Redox signaling modulates Rho activity and tissue contractility in the C. elegans spermatheca

Actomyosin based contractility in smooth muscle and non-muscle cells is regulated by signaling through the small GTPase Rho and by calcium-activated pathways. We use the myoepithelial cells of the spermatheca to study the mechanisms of coordinated myosin activation . Here, we show that redox signaling modulates RHO-1/Rho activity in this contractile tissue. Exogenously added as well as endogenously generated hydrogen peroxide decreases spermathecal contractility by inhibition of RHO-1, which depends on a conserved cysteine in its nucleotide binding site (C20). Further, we identify an endogenous gradient of H O across the spermathecal tissue, which depends on the activity of the cytosolic superoxide dismutase, SOD-1. Collectively, we show that SOD-1 mediated H O production regulates the redox environment and fine-tunes Rho activity across the spermatheca through oxidation of RHO-1 C20.