Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Himanshu Pandey, Mary Popov, Alina Goldstein-Levitin, Larisa Gheber
Summary: Kinesin-5 motor proteins play crucial roles in cell division with their specialized structural features and diverse functions. Research has shown their different mechanisms of action in dividing and non-dividing cells.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Sithara S. Wijeratne, Shane A. Fiorenza, Alex E. Neary, Radhika Subramanian, Meredith D. Betterton
Summary: This study reports that microtubules can physically couple motor movement in the absence of detectable short-range interactions. The long-range microtubule-mediated coupling mechanism may affect the binding kinetics and mechanochemistry of motors, providing new forms of collective motor behavior.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Yuying Liu, Yao Wang, Pengye Wang, Ping Xie
Summary: Kinesin-5 motor is composed of two pairs of heads and tail domains, capable of moving independently on microtubules and generating high steady forces for chromosome segregation. The tails of Kinesin-5 Eg5 play a critical role in modulating the dynamics of single motors and in enabling multiple motors to slide apart microtubules. Research findings demonstrate the significance of tail domains in regulating the performance of Eg5 motors.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Developmental Biology
Maelys Loh, Fred Bernard, Antoine Guichet
Summary: Microtubules and their associated motors are crucial for nucleus positioning, and Kinesin-1 is found to control nuclear migration in Drosophila oocytes by modulating centrosome activity.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Neil H. J. Cunningham, Imene B. Bouhlel, Paul T. Conduit
Summary: Centrosomes play a crucial role in organizing microtubules in animal cells. The process of centriole duplication, which is important for maintaining centrosome numbers, is still not fully understood. This study suggests that non-centrosomal cues influence the establishment of a single duplication site, as daughter centrioles preferentially assemble on the side of the mother centriole facing the nuclear envelope in Drosophila embryos.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Jurica Matkovic, Subhadip Ghosh, Mateja Cosic, Susana Eibes, Marin Barisic, Nenad Pavin, Iva M. Tolic
Summary: This study reveals the mechanism by which kinetochores drive the coarsening of a microtubule array into bundles, promoting spindle formation and accurate chromosome segregation.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Biology
Andrea E. Prota, Daniel Lucena-Agell, Yuntao Ma, Juan Estevez-Gallego, Shuo Li, Katja Bargsten, Fernando Josa-Prado, Karl-Heinz Altmann, Natacha Gaillard, Shinji Kamimura, Tobias Muhlethaler, Federico Gago, Maria A. Oliva, Michel O. Steinmetz, Wei-Shuo Fang, J. Fernando Diaz
Summary: This study provides atomic-level details of the interaction between paclitaxel and tubulin, shedding light on the mechanism of action and binding determinants.
Review
Cell Biology
Wen Lu, Vladimir I. Gelfand
Summary: Cells are the smallest building blocks of living organisms, and often undergo cytoplasmic streaming to compensate for physical constraints in large cells. This phenomenon is driven by molecular motors and plays important roles in various cell types. Additionally, intercellular flow transports cytoplasmic materials for rapid oocyte growth.
JOURNAL OF CELL SCIENCE
(2023)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Romie C. Nguyen, Cassadee Stagliano, Aimin Liu
Summary: Half-of-sites reactivity in metalloenzymes has been known for a long time, but its benefits are still unclear. Recent research on ribonucleotide reductase suggests that asymmetric association of subunits may play a role in its less optimized reactivity. Many other enzymes also exhibit nonequivalence of active sites, potentially for regulation purposes. Overall, this phenomenon is likely a natural method to accommodate catalytic or regulatory needs.
CURRENT OPINION IN CHEMICAL BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Cell Biology
Gurushankar Chandramouly, Shuren Liao, Timur Rusanov, Nikita Borisonnik, Marissa L. Calbert, Tatiana Kent, Katherine Sullivan-Reed, Umeshkumar Vekariya, Ekaterina Kashkina, Tomasz Skorski, Hong Yan, Richard T. Pomerantz
Summary: By studying Pol theta repair of DSBs carrying DPCs, it was found that Pol theta facilitates the repair of these DNA lesions through MMEJ, particularly in repairing 5' terminal DPCs. The studies also revealed that dual deficiency in Pol theta and TDP2 causes increased cellular sensitivity to etoposide, highlighting MMEJ as an alternative pathway for DPC repair.
Article
Cell Biology
Danila Di Meo, Priyadarshini Ravindran, Tanmay Sadhanasatish, Pratibha Dhumale, Andreas W. Puschel
Summary: During neuronal development, SadA/B kinases and AnkB regulate mitochondrial dynamics to maintain stability in axons and dendrites. Inhibition of SadA/B or AnkB leads to excessive fusion of mitochondria and activation of the integrated stress response. Mild actin destabilization can restore the normal dynamics of axonal mitochondria.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Sara Lago, Matteo Nadai, Emanuela Ruggiero, Martina Tassinari, Maja Marusic, Beatrice Tosoni, Ilaria Frasson, Filippo M. Cernilogar, Valentina Pirota, Filippo Doria, Janez Plavec, Gunnar Schotta, Sara N. Richter
Summary: Well-differentiated liposarcoma is a malignant neoplasm characterized by amplification of the MDM2 gene region, and targeting the MDM2 G-quadruplex can promote apoptosis in cancer cells. The research suggests that this approach may be beneficial for treating WDLPS and other tumors seeking to restore wild-type p53.
NUCLEIC ACIDS RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Xiaolu Xu, Sabine Hummel, Klaus Harter, Uener Kolukisaoglu, Michael Riemann, Peter Nick
Summary: The transition to terrestrial plants led to a loss of microtubule minus-end-directed dynein motors and an expansion of class-XIV kinesins. OsDLK, a class-XIV kinesin from rice, plays a role in cell elongation during development and moves into the nucleus in response to cold stress. The import of OsDLK into the nucleus might be correlated with its specific DNA binding, particularly to the Opaque2 motif, which is found in the promoter region of NtAvr9/Cf9, a transcription factor involved in cold adaptation.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Masahiko Yamagishi, Yohei Maruyama, Mitsuhiro Sugawa, Junichiro Yajima
Summary: The study revealed that in monomeric form, Cin8 protein only shows plus end-directed activity, while minus end-directed motility is only present in dimeric forms. Additionally, Cin8 monomers exhibit a constant left-handed pitch when corkscrewing microtubules around their longitudinal axes.
BIOCHEMICAL AND BIOPHYSICAL RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Sindhu D. Bali, Mohd Ahsan, Prasanna D. Revanasiddappa
Summary: G-Quadruplex (GQ) is a secondary structural unit of DNA formed at the telomere region and can hinder biological processes. The stability of antiparallel G-quadruplexes (AGQs) is influenced by cations such as K+ and Mg2+. Experimental and simulation studies reveal that Mg2+ preferentially binds to the guanine tetrad, while K+ binds in the AGQ central channel. Both cations stabilize AGQ, but Mg2+ exhibits stronger interactions with the guanine tetrads. However, K+ induces a higher stabilization energy than Mg2+ due to its favorable fermionic quantum energy.
JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY B
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Julia A. M. Bakx, Andreas S. Biebricher, Graeme A. King, Panagiotis Christodoulis, Kata Sarlos, Anna H. Bizard, Ian D. Hickson, Gijs J. L. Wuite, Erwin J. G. Peterman
Summary: Topoisomerase IIIa is a type 1A topoisomerase that forms a complex with RMI1 and RMI2 called TRR in human cells. In this study, the authors used optical tweezers and fluorescence microscopy to investigate the catalytic steps of TRR. They found that TRR forms an open gate in single-stranded DNA and can bind a second single-stranded or double-stranded DNA molecule, leading to catenation. Interestingly, double-stranded DNA binding increases the gate size and the helicase BLM affects the flexibility of the gate. These findings suggest that TRR-mediated transfer of double-stranded DNA may be more important than previously believed.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Anna E. C. Meijering, Kata Sarlos, Christian F. Nielsen, Hannes Witt, Janni Harju, Emma Kerklingh, Guus H. Haasnoot, Anna H. Bizard, Iddo Heller, Chase P. Broedersz, Ying Liu, Erwin J. G. Peterman, Ian D. Hickson, Gijs J. L. Wuite
Summary: In this study, a workflow based on optical trapping and manipulation is introduced to investigate the organization of human chromosomes. The research reveals that chromosomes exhibit nonlinear stiffening behavior under increasing mechanical load and introduces a hierarchical worm-like chain model to explain this anomalous stiffening.
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Simon G. Stuij, Andreas Biebricher, Zhe Gong, Stefano Sacanna, Erwin Peterman, Iddo Heller, Peter Schall
Summary: Self-assembling patchy colloidal particles offer a promising platform for creating designer soft materials. In this study, we conducted mechanical experiments on analogs of biological fibers made from bonded patchy colloidal particles and discovered a rich nonlinear mechanical response, highlighting the crucial role of patch-patch interactions in the mechanics of self-assembled colloidal materials. These findings are essential for designing functional colloidal architectures inspired by nature.
PHYSICAL REVIEW MATERIALS
(2022)
Article
Optics
Marijn E. Siemons, Lukas C. Kapitein, Sjoerd Stallinga
Summary: This article discusses the possible axial localization errors in the process of three-dimensional localization in single-molecule localization microscopy, and proposes methods to mitigate these errors.
Article
Biology
Fangrui Chen, Jingchao Wu, Malina K. Iwanski, Daphne Jurriens, Arianna Sandron, Milena Pasolli, Gianmarco Puma, Jannes Z. Kromhout, Chao Yang, Wilco Nijenhuis, Lukas C. Kapitein, Florian Berger, Anna Akhmanova
Summary: This study reveals the self-assembly properties of interphase PCM in animal cells and its sensitivity to motor- and microtubule-based rearrangement.
Article
Biology
Jaap van Krugten, Noemie Danne, Erwin J. G. Peterman
Summary: In this study, single-molecule tracking experiments were used to investigate the interplay of transport modes during intraflagellar transport in the cilium. The distribution of the sensory transmembrane protein OCR-2 was found to depend on the specific location in the cilium, with directed transport predominant in the dendrite and transition zone, normal diffusion and a small fraction of directed transport along the cilium, and subdiffusion at the ciliary tip.
COMMUNICATIONS BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biology
Gimano D. Amatngalim, Lisa W. Rodenburg, Bente L. Aalbers, Henriette H. M. Raeven, Ellen M. Aarts, Dounia Sarhane, Sacha Spelier, Juliet W. Lefferts, Iris A. L. Silva, Wilco Nijenhuis, Sacha Vrendenbarg, Evelien Kruisselbrink, Jesse E. Brunsveld, Cornelis M. van Drunen, Sabine Michel, Karin M. de Winter-de Groot, Harry G. Heijerman, Lukas C. Kapitein, Magarida D. Amaral, Cornelis K. van der Ent, Jeffrey M. Beekman
Summary: This study introduces an alternative method of culturing nasal-brushing-derived airway organoids, enabling consistent detection of CFTR modulator responses in patients with cystic fibrosis.
LIFE SCIENCE ALLIANCE
(2022)
Editorial Material
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Aniruddha Mitra, Erwin J. G. Peterman
Summary: Directional changes in intraflagellar transport do not rely on tip-associated machinery.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Joyce C. M. Meiring, Ilya Grigoriev, Wilco Nijenhuis, Lukas C. Kapitein, Anna Akhmanova
Summary: Microtubules play important roles in chromosome separation, intracellular transport, and organelle positioning. This study introduces a light-activated system called opto-katanin for precise subcellular control of microtubules. The system allows localized recruitment of the microtubule-severing enzyme katanin, resulting in rapid and reversible microtubule depolymerization. This tool can be used to selectively clear microtubules in specific regions of cells and study their role in vesicle transport, organelle morphology, and cell mechanics.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Mithila Burute, Klara I. Jansen, Marko Mihajlovic, Tina Vermonden, Lukas C. Kapitein
Summary: This study reveals the importance of microtubule network mobility in the process of neuronal polarization, which is regulated by Rho GTPase signaling and extracellular cues. The differences in microtubule mobility determine the ability of Kinesin-1 to enter specific neurites, thus affecting the polarization specificity of neurons. These findings provide new insights into the cytoskeletal mechanism of neuronal polarization.
Article
Optics
Aniruddha Mitra, Elizaveta Loseva, Guus H. Haasnoot, Erwin J. G. Peterman
Summary: Single-particle imaging using laser-illuminated widefield epi-fluorescence microscopy is a powerful tool to investigate molecular processes in vivo. By exciting only a small region in chemosensory neurons in live C. elegans, long-duration single-particle imaging with improved quality can be achieved. Small-window illumination microscopy (SWIM) allows for reduced photobleaching and improved signal-to-background ratio, and can be applied to study intracellular transport or cytoskeletal dynamics in elongated protrusions.
OPTICS COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Baptiste Penlou, Olivier Roche, Michael Manga, Siet van den Wildenberg
Summary: The dynamics of geophysical dilute turbulent gas-particles mixtures are influenced by particle concentration, which depends mainly on particle settling velocity. This study investigates air-particle mixtures in a vertical pipe where the ascending air flux matches the settling velocity of glass particles. The results show an interplay between hindered settling and cluster-induced enhanced settling, which have implications for volcanic plumes and pyroclastic currents.
JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH-SOLID EARTH
(2023)
Review
Cell Biology
Malina K. Iwanski, Lukas C. Kapitein
Summary: Microtubules are essential for neuronal development and function, serving as tracks for intracellular transport and being involved in various neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative disorders. The polar nature and composition of microtubules, including tubulin isotypes, post-translational modifications, associated proteins, stability, and orientation, play important roles in their function. Understanding these features and their effects on transport and organization in neurons is crucial.
FRONTIERS IN CELL AND DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Christina Jayachandran, Arindam Ghosh, Meenakshi Prabhune, Jonathan Bath, Andrew J. J. Turberfield, Lara Hauke, Jorg Enderlein, Florian Rehfeldt, Christoph F. F. Schmidt
Summary: Mechanical forces play a critical role in various biological processes, including wound healing, tumor formation, cell migration, and differentiation. This study presents a FRET-based DNA-protein tension sensor designed to measure transient forces in actin networks. The sensor utilizes two actin-binding motifs with a fast off-rate attached to a central DNA hairpin loop. The conformational state of the sensor is determined using fluorescence lifetime imaging, enabling robust measurements even with intensity variations. The sensor's potential is demonstrated through confocal microscopy and monitoring of crosslinking activity in vitro using bulk rheology.
ACS APPLIED NANO MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Vadim Bogatyr, Andreas S. Biebricher, Giulia Bergamaschi, Erwin J. G. Peterman, Gijs J. L. Wuite
Summary: Studying cellular mechanics provides important insights into cell structure and health. The quantitative acoustophoresis (QAP) method allows simultaneous measurement of compressibility and density of multiple cells in a contact-free manner, offering a simple and effective alternative for studying biological particles. This technique not only measures mechanical properties of living cells, but can also sense artificial cytoskeletons, showing potential for a new approach in studying cellular mechanics.
ACS NANOSCIENCE AU
(2022)