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
. 2009 May 1;388(2):218-24.
doi: 10.1016/j.jmb.2009.03.008. Epub 2009 Mar 10.

9-Angström structure of a microtubule-bound mitotic motor

Andrew J Bodey  1 , Masahide Kikkawa, Carolyn A Moores
Affiliations

9-Angström structure of a microtubule-bound mitotic motor

Andrew J Bodey et al. J Mol Biol. .

Abstract

Kinesin-5 (K5) motors are important components of the microtubule (MT)-based cell division machinery and are targets for small-molecule inhibitors currently in cancer clinical trials. However, the nature of the K5-MT interaction and the regulatory mechanisms that control it remain unclear. Using cryo-electron microscopy and image processing, we calculated the structure of a K5 motor bound to MTs at 9 A resolution, providing insight into this important interaction. Our reconstruction reveals the K5 motor domain in an ATP-like conformation in which MT binding induces the conserved nucleotide-sensing switch I and II loops to form a compact subdomain around the bound nucleotide. Our reconstruction also reveals a novel conformation for the K5-specific drug-binding loop 5, suggesting a possible role for it in switching K5s between force generation and diffusional modes of MT binding. Our data thus shed light on regulation of the interaction between spindle components important for chromosome segregation.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

Publication types

Associated data

LinkOut - more resources