Fig. 7. Membrane targeting of Chat induces cell periphery spreading and branching. NIH 3T3 cells were transfected with an expression plasmid for Chat (A,B) or Myr-Chat (C,D,E). Intracellular localization of expressed proteins was detected by anti-FLAG tag immunofluorescence (A,C,E). Higher magnification of C is shown in E. Cell shapes were visualized with phalloidin staining of the actin filament (B,D). Chat was detected mainly in the cytoplasm (A). Myr-Chat was localized at the plasma membrane and intracellular vesicle like spots (C,E). Myr-Chat but not Chat expression induced spreading of cell periphery, which was frequently accompanied by branched cell morphology (B,D). Bars, 10 µm.

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