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PMID: 19696342 Published · ppublish English Journal Article Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't Review

Structural plasticity in actin and tubulin polymer dynamics.

Science (New York, N.Y.) ·Vol. 325 ·No. 5943 ·2009-08-21 ·Pages 960-3

Kueh HY, Mitchison TJ

Abstract

Actin filaments and microtubules polymerize and depolymerize by adding and removing subunits at polymer ends, and these dynamics drive cytoplasmic organization, cell division, and cell motility. Since Wegner proposed the treadmilling theory for actin in 1976, it has largely been assumed that the chemical state of the bound nucleotide determines the rates of subunit addition and removal. This chemical kinetics view is difficult to reconcile with observations revealing multiple structural states of the polymer that influence polymerization dynamics but that are not strictly coupled to the bound nucleotide state. We refer to these phenomena as "structural plasticity" and discuss emerging evidence that they play a central role in polymer dynamics and function.

MeSH Terms
Actin Cytoskeleton/chemistry,metabolism,ultrastructure Actin Depolymerizing Factors/metabolism Actins/chemistry,metabolism Adenosine Triphosphate/metabolism Guanosine Diphosphate/metabolism Guanosine Triphosphate/metabolism Kinetics Microfilament Proteins/metabolism Microtubules/chemistry,metabolism,ultrastructure Models, Biological Tubulin/chemistry,metabolism
Chemicals
Actin Depolymerizing Factors Actins Microfilament Proteins Tubulin Guanosine Diphosphate Guanosine Triphosphate Adenosine Triphosphate
Authors & Affiliations
2 authors, click to expand affiliations / ORCID
Kueh Hao Yuan
Department of Systems Biology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02215, USA.
Mitchison Timothy J
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Article Info
Journal
Science (New York, N.Y.)
Abbr.
Science
ISSN
1095-9203
DOI
10.1126/science.1168823
Published
2009-08-21
Pages
960-3
Language
English
Region
United States
NLM ID
0404511
PMCID
PMC2864651
Subset
IM
Grants
NIGMS NIH HHS · R01 GM023928 · United States
NIGMS NIH HHS · R01 GM023928-31 · United States
Howard Hughes Medical Institute · United States
NIGMS NIH HHS · GM 23928 · United States
External Links
PubMed source DOI: 10.1126/science.1168823 PMC Full Text View journal details
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