Interplay between velocity and travel distance of kinesin-based transport in the presence of tau.

ABSTRACT: Although the disease-relevant microtubule-associated protein tau is known to severely inhibit kinesin-based transport in vitro, the potential mechanisms for reversing this detrimental effect to maintain healthy transport in cells remain unknown. Here we report the unambiguous upregulation of multiple-kinesin travel distance despite the presence of tau, via decreased single-kinesin velocity. Interestingly, the presence of tau also modestly reduced cargo velocity in multiple-kinesin transport, and our stochastic simulations indicate that the tau-mediated reduction in single-kinesin travel underlies this observation. Taken together, our observations highlight a nontrivial interplay between velocity and travel distance for kinesin transport, and suggest that single-kinesin velocity is a promis

SUBMITTER: Xu J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3838731 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature