title: Directional switching of the kinesin Cin8 through motor coupling.
abstract: Kinesin motor proteins are thought to move exclusively in either one or the other direction along microtubules. Proteins of the kinesin-5 family are tetrameric microtubule cross-linking motors important for cell division and differentiation in various organisms. Kinesin-5 motors are considered to be plus-end-directed. However, here we found that purified kinesin-5 Cin8 from budding yeast could behave as a bidirectional kinesin. On individual microtubules, single Cin8 motors were minus-end-directed motors, whereas they switched to plus-end-directed motility when working in a team of motors sliding antiparallel microtubules apart. This kinesin can thus change directionality of movement depending on whether it acts alone or in an ensemble.
authors.affiliation: Zentrum für Molekulare Biologie der Universität Heidelberg, DKFZ-ZMBH Allianz, Im Neuenheimer Feld 282, Heidelberg 69120, Germany.
authors.forename: Johanna
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Roostalu
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hentrich
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bieling
authors.forename: Ivo A
authors.initials: IA
authors.lastname: Telley
authors.forename: Elmar
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Schiebel
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Surrey
mesh_terms: D016547:Kinesins / Q000502:physiology*; D008870:Microtubules / Q000502:physiology; D020409:Molecular Motor Proteins / Q000502:physiology*; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D012441:Saccharomyces cerevisiae / Q000502:physiology; D029701:Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: C075342:CIN8 protein, S cerevisiae; D020409:Molecular Motor Proteins; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D029701:Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins; D016547:Kinesins