B..

8 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2026

Lipid droplets accumulate and delay regulated cell death execution

Normal and cancer cells accumulate lipid droplets (LDs) under stress to buffer lipotoxicity, but their role in regulated cell death (RCD) remains incompletely understood. Here, we explored LD accumulation across multiple apoptotic and non-apoptotic RCD modalities in human cancer cells and Drosophila germ cells. We found that LD accumulation arises from de novo LD biogenesis, whereas LD lipolysis remains active--or even enhanced--in dying germ cells and cancer cells, respectively. In Drosophila, LD accumulation in ATGL/Bmm lipase loss of function mutant inhibited germ cell death, supporting a protective role of LDs. Proteomic and imaging analyses revealed a broad redistribution of LD-associated proteins, encompassing lipid metabolism and stress response factors, as well as the pro-apoptotic effector Bax in human cancer cells during cell death. Enhanced LD-mitochondria contacts promoted the translocation of conformationally active Bax from mitochondria to LDs, thereby delaying apoptosis execution. Consistently, LD depletion sensitizes cells to Bax-dependent apoptosis, whereas LD accumulation confers resistance. Collectively, these findings define LD accumulation during cell death as a delaying mechanism in which LDs sequester mitochondrial cell death regulators, attenuating their pro-death activity and revealing potential therapeutic implications for apoptosis-resistant cancers.

cell biology↗

bioRxiv2025

Lifelong maintenance of locomotion by embryonically active dopamine neurons

Locomotor skills arise early in life and are maintained throughout an animals lifespan, yet how this continuity is achieved despite major neural remodeling remains unclear. Using Drosophila, which undergoes complete metamorphosis, we show that the activity of embryonically established dopamine neurons (DANs) is essential for locomotion across all developmental stages and adulthood. Through stage-specific behavioral assays, optogenetics, in vivo brain imaging, and fluorescent neuronal tracking, we identify a subset of ventral nervous system (VNS) DANs that modulate locomotor function throughout life. Transcriptomic analyses reveal that they maintain expression of developmental transcription factors. Knocking down these factors, particularly Antp and Pdm2, in post-mitotic VNS DANs reduces neurite arborization and impairs adult locomotion. These findings uncover a previously overlooked function for embryonic DANs and suggest that stable locomotion during nervous system maturation relies on persistent developmental regulator expression coupled with structural remodeling.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2025

A dWDR45 knock-out Drosophila model to decipher the role of autophagy in BPAN

Beta-propeller protein-associated neurodegeneration (BPAN) is a rare neurological disorder characterized by severe cognitive and motor impairments. BPAN is caused by de novo pathogenic variants in the WDR45 gene on the X chromosome. WDR45 gene encodes the protein WDR45/WIPI4, a known regulator of autophagy. A defective autophagy has been observed in cellular models of BPAN disease and is associated with neurological dysfunctions in wdr45 knockout (KO) mice. However, it remains unclear whether the autophagic defect directly contributes to all WDR45 loss-induced phenotypes or whether other WDR45-dependent cellular functions are involved. To investigate this, we generated a CRISPR/Cas9-mediated KO of CG11975 (dwdr45 KO), the Drosophila homolog of WDR45. Our analysis revealed that dwdr45 KO flies display BPAN-like phenotypes, including impaired locomotor function, seizure-like behavior, autophagy dysregulation and iron dyshomeostasis. Additionally, dwdr45 KO flies exhibit shortened lifespan compared to control flies. These findings demonstrate that dwdr45 KO fly is a relevant in-vivo model for investigating the key cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying BPAN-associated phenotypes. Here we showed that induction of autophagy in dwdr45 KO flies improved both the shortened lifespan and the seizure-like behavior, but did not restore locomotor function. This suggests that defective autophagy contributes to some, but not all, aspects of the phenotypes resulting from loss of dWdr45 function.

cell biology↗

bioRxiv2024

MYC shapes ER-mitochondria calcium transfer by directly targeting ITPR1: implications for MYC-induced safeguard mechanisms and cancer

The MYC and NMYC transcription factors (TFs) play a key role in cell proliferation and are overexpressed in most cancer cells. However, in normal cells their overexpression triggers safeguard mechanisms promoting cell death and cellular senescence, which are bypassed in cancer cells. The mechanisms of action of this TF family are only partially understood. Here, we reveal that in normal cells MYC binds to the Inositol 1,4,5-Trisphosphate Receptor type 1 (ITPR1) gene and upregulates its expression, triggering an ER-mitochondria calcium (Ca2+) transfer, which is involved in MYC-induced cell death and senescence. Supporting a tumor suppressive role of MYC/ITPR1 axis, ITPR1 expression is generally decreased in cancer and reactivation of this pathway induces cancer cell death. Nevertheless, some cancer cells, generally expressing high levels of MYCN and/or MYC, also express high level of ITPR1, which correlates with high expression of BCL2, encoding an inhibitor of ITPR1. Strikingly, in high-risk MYCN-amplified neuroblastoma, ITPR1 expression is controlled by NMYC and its level correlates with worse patient survival. In these cells, blocking the interaction between BCL2 and ITPR1 induces mitochondrial Ca2+ accumulation and cell death, and decreases tumor size. Collectively these data highlight a new function of MYC factors by controlling Ca2+ signaling, which could constitute an unsuspected vulnerability for some cancer cells, including high-risk MYCN-amplified neuroblastoma cells.

cancer biology↗

bioRxiv2020

Alpha-synuclein enhances lipid droplet accumulation in neurons in a Drosophila model of Parkinson's disease

Parkinsons disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by alpha-synuclein (Syn) aggregation and associated with abnormalities in lipid metabolism. The accumulation of lipids in cytoplasmic organelles called lipid droplets (LDs) was observed in cellular models of PD. To investigate the pathophysiological consequences of interactions between Syn and proteins that regulate the homeostasis of LDs, we used a transgenic Drosophila model of PD, in which human Syn is specifically expressed in photoreceptor neurons. We first found that overexpression of the LD-coating proteins perilipin 1 or 2 (dPlin1/2), which limit the access of lipases to LDs, markedly increased triacylglyclerol (TG) loaded LDs in neurons. However, dPlin-induced-LDs in neurons are independent of lipid anabolic (diacylglycerol acyltransferase 1/Midway, fatty acid transport protein/dFatp) and catabolic (lipase Brummer) enzymes, indicating that non-canonical mechanisms regulate neuronal LD homeostasis. Interestingly, the accumulation of LDs induced by several distinct LD proteins (dPlin1, dPlin2, CG7900 or KlarsichtLD-BD) was synergistically amplified by the co-expression of Syn, which was found at the surface of LDs both in photoreceptors neurons of Drosophila and in human neuroblastoma cells. Finally, the accumulation of LDs increased the resistance of Syn to proteolytic digestion, a phenomenon associated with Syn aggregation in human neurons. We thus propose that Syn cooperates with LD proteins to inhibit lipolysis and that binding of Syn to LDs contributes to the pathogenic misfolding and aggregation of Syn in neurons.

cell biology↗

bioRxiv2020

Split-ends is modulating lipid droplet content in adult Drosophila glial cells and is protective against paraquat toxicity.

Glial cells are early sensors of neuronal injury and are able to store lipids in lipid droplets under oxidative stress conditions. Here, we investigated the glial functions of Spen in the context of Parkinsons disease (PD). Using a data mining approach, we first found that the human ortholog of spen, SPEN/SHARP belongs to the set of astrocyte-expressed genes which mRNA levels are significantly different in the substantia nigra of PD patients as compared to controls. Interestingly, the retrieved list of differentially expressed genes was enriched in genes involved in lipid metabolism. In a Drosophila model of PD, we observed that spen mutant flies were more sensitive to paraquat intoxication. Moreover, the glia-restricted knockdown of spen led to the expansion and the accumulation of lipid droplets as well as the inhibition of Notch pathway. Taken together our results show that Spen regulates lipid metabolism and storage in glial cells and by these means contribute to glia-mediated functions in the context of neurodegeneration.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2019

Regulation of Numb during planar cell polarity establishment in the Drosophila eye

The establishment of planar cell polarity (PCP) in the Drosophila eye requires correct specification of the R3/R4 pair of photoreceptor cells, determined by a Frizzled mediated signaling event that specifies R3 and induces Delta to activate Notch signaling in the neighboring cell, specifying it as R4. Here, we investigated the role of the Notch signaling negative regulator Numb in the specification of R3/R4 fates and PCP establishment in the Drosophila eye. We observed that Numb is transiently upregulated in R3 at the time of R3/R4 specification. This regulation of Numb levels in developing photoreceptors occurs at the post-transcriptional level and is dependent on Dishevelled, an effector of Frizzled signaling, and Lethal Giant Larva. We detected PCP defects in cells homozygous for numb15, but these defects were due to a loss of function mutation in fat (fatQ805*) being present in the numb15 chromosome. However, mosaic overexpression of Numb in R4 precursors (only) caused PCP defects and numb loss-of-function had a modifying effect on the defects found in a hypomorphic dishevelled mutation. Our results suggest that Numb levels are upregulated to reinforce the bias of Notch signaling activation in the R3/R4 pair, two post-mitotic cells that are not specified by asymmetric cell division.

developmental biology↗

bioRxiv2018

Expression of fatty acid transport protein in retinal pigment cells promotes lipid droplet expansion and photoreceptor homeostasis

Increasing evidence suggests that dysregulation of lipid metabolism is associated with neurodegeneration in retinal diseases such as age-related macular degeneration and in brain disorders such as Alzheimers and Parkinsons diseases. Lipid storage organelles (lipid droplets, LDs), accumulate in many cell types in response to stress, and it is now clear that LDs function not only as lipid stores but also as dynamic regulators of the stress response. However, whether these LD functions are always protective or can also be deleterious to the cell is unknown. Here, we investigated the consequences of LD accumulation on retinal cell homeostasis in transgenic flies and mice overexpressing fatty acid transport protein (FATP) in retinal pigment cells (RPCs). In wild-type Drosophila, overexpression of dFatp specifically in RPCs resulted in an expansion of LD size in both RPCs and in neighboring photoreceptors but was non-toxic. Similarly, in mice, LD accumulation induced by RPC-specific expression of human FATP1 was non-toxic and promoted mitochondrial energy metabolism in both RPCs and photoreceptor cells. In contrast, RPC-specific dFatp knockdown reduced neurodegeneration in Aats-metFB Drosophila mutants, which carry a defective respiratory chain, indicating that abnormal LD accumulation can be toxic under pathological conditions. Collectively, these findings indicate that FATP-mediated LD formation in RPCs induces a non-autonomous increase of LDs in photoreceptors that promotes homeostasis under physiological conditions but can be deleterious under pathological conditions.\n\nAuthor SummaryLipids are major cell constituents and are present in the membranes, as free lipids in the cytoplasm, or stored in vesicles called lipid droplets (LDs). Under conditions of stress, lipids stored in LDs can be released to serve as substrates for energy metabolism by mitochondria. However, lipid storage is deregulated in many degenerative disorders such as age-related macular degeneration and Alzheimers disease. Thus, it is unclear whether accumulation of LDs is protective or can also be toxic. To address this question, we examined the consequences of enforced LD accumulation on the health of retinal cells in flies and mice. Like humans, fly and mouse retinas contain retinal pigment cells (RPC) that support the functions of neighboring photoreceptor cells. We found that overexpression of the fatty acid transport protein (FATP) in RPCs induced accumulation of LDs in both transgenic flies and mice. Moreover, LD accumulation in RPCs had a beneficial effect on juxtaposed photoreceptors under normal physiological conditions, but was toxic under pathological stress conditions. We propose that lipid storage is a mechanism of cellular communication that is essential to maintain photoreceptor health.

cell biology↗