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Related Experiment Videos

How calcium causes microtubule depolymerization

E T O'Brien1, E D Salmon, H P Erickson

  • 1Department of Ophthalmology and Cell Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina 27710, USA.

Cell Motility and the Cytoskeleton
|January 1, 1997
PubMed
Summary
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Calcium (Ca) destabilizes microtubules by increasing the catastrophe rate, particularly above 0.5 mM. This effect on microtubule dynamics is observed even with microtubule-associated proteins present.

Area of Science:

  • Cell Biology
  • Biochemistry

Background:

  • Microtubules are dynamic polymers crucial for cell structure and function.
  • Microtubule dynamics are regulated by various factors, including associated proteins and ions.
  • Calcium ions (Ca) are important cellular signaling molecules with known effects on protein function.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the direct effects of calcium on microtubule dynamics in vitro.
  • To determine if calcium influences microtubule growth, shortening, or catastrophe rates.
  • To assess the role of microtubule-associated proteins (MAPs) in calcium's effect on microtubules.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized video-enhanced differential interference contrast light microscopy for real-time observation of individual microtubules.
  • Assembled porcine brain tubulin onto sperm axoneme fragments in a flow chamber.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Introduced calcium (Ca) to observe changes in microtubule growth and shortening patterns.

    • Main Results:

    • Calcium promoted microtubule disassembly by increasing the catastrophe reaction rate in both purified and MAP-containing microtubules.
    • The effect on catastrophe frequency was highly sensitive to free Ca concentrations above 0.5 mM.
    • Calcium decreased rescue rates and increased shortening rates in purified microtubules, while MAP-containing microtubules showed less sensitivity.

    Conclusions:

    • Calcium directly destabilizes growing microtubule ends, independent of free tubulin concentration.
    • Microtubule-associated proteins modulate the response of microtubules to calcium.
    • Calcium may enhance GTP hydrolysis within the microtubule's GTP cap, contributing to destabilization.