OBJECTIVES We sought to determine whether the cardiocyte microtubule network densification characteristic of animal models of severe pressure overload cardiac hypertrophy occurs in human patients. BACKGROUND In animal models of clinical entities causative of severe right and left ventricular (LV) pressure overload hypertrophy, increased density of the cellular microtubule network, through vis...

BACKGROUND CLIP-170 is a microtubule binding protein specifically located at microtubule plus ends, where it modulates their dynamic properties and their interactions with intracellular organelles. The mechanism by which CLIP-170 is targeted to microtubule ends remains unclear today, as well as its precise effect on microtubule dynamics. RESULTS We used the N-terminal part of CLIP-170 (named ...

Microtubules are dynamic cytoskeletal polymers present in all eukaryotic cells. In animal cells, they are organized by the centrosome, the major microtubule-organizing center. Many centrosomal proteins act coordinately to modulate microtubule assembly and organization. Our previous work has shown that Cep70, a novel centrosomal protein regulates microtubule assembly and organization in mammalia...

The mechanism(s) by which microtubule plus-end tracking proteins are targeted is unknown. In the filamentous fungus Aspergillus nidulans, both cytoplasmic dynein and NUDF, the homolog of the LIS1 protein, localize to microtubule plus ends as comet-like structures. Herein, we show that NUDM, the p150 subunit of dynactin, also forms dynamic comet-like structures at microtubule plus ends. By exami...

Microtubule behavior changes during the cell cycle and during spindle assembly. However, it remains unclear how these changes are regulated and coordinated. We describe a complex that targets the Protein Phosphatase 2A holoenzyme (PP2A) to centrosomes in C. elegans embryos. This complex includes Regulator of Spindle Assembly 1 (RSA-1), a targeting subunit for PP2A, and RSA-2, a protein that bin...

BACKGROUND Recent studies have shown that heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein U (hnRNP U), a component of the hnRNP complex, contributes to stabilize the kinetochore-microtubule interaction during mitosis. CENP-W was identified as an inner centromere component that plays crucial roles in the formation of a functional kinetochore complex. RESULTS We report that hnRNP U interacts with CENP-...

Membrane rafts, rich in sphingolipids and cholesterol, play an important role in neuronal membrane domain-specific signaling events, maintaining synapses and dendritic spines. The purpose of this study is to examine the neuronal response to membrane raft disruption. Membrane rafts of 8 DIV primary neuronal cultures were isolated based on the resistance to Triton X-100 and ability to float in su...

Histone deacetylase 6 (HDAC6), a microtubule-associated tubulin deacetylase, plays a significant role in the formation of protein aggregates in many neurodegenerative disorders. Parkin, a protein-ubiquitin E3 ligase linked to Parkinson’s disease, accumulates at the centrosome in a microtubule-dependent manner in response to proteasome inhibition. Here, we show that the centrosome recruitment of...

Histone deacetylase 6 (HDAC6), a microtubule-associated tubulin deacetylase, plays a significant role in the formation of protein aggregates in many neurodegenerative disorders. Parkin, a protein-ubiquitin E3 ligase linked to Parkinson's disease, accumulates at the centrosome in a microtubule-dependent manner in response to proteasome inhibition. Here, we show that the centrosome recruitment of...

The diverse populations of microtubule polymers in cells are functionally distinguished by different posttranslational modifications, including polyglutamylation. Polyglutamylation is enriched on subsets of microtubules including those found in the centrioles, mitotic spindle, and cilia. However, whether this modification alters intrinsic microtubule dynamics or affects extrinsic associations w...