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Updated: Jun 19, 2026

Directly Measuring Forces Within Reconstituted Active Microtubule Bundles
Published on: May 10, 2022
[Plus end tracking proteins and their role in mitotic spindle organization]
Seweryn Bajer1, Andrzej A Kasprzak
1Pracownia Białek Motorycznych, Zakład Biochemii, Instytut Biologii Doświadczalnej im. Marcelego Nenckiego, Warszawa.
Abstract:
Plus end tracking proteins (+TIPs) form a diverse protein family, members of which were found in all eukaryotes. Their characteristic feature is the ability of localisation on dynamically growing plus ends of microtubules. +TIPs perform many important functions during mitosis: they control microtubule growth, the recruitment of other proteins to the microtubule plus end and promote the interaction of microtubules with other elements of the spindle. In the article we describe the structure of main +TIPs groups, focusing especially on domains responsible for plus end tracking. We also discuss several mechanisms for plus-end accumulation, the influence of these proteins on microtubule dynamics and their importance in the spindle organization.
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