Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2001 Mar;3(3):259-66.
doi: 10.1038/35060051.

Activation of Arp2/3 complex-mediated actin polymerization by cortactin

T Uruno  1 , J Liu, P Zhang, Fan Yx, C Egile, R Li, S C Mueller, X Zhan
Affiliations

Activation of Arp2/3 complex-mediated actin polymerization by cortactin

T Uruno et al. Nat Cell Biol. 2001 Mar.

Abstract

Cortactin, a filamentous actin (F-actin)-associated protein and prominent substrate of Src, is implicated in progression of breast tumours through gene amplification at chromosome 11q13. However, the function of cortactin remains obscure. Here we show that cortactin co-localizes with the Arp2/3 complex, a de novo actin nucleator, at dynamic particulate structures enriched with actin filaments. Cortactin binds directly to the Arp2/3 complex and activates it to promote nucleation of actin filaments. The interaction of cortactin with the Arp2/3 complex occurs at an amino-terminal domain that is rich in acidic amino acids. Mutations in a conserved amino-acid sequence of DDW abolish both the interaction with the Arp2/3 complex and complex activation. The N-terminal domain is not only essential but also sufficient to target cortactin to actin-enriched patches within cells. Interestingly, the ability of cortactin to activate the Arp2/3 complex depends on an activity for F-actin binding, which is almost 20-fold higher than that of the Arp2/3 complex. Our data indicate a new mechanism for activation of actin polymerization involving an enhanced interaction between the Arp2/3 complex and actin filaments.

PubMed Disclaimer

Comment in

  • New tricks for an old dog?
    Zettl M, Way M. Zettl M, et al. Nat Cell Biol. 2001 Mar;3(3):E74-5. doi: 10.1038/35060152. Nat Cell Biol. 2001. PMID: 11231591 No abstract available.

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

Publication types

MeSH terms