Stochastic data analysis for the assembly and disassembly of microtubules in vitro

Abstract

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the stochastic data analysis for the assembly and disassembly of microtubules (MTs) in vitro. MTs are formed both in vivo and in vitro from the heterodimer tubulin, a protein formed from α-tubulin and β-tubulin. An individual MT is a hollow cylinder usually built from 13 linear protofilaments, each of which is composed of alternating α- and β-subunits. MT polymerization and especially depolymerization processes are very complex, and many of their aspects are still poorly understood at a microscopic level. The formation of individual MT is characterized by the so-called “dynamic instability phenomenon.” It turns out that only guanosine triphosphate (GTP)-rich tubulin in the solution is capable of binding to a MT. Careful electron microscopy observations indicate the existence of several stages in the development of a single MT. An initial nucleation stage from seed oligomers (typically consisting of γ-tubulin) tends to occur slowly, reaching an asymptotic density of MT ends after a period of 3000 s.