Authors: Irina Tikhonenko Karen Irizarry Alexey Khodjakov Michael P Koonce
Publish Date: 2015/08/23
Volume: 73, Issue: 4, Pages: 859-868
Abstract
It has long been known that the interphase microtubule MT array is a key cellular scaffold that provides structural support and directs organelle trafficking in eukaryotic cells Although in animal cells a combination of centrosome nucleating properties and polymer dynamics at the distal microtubule ends is generally sufficient to establish a radial polar array of MTs little is known about how effector proteins motors and crosslinkers are coordinated to produce the diversity of interphase MT array morphologies found in nature This diversity is particularly important in multinucleated environments where multiple MT arrays must coexist and function We initiate here a study to address the higher ordered coordination of multiple independent MT arrays in a common cytoplasm Deletion of a MT crosslinker of the MAP65/Ase1/PRC1 family disrupts the spatial integrity of multiple arrays in Dictyostelium discoideum reducing the distance between centrosomes and increasing the intermingling of MTs with opposite polarity This result coupled with previous dynein disruptions suggest a robust mechanism by which interphase MT arrays can utilize motors and crosslinkers to sense their position and minimize overlap in a common cytoplasmWe appreciate the use of Wadsworth Center’s Molecular Genetics Core for DNA sequencing We thank Dr Wolfgang Nellen for kindly providing the GFPCenH3 expression plasmid Dr Manfred Schliwa for the GFPγtubulin construct Valentin Magidson for general light microscopy assistance and Dr Vitali Sikirzhytski for help with statistical analysis We are grateful to the efforts at http//dictybaseorg to archive and annotate Dictyostelium sequence information This work was supported in part by the NSF MCB1051612 to MPK DBI1062963 for REU support of KI and the NIH GM59363 to AK
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