Expression of cold-adapted beta-tubulins confer cold-tolerance to human cellular microtubules.

• Isolated microtubule proteins from the cold-adapted fish, Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua), assemble at temperatures between 8 and 30 degrees C, while avian and mammalian microtubules normally do not assemble at temperatures below 20 degrees C. Tubulin, the main component in microtubules, is expressed as many isotypes. Microtubules with different isotype composition have been shown to have different dynamic properties in vitro. Our hypothesis was that cold-tolerance of microtubules is caused by tubulin isotypes that differ in the primary sequence compared to mammalian tubulins. Here we show that transfection of human HepG2 cells with cod beta-tubulin induced cold-adaptation of the endogenous microtubules. Incorporation of one single tubulin isotype can induce cold-tolerance to cold-intolerant microtubules. Three cod beta-tubulin isotypes were tested and two of these (beta1 and beta2) transferred cold-tolerance to HepG2 microtubules, thus not all cod beta-tubulins were able to confer cold-stability.

Subject headings

NATURVETENSKAP  -- Biologi -- Biokemi och molekylärbiologi (hsv//swe)

NATURAL SCIENCES  -- Biological Sciences -- Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (hsv//eng)

Keyword

Acclimatization

Amino Acid Sequence

Animals

Brain

physiology

Cold Temperature

Fishes

Gene Library

Humans

Mammals

Microtubules

physiology

Molecular Sequence Data

Protein Isoforms

chemistry

genetics

physiology

Recombinant Proteins

chemistry

metabolism

Sequence Alignment

Sequence Homology

Amino Acid

Transfection

Tubulin

chemistry

genetics

physiology

Tumor Cells

Cultured

Publication and Content Type

ref (subject category)

art (subject category)