Evidence for two distinct binding sites for tau on microtubules

The microtubule-associated protein tau regulates diverse and essential microtubule functions, from the nucleation and promotion of microtubule polymerization to the regulation of microtubule polarity and dynamics, as well as the spacing and bundling of axonal microtubules. Thermodynamic studies show that tau interacts with microtubules in the low- to mid-nanomolar range, implying moderate binding affinity. At the same time, it is well established that microtubule-bound tau does not undergo exchange with the bulk medium readily, suggesting that the tau-microtubule interaction is essentially irreversible. Given this dilemma, we investigated the mechanism of interaction between tau and microtubules in kinetic detail. Stopped-flow kinetic analysis reveals moderate binding affinity between tau and preassembled microtubules and rapid dissociation/association kinetics. In contrast, when microtubules are generated by copolymerization of tubulin and tau, a distinct population of microtubule-bound tau is observed, the binding of which seems irreversible. We propose that reversible binding occurs between tau and the surface of preassembled microtubules, whereas irreversible binding results when tau is coassembled with tubulin into a tau-microtubule copolymer. Because the latter is expected to be physiologically relevant, its characterization is of central importance.