The third tubulin pool.
Tubulin normally undergoes a cycle of detyrosination/tyrosination on the carboxy terminus of its alpha-subunit and this results in subpopulations of tyrosinated tubulin and detyrosinated tubulin. Brain tubulin preparations also contain a third major tubulin subpopulation which is non-tyrosinatable. This review describes the purification and the structural characterization of non-tyrosinatable tubulin. This tubulin variant lacks a carboxyterminal glutamyl-tyrosine group on its alpha-subunit (delta2-tubulin). Delta2-tubulin is generated from detyrosinated tubulin through an irreversible reaction. Delta2-tubulin accumulates in neurons and in stable microtubule assemblies. It also accumulates in some tumor cells due to the frequent loss of tubulin tyrosine ligase in such cells. Delta2-tubulin may be a useful marker of malignancy in human tumors.
Lafanechère
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Laboratoire du Cytosquelette, INSERM U366, DBMS, Commissariat à l'Energie Atomique/Grenoble, France. llafanechere@cea.fr
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D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D006801:Humans; D008870:Microtubules / Q000378:metabolism; D009474:Neurons / Q000378:metabolism; D014404:Tubulin / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism; D014443:Tyrosine / Q000032:analysis / Q000737:chemistry
D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D014404:Tubulin; D014443:Tyrosine