Electron microscopic visualization of the filament binding mode of actin-binding proteins

Takuto Ito, Tasuku Hirayama, Masayasu Taki, Shohei Iyoshi, Shuheng Dai, Shuichi Takeda, Chieko Kimura-Sakiyama, Toshiro Oda, Yukio Yamamoto, Yuichiro Maéda, Akihiro Narita

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

3 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

A large number of actin-binding proteins (ABPs) regulate various kinds of cellular events in which the superstructure of the actin cytoskeleton is dynamically changed. Thus, to understand the actin dynamics in the cell, the mechanisms of actin regulation by ABPs must be elucidated. Moreover, it is particularly important to identify the side, barbed-end or pointed-end ABP binding sites on the actin filament. However, a simple, reliable method to determine the ABP binding sites on the actin filament is missing. Here, a novel electron microscopic method for determining the ABP binding sites is presented. This approach uses a gold nanoparticle that recognizes a histidine tag on an ABP and an image analysis procedure that can determine the polarity of the actin filament. This method will facilitate future study of ABPs.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)26-39
Number of pages14
JournalJournal of Molecular Biology
Volume408
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Apr 22 2011
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • actin filament
  • end-binding proteins
  • gold nanoparticle
  • image analysis
  • transmission electron microscopy

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Structural Biology
  • Molecular Biology

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