The microtubule GTP-tubulin cap size is modulated during cell division.

ABSTRACT: Microtubule dynamics change during cell division to enable rapid microtubule network remodeling. The switching from microtubule growth to shrinkage is attributed to the loss of a stabilizing GTP-cap structure at the growing microtubule end. The size of the GTP-cap is a result of a balance between GTP-tubulin addition to the microtubule end and subsequent GTP-hydrolysis in the microtubule lattice. Whether the cell-cycle-dependent changes in microtubule dynamics are supported by concurrent modulation of the stabilizing GTP-cap size is not known. Here, we use high spatiotemporal resolution live-cell imaging of EB1, an established marker for the GTP-cap, to directly determine the relationship between GTP-cap size and microtubule growth rate throughout the cell cycle. Our data reveal that GTP-c

SUBMITTER: Cassidy AC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12871301 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature