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
Editorial
. 2006 Dec 18;175(6):849-51.
doi: 10.1083/jcb.200611149.

Making more microtubules by severing: a common theme of noncentrosomal microtubule arrays?

Antonina Roll-Mecak  1 , Ronald D Vale
Affiliations
Editorial

Making more microtubules by severing: a common theme of noncentrosomal microtubule arrays?

Antonina Roll-Mecak et al. J Cell Biol. .

Abstract

Two related enzymes, katanin and spastin, use the energy from ATP hydrolysis to sever microtubules. Two new studies (one in this issue; see McNally et al., p. 881) show that microtubule severing by katanin provides a means for increasing microtubule density in meiotic spindles. Interestingly, loss of spastin leads to a sparser microtubule array in axons and synaptic boutons. Together, these studies hint at a wider role for microtubule-severing enzymes in the formation and organization of noncentrosomal microtubule arrays by generating new seeds for microtubule growth.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Model of microtubule severing in the meiotic spindle (top) and axon (bottom). Potential sites of action of microtubule-severing enzymes are indicated by scissors. Microtubules growing from severed ends are shown in dark blue.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment on

References

    1. Ahmad, F.J., W. Yu, F.J. McNally, and P.W. Baas. 1999. An essential role for katanin in severing microtubules in the neuron. J. Cell Biol. 145:305–315. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Clandinin, T.R., and P.E. Mains. 1993. Genetic studies of mei-1 gene activity during the transition from meiosis to mitosis in Caenorhabditis elegans. Genetics. 134:199–210. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Errico, A., P. Claudiani, M. D'Addio, and E.I. Rugarli. 2004. Spastin interacts with the centrosomal protein NA14, and is enriched in the spindle pole, the midbody and the distal axon. Hum. Mol. Genet. 13:2121–2132. - PubMed
    1. Evans, K.J., E.R. Gomes, S.M. Reisenweber, G.G. Gundersen, and B.P. Lauring. 2005. Linking axonal degeneration to microtubule remodeling by Spastin-mediated microtubule severing. J. Cell Biol. 168:599–606. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Hazan, J., N. Fonknechten, D. Mavel, C. Paternotte, D. Samson, F. Artiguenave, C.S. Davoine, C. Cruaud, A. Durr, P. Wincker, et al. 1999. Spastin, a new AAA protein, is altered in the most frequent form of autosomal dominant spastic paraplegia. Nat. Genet. 23:296–303. - PubMed

MeSH terms