Microtubule organization, dynamics and functions in differentiated cells.
Andrew Muroyama,Terry Lechler +1 more
TLDR
Current knowledge of how microtubule organization and dynamics change upon cellular differentiation is summarized and an overview of the functions of non-centrosomal microtubules arrays in differentiated cells is given.Abstract:
Over the past several decades, numerous studies have greatly expanded our knowledge about how microtubule organization and dynamics are controlled in cultured cells in vitro However, our understanding of microtubule dynamics and functions in vivo, in differentiated cells and tissues, remains under-explored. Recent advances in generating genetic tools and imaging technologies to probe microtubules in situ, coupled with an increased interest in the functions of this cytoskeletal network in differentiated cells, are resulting in a renaissance. Here, we discuss the lessons learned from such approaches, which have revealed that, although some differentiated cells utilize conserved strategies to remodel microtubules, there is considerable diversity in the underlying molecular mechanisms of microtubule reorganization. This highlights a continued need to explore how differentiated cells regulate microtubule geometry in vivo.read more
Citations
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Are microtubules tension sensors
TL;DR: It is proposed that microtubules autonomously sense stress directions in plant cells, where tensile stresses are higher than in animal cells.
Journal ArticleDOI
Mesoscale physical principles of collective cell organization
Xavier Trepat,Erik Sahai +1 more
TL;DR: In this article, the mesoscale physical properties of cell assemblies are found to precede and instruct biological functions such as cell division, extrusion, invasion and gradient sensing, but cannot be predicted from biochemical principles.
Journal ArticleDOI
Generation and regulation of microtubule network asymmetry to drive cell polarity.
TL;DR: Microtubules can mechanically contribute to cell asymmetry by promoting cell elongation, a property that might be important for cells with dense microtubule arrays growing in soft environments.
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Microtubule-Organizing Centers: Towards a Minimal Parts List
Joel Paz,Jens Lüders +1 more
TL;DR: This work proposes to identify the subset of proteins minimally needed to assemble a MTOC and to study this process at non-centrosomal sites.
Journal ArticleDOI
The Centrosome and the Primary Cilium: The Yin and Yang of a Hybrid Organelle
TL;DR: Evidence is discussed that the animal centrosome evolved, with the transition to complex multicellularity, as a hybrid organelle comprised of the two distinct, but intertwined, structural-functional modules: the centriole/primary cilium module and the pericentriolar material/centrosome module.
References
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XMAP215 Is a Processive Microtubule Polymerase
Gary J. Brouhard,Jeffrey H. Stear,Tim L. Noetzel,Jawdat Al-Bassam,Kazuhisa Kinoshita,Stephen C. Harrison,Jonathon Howard,Anthony A. Hyman +7 more
TL;DR: Results show that XMAP215 is a processive polymerase that directly catalyzes the addition of up to 25 tubulin dimers to the growing plus end and can also catalyze the reverse reaction, namely microtubule shrinkage.