Actin microfilaments guide the polarized transport of nuclear pore complexes and the cytoplasmic dispersal of Vasa mRNA during GVBD in the ascidian Halocynthia roretzi

Abstract Meiosis reinitiation starts with the germinal vesicle breakdown (GVBD) within the gonad before spawning. Here, we have extended our previous observations and identified the formation of conspicuous actin bundles emanating from the germinal vesicle (GV) during its breakdown in the ascidian Halocynthia roretzi . Time-lapse video recordings and fluorescent labelling of microfilaments (MFs) indicate that these microfilamentous structures invariantly elongate towards the vegetal hemisphere at the estimated speed of 20 μm/min. Interestingly, the nuclear pore complex protein Nup153 accumulates at the vegetal tip of actin bundles. To determine if these structures play a role in the formation of the germ plasm, we have analyzed the localization pattern of Vasa transcript in maturing oocytes and early embryos. We found that Hr-Vasa mRNA, one of Type II postplasmic/PEM mRNAs, changes from a granular and perinuclear localization to an apparent uniform cytoplasmic distribution during oocyte maturation, and then concentrate in the centrosome-attracting body (CAB) by the eight-cell stage. In addition, treatments with Latrunculin B, but not with Nocodazole, blocked the redistribution of Nup153 and Hr-Vasa mRNA, suggesting that these mechanisms are both actin-dependant. We discuss the pleiotropic role played by MFs, and the relationship between nuclear pores, maternal Vasa mRNA and germ plasm in maturing ascidian oocytes.