A thermodynamic model of microtubule assembly and disassembly. 2009

Bernard M A G Piette, and Junli Liu, and Kasper Peeters, and Andrei Smertenko, and Timothy Hawkins, and Michael Deeks, and Roy Quinlan, and Wojciech J Zakrzewski, and Patrick J Hussey
Biophysical Sciences Institute, University of Durham, Durham, UK. b.m.a.g.piette@durham.ac.uk

Microtubules are self-assembling polymers whose dynamics are essential for the normal function of cellular processes including chromosome separation and cytokinesis. Therefore understanding what factors effect microtubule growth is fundamental to our understanding of the control of microtubule based processes. An important factor that determines the status of a microtubule, whether it is growing or shrinking, is the length of the GTP tubulin microtubule cap. Here, we derive a Monte Carlo model of the assembly and disassembly of microtubules. We use thermodynamic laws to reduce the number of parameters of our model and, in particular, we take into account the contribution of water to the entropy of the system. We fit all parameters of the model from published experimental data using the GTP tubulin dimer attachment rate and the lateral and longitudinal binding energies of GTP and GDP tubulin dimers at both ends. Also we calculate and incorporate the GTP hydrolysis rate. We have applied our model and can mimic published experimental data, which formerly suggested a single layer GTP tubulin dimer microtubule cap, to show that these data demonstrate that the GTP cap can fluctuate and can be several microns long.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D008870 Microtubules Slender, cylindrical filaments found in the cytoskeleton of plant and animal cells. They are composed of the protein TUBULIN and are influenced by TUBULIN MODULATORS. Microtubule
D009010 Monte Carlo Method In statistics, a technique for numerically approximating the solution of a mathematical problem by studying the distribution of some random variable, often generated by a computer. The name alludes to the randomness characteristic of the games of chance played at the gambling casinos in Monte Carlo. (From Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed, 1993) Method, Monte Carlo
D006153 Guanosine Diphosphate A guanine nucleotide containing two phosphate groups esterified to the sugar moiety. GDP,Guanosine 5'-Diphosphate,Guanosine 5'-Trihydrogen Diphosphate,5'-Diphosphate, Guanosine,5'-Trihydrogen Diphosphate, Guanosine,Diphosphate, Guanosine,Diphosphate, Guanosine 5'-Trihydrogen,Guanosine 5' Diphosphate,Guanosine 5' Trihydrogen Diphosphate
D006160 Guanosine Triphosphate Guanosine 5'-(tetrahydrogen triphosphate). A guanine nucleotide containing three phosphate groups esterified to the sugar moiety. GTP,Triphosphate, Guanosine
D006868 Hydrolysis The process of cleaving a chemical compound by the addition of a molecule of water.
D001665 Binding Sites The parts of a macromolecule that directly participate in its specific combination with another molecule. Combining Site,Binding Site,Combining Sites,Site, Binding,Site, Combining,Sites, Binding,Sites, Combining
D013816 Thermodynamics A rigorously mathematical analysis of energy relationships (heat, work, temperature, and equilibrium). It describes systems whose states are determined by thermal parameters, such as temperature, in addition to mechanical and electromagnetic parameters. (From Hawley's Condensed Chemical Dictionary, 12th ed) Thermodynamic
D014404 Tubulin A microtubule subunit protein found in large quantities in mammalian brain. It has also been isolated from SPERM FLAGELLUM; CILIA; and other sources. Structurally, the protein is a dimer with a molecular weight of approximately 120,000 and a sedimentation coefficient of 5.8S. It binds to COLCHICINE; VINCRISTINE; and VINBLASTINE. alpha-Tubulin,beta-Tubulin,delta-Tubulin,epsilon-Tubulin,gamma-Tubulin,alpha Tubulin,beta Tubulin,delta Tubulin,epsilon Tubulin,gamma Tubulin
D019281 Dimerization The process by which two molecules of the same chemical composition form a condensation product or polymer. Dimerizations

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