title: Capping protein levels influence actin assembly and cell motility in dictyostelium.
abstract: Actin assembly is important for cell motility, but the mechanism of assembly and how it relates to motility in vivo is largely unknown. In vitro, actin assembly can be controlled by proteins, such as capping protein, that bind filament ends. To investigate the function of actin assembly in vivo, we altered the levels of capping protein in Dictyostelium cells and found changes in resting and chemoattractant-induced actin assembly that were consistent with the in vitro properties of capping protein in capping but not nucleation. Significantly, overexpressers moved faster and underexpressers moved slower than control cells. Mutants also exhibited changes in cytoskeleton architecture. These results provide insights into in vivo actin assembly and the role of the actin cytoskeleton in motility.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri 63110, USA.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hug
authors.forename: P Y
authors.initials: PY
authors.lastname: Jay
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Reddy
authors.forename: J G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: McNally
authors.forename: P C
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Bridgman
authors.forename: E L
authors.initials: EL
authors.lastname: Elson
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Cooper
mesh_terms: D051339:Actin Depolymerizing Factors; D000199:Actins / Q000378:metabolism*; D000818:Animals; D002465:Cell Movement; D051345:Destrin; D004023:Dictyostelium / Q000502:physiology*; D008840:Microfilament Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000494:pharmacology; D009154:Mutation
chemical_list: D051339:Actin Depolymerizing Factors; D000199:Actins; D051345:Destrin; D008840:Microfilament Proteins