MAP65/Ase1 promote microtubule flexibility.

MOLECULAR BIOLOGY OF THE CELL(2013)

引用 60|浏览1
暂无评分
摘要
Microtubules (MTs) are dynamic cytoskeletal elements involved in numerous cellular processes. Although they are highly rigid polymers with a persistence length of 1-8 mm, they may exhibit a curved shape at a scale of few micrometers within cells, depending on their biological functions. However, how MT flexural rigidity in cells is regulated remains poorly understood. Here we ask whether MT-associated proteins (MAPs) could locally control the mechanical properties of MTs. We show that two major cross-linkers of the conserved MAP65/PRC1/Ase1 family drastically decrease MT rigidity. Their MT-binding domain mediates this effect. Remarkably, the softening effect of MAP65 observed on single MTs is maintained when MTs are cross-linked. By reconstituting physical collisions between growing MTs/MT bundles, we further show that the decrease in MT stiffness induced by MAP65 proteins is responsible for the sharp bending deformations observed in cells when they coalign at a steep angle to create bundles. Taken together, these data provide new insights into how MAP65, by modifying MT mechanical properties, may regulate the formation of complex MT arrays.
更多
查看译文
关键词
microtubules,kinetics,tubulin,algorithms,microtubule associated proteins
AI 理解论文
溯源树
样例
生成溯源树,研究论文发展脉络
Chat Paper
正在生成论文摘要