MICROTUBULE POLYMERIZATION DYNAMICS

1997/11/01 by Arshad Desai, Timothy J. Mitchison · 18 citations
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · #Microtubule and mitosis dynamics #Photosynthetic Processes and Mechanisms #Cellular Mechanics and Interactions

paper · doi:10.1146/annurev.cellbio.13.1.83

openalex publication_date 1997/11/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/29

Abstract

The polymerization dynamics of microtubules are central to their biological functions. Polymerization dynamics allow microtubules to adopt spatial arrangements that can change rapidly in response to cellular needs and, in some cases, to perform mechanical work. Microtubules utilize the energy of GTP hydrolysis to fuel a unique polymerization mechanism termed dynamic instability. In this review, we first describe progress toward understanding the mechanism of dynamic instability of pure tubulin and then discuss the function and regulation of microtubule dynamic instability in living cells.

Citations

• Arrangement of subunits in flagellar microtubules
• Microtubule Formation in vitro in Solutions Containing Low Calcium Concentrations
• Tubulin-nucleotide interactions during the polymerization and depolymerization of microtubules

Cited by

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• Structural Insights into Microtubule Function
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• Molecular architecture of the kinetochore–microtubule interface
• Stochastic mechano-chemical kinetics of molecular motors: A multidisciplinary enterprise from a physicist’s perspective
• Regulation of Actin Filament Assembly by Arp2/3 Complex and Formins
• The Bacterial Actin-Like Cytoskeleton
• Mediation, Modulation, and Consequences of Membrane-Cytoskeleton Interactions
• Penrose-Hameroff orchestrated objective-reduction proposal for human consciousness is not biologically feasible
• Self-assembly of chiral tubules
• Consciousness, biology and quantum hypotheses
• Random Hydrolysis Controls the Dynamic Instability of Microtubules
• Prolonging assembly through dissociation: A self-assembly paradigm in microtubules
• Tubulin Bond Energies and Microtubule Biomechanics Determined from Nanoindentation in Silico
• Collective Langevin dynamics of flexible cytoskeletal fibers
• Intracellular transport driven by cytoskeletal motors: General mechanisms and defects
• FtsZ [wikipedia]
• Microtubule [wikipedia]