title: +TIPs: SxIPping along microtubule ends.
abstract: +TIPs are a heterogeneous class of proteins that specifically bind to growing microtubule ends. Because dynamic microtubules are essential for many intracellular processes, +TIPs play important roles in regulating microtubule dynamics and microtubule interactions with other intracellular structures. End-binding proteins (EBs) recognize a structural cap at growing microtubule ends, and have emerged as central adaptors that mediate microtubule plus-end tracking of potentially all other +TIPs. The majority of these +TIPs bind to EBs through a short hydrophobic (S/T)x(I/L)P sequence motif (SxIP) and surrounding electrostatic interactions. These recent discoveries have resulted in a rapid expansion of the number of possible +TIPs. In this review, we outline our current understanding of the molecular mechanism of plus-end tracking and provide an overview of SxIP-recruited +TIPs.
authors: Department of Cell and Tissue Biology, University of California San Francisco, 513 Parnassus Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA.
authors: Praveen
authors: P
authors: Kumar
authors: Torsten
authors: T
authors: Wittmann
mesh_terms: D020816:Amino Acid Motifs; D000818:Animals; D006801:Humans; D057927:Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions; D008869:Microtubule-Associated Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D008870:Microtubules / Q000378:metabolism*; D011485:Protein Binding
chemical_list: D008869:Microtubule-Associated Proteins