Novel myosin heavy chain kinase involved in disassembly of myosin II filaments and efficient cleavage in mitotic dictyostelium cells.

ABSTRACT: We have cloned a full-length cDNA encoding a novel myosin II heavy chain kinase (mhckC) from Dictyostelium. Like other members of the myosin heavy chain kinase family, the mhckC gene product, MHCK C, has a kinase domain in its N-terminal half and six WD repeats in the C-terminal half. GFP-MHCK C fusion protein localized to the cortex of interphase cells, to the cleavage furrow of mitotic cells, and to the posterior of migrating cells. These distributions of GFP-MHCK C always corresponded with that of myosin II filaments and were not observed in myosin II-null cells, where GFP-MHCK C was diffusely distributed in the cytoplasm. Thus, localization of MHCK C seems to be myosin II-dependent. Cells lacking the mhckC gene exhibited excessive aggregation of myosin II filaments in the cleavage furr

SUBMITTER: Nagasaki A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC138637 | biostudies-literature | 2002 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature