scholarly journals Generation of antisera that discriminate among mammalian alpha-tubulins: introduction of specialized isotypes into cultured cells results in their coassembly without disruption of normal microtubule function.

1988 ◽  
Vol 106 (6) ◽  
pp. 2011-2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
W Gu ◽  
S A Lewis ◽  
N J Cowan
Keyword(s):  
Immune Response ◽  
Fusion Proteins ◽  
Mammalian Cells ◽  
Cultured Cells ◽  
Alpha Tubulin ◽  
Tubulin Isotypes ◽  
Tubulin Isotype ◽  
Carboxy Terminal ◽  
Nih 3T3 ◽  
Shared Epitopes

To assay the functional significance of the multiple but closely related alpha-tubulin polypeptides that are expressed in mammalian cells, we generated three specific immune sera, each of which uniquely recognizes a distinct alpha-tubulin isotype. All three isotypes are expressed in a tissue-restricted manner: one (M alpha 3/7) only in mature testis, one (M alpha 4) mainly in muscle and brain, and the third (M alpha 6) in several tissues at a very low level. A fourth specific antiserum was also generated that distinguishes between the tyrosinated and nontyrosinated form of a single alpha-tubulin isotype. Because individual tubulin isotypes cannot be purified biochemically, these sera were raised using cloned fusion proteins purified from host Escherichia coli cells. To suppress the immune response to shared epitopes, animals were first rendered tolerant to fusion proteins encoding all but one of the known mammalian alpha-tubulin isotypes. Subsequent challenge with the remaining fusion protein then resulted in the elicitation of an immune response to unique epitopes. Three criteria were used to establish the specificity of the resulting sera: (a) their ability to discriminate among cloned fusion proteins representing all the known mammalian alpha-tubulin isotypes; (b) their ability to uniquely detect alpha-tubulin in whole extracts of tissues; and (c) their capacity to stain microtubules in fixed preparations of cells transfected with sequences encoding the corresponding isotype. The transfection experiments served to demonstrate (a) the coassembly of M alpha 3/7, M alpha 4, and M alpha 6 into both interphase and spindle microtubules in HeLa cells and NIH 3T3 cells, and (b) that the M alpha 4 isotype, which is unique among mammalian alpha-tubulins in that it lacks an encoded carboxy-terminal tyrosine residue, behaves like other alpha-tubulin isotypes with respect to the cycle of tyrosination/detyrosination that occurs in most cultured cells.

scholarly journals Complex regulation and functional versatility of mammalian alpha- and beta-tubulin isotypes during the differentiation of testis and muscle cells.

1988 ◽  
Vol 106 (6) ◽  
pp. 2023-2033 ◽  
Author(s):  
S A Lewis ◽  
N J Cowan
Keyword(s):  
Cell Types ◽  
Beta Tubulin ◽  
Specific Expression ◽  
Alpha Tubulin ◽  
Tubulin Isotypes ◽  
Tubulin Isotype ◽  
A Cell ◽  
Complex Regulation ◽  
Carboxy Terminal ◽  
Different Cell Types

In the accompanying paper (Gu, W., S. A. Lewis, and N. J. Cowan. 1988. J. Cell Biol. 106: 2011-2022), we report the generation of three antisera, each of which uniquely recognizes a different mammalian alpha-tubulin isotype, plus a fourth antibody that distinguishes between microtubules containing the tyrosinated and nontyrosinated form of the only known mammalian alpha-tubulin gene product that lacks an encoded carboxy-terminal tyrosine residue. These sera, together with five sera we raised that distinguish among the known mammalian beta-tubulin isotypes, have been used to study patterns of tubulin isotype-specific expression in muscle and testis, two tissues in which characteristic developmental changes are accompanied by dramatic rearrangements in microtubule structures. As in the case of cells in culture, there is no evidence to suggest that there is subcellular sorting of different tubulin isotypes among different kinds of microtubule, even in a cell type (the developing spermatid) that simultaneously contains such functionally distinct structures as the manchette and the flagellum. On the other hand, the patterns of expression of the various tubulin isotypes show marked and distinctive differences in different cell types and, in at least one case, evidence is presented for regulation at the translational or posttranslational level. The significance of these observations is discussed in terms of the existence of the mammalian alpha- and beta-tubulin multigene families.

A divergent testis-specific alpha-tubulin isotype that does not contain a coded C-terminal tyrosine

1987 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 552-555
Author(s):  
L F Pratt ◽  
S Okamura ◽  
D W Cleveland
Keyword(s):  
Variable Region ◽  
Amino Terminus ◽  
Cdna Clones ◽  
Its Sequence ◽  
Tyrosine Residue ◽  
Carboxy Terminus ◽  
Alpha Tubulin ◽  
Tubulin Isotypes ◽  
Tubulin Isotype ◽  
Carboxy Terminal

On the basis of analysis of cDNA clones of alpha-tubulin RNAs expressed during spermiogenesis in chickens, we report the identification of a novel alpha-tubulin which is expressed exclusively in chicken testes. Comparison of its sequence with those previously determined not only demonstrates that the encoded polypeptide is significantly divergent from other alpha-tubulins but also supports the hypothesis that alpha-tubulin isotypes are distinguished by a carboxy-terminal variable region sequence and, to a lesser extent, by a domain near the amino terminus. Since essentially all previously known alpha-tubulins undergo a unique cycle of removal and posttranslational readdition of a tyrosine residue at the extreme carboxy terminus, the presence in this testes alpha-tubulin of a very divergent carboxy terminus that does not contain an encoded tyrosine raises the possibility that this polypeptide does not participate in the usual cycle of tyrosination/detyrosination.

scholarly journals A divergent testis-specific alpha-tubulin isotype that does not contain a coded C-terminal tyrosine.

1987 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 552-555 ◽  
Author(s):  
L F Pratt ◽  
S Okamura ◽  
D W Cleveland
Keyword(s):  
Variable Region ◽  
Amino Terminus ◽  
Cdna Clones ◽  
Its Sequence ◽  
Tyrosine Residue ◽  
Carboxy Terminus ◽  
Alpha Tubulin ◽  
Tubulin Isotypes ◽  
Tubulin Isotype ◽  
Carboxy Terminal

On the basis of analysis of cDNA clones of alpha-tubulin RNAs expressed during spermiogenesis in chickens, we report the identification of a novel alpha-tubulin which is expressed exclusively in chicken testes. Comparison of its sequence with those previously determined not only demonstrates that the encoded polypeptide is significantly divergent from other alpha-tubulins but also supports the hypothesis that alpha-tubulin isotypes are distinguished by a carboxy-terminal variable region sequence and, to a lesser extent, by a domain near the amino terminus. Since essentially all previously known alpha-tubulins undergo a unique cycle of removal and posttranslational readdition of a tyrosine residue at the extreme carboxy terminus, the presence in this testes alpha-tubulin of a very divergent carboxy terminus that does not contain an encoded tyrosine raises the possibility that this polypeptide does not participate in the usual cycle of tyrosination/detyrosination.

scholarly journals Five mouse tubulin isotypes and their regulated expression during development.

1985 ◽  
Vol 101 (3) ◽  
pp. 852-861 ◽  
Author(s):  
S A Lewis ◽  
M G Lee ◽  
N J Cowan
Keyword(s):  
Developmental Expression ◽  
Beta Tubulin ◽  
Alpha Tubulin ◽  
Tubulin Isotypes ◽  
Tubulin Genes ◽  
Mouse Tissues ◽  
Tubulin Isotype ◽  
Specific Mrnas ◽  
Beta 2 ◽  
Carboxy Terminal

We describe five mouse tubulin cloned cDNAs, two (M alpha 1 and M alpha 2) that encode alpha-tubulin and three (M beta 2, M beta 4, and M beta 5) that encode beta-tubulin. The sequence of these clones reveals that each represents a distinct gene product. Within the sequence common to the two alpha-tubulin cDNAs, the encoded amino acids are identical, though the 3' noncoding regions are wholly dissimilar. In contrast, the three beta-tubulin cDNAs show considerable carboxy-terminal heterogeneity. Two of the beta-tubulin isotypes defined by the cloned sequences are absolutely conserved between mouse and human, and all three beta-tubulin isotypes are conserved between mouse and rat. This result implies the existence of selective constraints that have maintained sequence identity after species divergence. This conclusion is reinforced by the near identity between a third mouse beta-tubulin isotype and a chicken beta-tubulin isotype. The significance of the interspecies conservation of tubulin isotypes is discussed in relationship to microtubule function. We have used non-cross-hybridizing 3' noncoding region probes from the five cloned mouse tubulin cDNAs to study the developmental expression of each isotype in various mouse tissues. M alpha 1 and M beta 2 are expressed in an approximately coordinate fashion, and their transcripts are most abundant in brain and lung. M alpha 2 and M beta 5 are ubiquitously expressed and to a similar extent in each tissue, with the greatest abundance in spleen, thymus, and immature brain. In contrast, M beta 4 is expressed exclusively in brain. Whereas the expression of the latter isotype increases dramatically during postnatal development, transcripts from all four other tubulin genes decline from maximum levels at or before birth. Tissue-specific development changes in the abundance of tubulin isotype-specific mRNAs are discussed in relationship to organogenesis in the mouse.

scholarly journals Six mouse alpha-tubulin mRNAs encode five distinct isotypes: testis-specific expression of two sister genes.

1986 ◽  
Vol 6 (7) ◽  
pp. 2409-2419 ◽  
Author(s):  
A Villasante ◽  
D Wang ◽  
P Dobner ◽  
P Dolph ◽  
S A Lewis ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Duplication Event ◽  
Developmental Expression ◽  
Untranslated Regions ◽  
Coding Region ◽  
Specific Expression ◽  
Translational Initiation ◽  
Alpha Tubulin ◽  
Tubulin Isotypes ◽  
Tubulin Isotype ◽  
Genes Encoding

Five mouse alpha-tubulin isotypes are described, each distinguished by the presence of unique amino acid substitutions within the coding region. Most, though not all of these isotype-specific amino acids, are clustered at the carboxy terminus. One of the alpha-tubulin isotypes described is expressed exclusively in testis and is encoded by two closely related genes (M alpha 3 and M alpha 7) which have homologous 3' untranslated regions but which differ at multiple third codon positions and in their 5' untranslated regions. We show that a subfamily of alpha-tubulin genes encoding the same testis-specific isotype also exists in humans. Thus, we conclude that the duplication event leading to a pair of genes encoding a testis-specific alpha-tubulin isotype predated the mammalian radiation, and both members of the duplicated sequence have been maintained since species divergence. A second alpha-tubulin gene, M alpha 6, is expressed ubiquitously at a low level, whereas a third gene, M alpha 4, is unique in that it does not encode a carboxy-terminal tyrosine residue. This gene yields two transcripts: a 1.8-kilobase (kb) mRNA that is abundant in muscle and a 2.4-kb mRNA that is abundant in testis. Whereas the 1.8-kb mRNA encodes a distinct alpha-tubulin isotype, the 2.4-kb mRNA is defective in that the methionine residue required for translational initiation is missing. Patterns of developmental expression of the various alpha-tubulin isotypes are presented. Our data support the view that individual tubulin isotypes are capable of conferring functional specificity on different kinds of microtubules.

Assembly properties of altered beta-tubulin polypeptides containing disrupted autoregulatory domains

1989 ◽  
Vol 9 (8) ◽  
pp. 3418-3428
Author(s):  
W Gu ◽  
N J Cowan
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Amino Acid ◽  
Beta Tubulin ◽  
Alpha Tubulin ◽  
Amino Terminal ◽  
Terminal Domain ◽  
Tubulin Isotype ◽  
The Stability ◽  
Carboxy Terminal ◽  
Amino Terminal Domain

beta-Tubulin synthesis in eucaryotic cells is subject to control by an autoregulatory posttranscriptional mechanism in which the first four amino acids of the beta-tubulin polypeptide act either directly or indirectly to control the stability of beta-tubulin mRNA. To investigate the contribution of this amino-terminal domain to microtubule assembly and dynamics, we introduced a series of deletions encompassing amino acids 2 to 5 of a single mammalian beta-tubulin isotype, M beta 1. Constructs carrying such deletions were inserted into an expression vector, and the ability of the altered polypeptide to coassemble into microtubules was tested by using an anti-M beta 1-specific antibody. We show that the M beta 1 beta-tubulin polypeptide was competent for coassembly into microtubules in transient transfection experiments and in stably transfected cell lines when it lacked either amino acid 2 or amino acids 2 and 3. The capacity of these mutant beta-tubulins to coassemble into polymerized microtubules was only slightly diminished relative to that of unaltered beta-tubulin, and their expression did not influence the viability or growth properties of cell lines carrying these deletions. However, more extensive amino-terminal deletions either severely compromised or abolished the capacity for coassembly. In analogous experiments in which alterations were introduced into the amino-terminal domain of a mammalian alpha-tubulin isotype, M alpha 4, deletion of amino acid 2 did not affect the ability of the altered polypeptide to coassemble, although removal of additional amino-terminal residues essentially abolished the capacity for competent coassembly. The stability of the altered assembly-competent alpha- and beta-tubulin polypeptides was measured in pulse-chase experiments and found to be indistinguishable from the stability of the corresponding unaltered polypeptides. An assembly-competent M alpha 4 polypeptide carrying a deletion encompassing the 12 carboxy-terminal amino acids also had a half-life indistinguishable from that of the wild-type alpha-tubulin molecule. These data suggest that the universally conserved amino terminus of beta-tubulin acts largely in a regulatory role and that the carboxy-terminal domain of alpha-tubulin is not essential for coassembly in mammalian cells in vivo.

scholarly journals Assembly properties of altered beta-tubulin polypeptides containing disrupted autoregulatory domains.

1989 ◽  
Vol 9 (8) ◽  
pp. 3418-3428 ◽  
Author(s):  
W Gu ◽  
N J Cowan
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Amino Acid ◽  
Beta Tubulin ◽  
Alpha Tubulin ◽  
Amino Terminal ◽  
Terminal Domain ◽  
Tubulin Isotype ◽  
The Stability ◽  
Carboxy Terminal ◽  
Amino Terminal Domain

beta-Tubulin synthesis in eucaryotic cells is subject to control by an autoregulatory posttranscriptional mechanism in which the first four amino acids of the beta-tubulin polypeptide act either directly or indirectly to control the stability of beta-tubulin mRNA. To investigate the contribution of this amino-terminal domain to microtubule assembly and dynamics, we introduced a series of deletions encompassing amino acids 2 to 5 of a single mammalian beta-tubulin isotype, M beta 1. Constructs carrying such deletions were inserted into an expression vector, and the ability of the altered polypeptide to coassemble into microtubules was tested by using an anti-M beta 1-specific antibody. We show that the M beta 1 beta-tubulin polypeptide was competent for coassembly into microtubules in transient transfection experiments and in stably transfected cell lines when it lacked either amino acid 2 or amino acids 2 and 3. The capacity of these mutant beta-tubulins to coassemble into polymerized microtubules was only slightly diminished relative to that of unaltered beta-tubulin, and their expression did not influence the viability or growth properties of cell lines carrying these deletions. However, more extensive amino-terminal deletions either severely compromised or abolished the capacity for coassembly. In analogous experiments in which alterations were introduced into the amino-terminal domain of a mammalian alpha-tubulin isotype, M alpha 4, deletion of amino acid 2 did not affect the ability of the altered polypeptide to coassemble, although removal of additional amino-terminal residues essentially abolished the capacity for competent coassembly. The stability of the altered assembly-competent alpha- and beta-tubulin polypeptides was measured in pulse-chase experiments and found to be indistinguishable from the stability of the corresponding unaltered polypeptides. An assembly-competent M alpha 4 polypeptide carrying a deletion encompassing the 12 carboxy-terminal amino acids also had a half-life indistinguishable from that of the wild-type alpha-tubulin molecule. These data suggest that the universally conserved amino terminus of beta-tubulin acts largely in a regulatory role and that the carboxy-terminal domain of alpha-tubulin is not essential for coassembly in mammalian cells in vivo.

scholarly journals In vivo microtubules are copolymers of available beta-tubulin isotypes: localization of each of six vertebrate beta-tubulin isotypes using polyclonal antibodies elicited by synthetic peptide antigens.

1987 ◽  
Vol 105 (4) ◽  
pp. 1707-1720 ◽  
Author(s):  
M A Lopata ◽  
D W Cleveland
Keyword(s):  
Polyclonal Antibodies ◽  
Cell Types ◽  
Amino Acid Residues ◽  
Beta Tubulin ◽  
Tubulin Isotypes ◽  
Peptide Antigens ◽  
Tubulin Isotype ◽  
Carboxy Terminal ◽  
Different Cell Types

beta-Tubulin is encoded in the genomes of higher animals by a small multigene family comprising approximately seven functional genes. These genes produce a family of closely related, but distinct polypeptide isotypes that are distinguished principally by sequences within the approximately 15 carboxy-terminal amino acid residues. By immunizing rabbits with chemically synthesized peptides corresponding to these variable domain sequences, we have now prepared polyclonal antibodies specific for each of six distinct isotypes. Specificity of each antiserum has been demonstrated unambiguously by antibody binding to bacterially produced, cloned proteins representing each isotype and by the inhibition of such binding by preincubation of each antiserum only with the immunizing peptide and not with heterologous peptides. Protein blotting of known amounts of cloned, isotypically pure polypeptides has permitted accurate quantitative measurement of the amount of each beta-tubulin isotype present in the soluble and polymer forms in various cells, but has not revealed a bias for preferential assembly of any isotype. Localization of each isotype in three different cell types using indirect immunofluorescence has demonstrated that in vivo each class of microtubules distinguishable by light microscopy is assembled as copolymers of all isotypes expressed in a single cell.

Six mouse alpha-tubulin mRNAs encode five distinct isotypes: testis-specific expression of two sister genes

1986 ◽  
Vol 6 (7) ◽  
pp. 2409-2419
Author(s):  
A Villasante ◽  
D Wang ◽  
P Dobner ◽  
P Dolph ◽  
S A Lewis ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Duplication Event ◽  
Developmental Expression ◽  
Untranslated Regions ◽  
Coding Region ◽  
Specific Expression ◽  
Translational Initiation ◽  
Alpha Tubulin ◽  
Tubulin Isotypes ◽  
Tubulin Isotype ◽  
Genes Encoding

Five mouse alpha-tubulin isotypes are described, each distinguished by the presence of unique amino acid substitutions within the coding region. Most, though not all of these isotype-specific amino acids, are clustered at the carboxy terminus. One of the alpha-tubulin isotypes described is expressed exclusively in testis and is encoded by two closely related genes (M alpha 3 and M alpha 7) which have homologous 3' untranslated regions but which differ at multiple third codon positions and in their 5' untranslated regions. We show that a subfamily of alpha-tubulin genes encoding the same testis-specific isotype also exists in humans. Thus, we conclude that the duplication event leading to a pair of genes encoding a testis-specific alpha-tubulin isotype predated the mammalian radiation, and both members of the duplicated sequence have been maintained since species divergence. A second alpha-tubulin gene, M alpha 6, is expressed ubiquitously at a low level, whereas a third gene, M alpha 4, is unique in that it does not encode a carboxy-terminal tyrosine residue. This gene yields two transcripts: a 1.8-kilobase (kb) mRNA that is abundant in muscle and a 2.4-kb mRNA that is abundant in testis. Whereas the 1.8-kb mRNA encodes a distinct alpha-tubulin isotype, the 2.4-kb mRNA is defective in that the methionine residue required for translational initiation is missing. Patterns of developmental expression of the various alpha-tubulin isotypes are presented. Our data support the view that individual tubulin isotypes are capable of conferring functional specificity on different kinds of microtubules.

scholarly journals 2-(m-Azidobenzoyl)taxol binds differentially to distinct β-tubulin isotypes

2016 ◽  
Vol 113 (40) ◽  
pp. 11294-11299 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chia-Ping Huang Yang ◽  
Eng-Hui Yap ◽  
Hui Xiao ◽  
Andras Fiser ◽  
Susan Band Horwitz
Keyword(s):  
Mammalian Cells ◽  
Bovine Brain ◽  
Drug Binding ◽  
Dynamic Simulations ◽  
Altered Expression ◽  
Stabilizing Agents ◽  
Tubulin Isotypes ◽  
Tubulin Isotype ◽  
Different Sources ◽  
Β Tubulin

There are seven β-tubulin isotypes present in distinct quantities in mammalian cells of different origin. Altered expression of β-tubulin isotypes has been reported in cancer cell lines resistant to microtubule stabilizing agents (MSAs) and in human tumors resistant to Taxol. To study the relative binding affinities of MSAs, tubulin from different sources, with distinct β-tubulin isotype content, were specifically photolabeled with a tritium-labeled Taxol analog, 2-(m-azidobenzoyl)taxol, alone or in the presence of MSAs. The inhibitory effects elicited by these MSAs on photolabeling were distinct for β-tubulin from different sources. To determine the exact amount of drug that binds to different β-tubulin isotypes, bovine brain tubulin was photolabeled and the isotypes resolved by high-resolution isoelectrofocusing. All bands were analyzed by mass spectrometry following cyanogen bromide digestion, and the identity and relative quantity of each β-tubulin isotype determined. It was found that compared with other β-tubulin isotypes, βIII-tubulin bound the least amount of 2-(m-azidobenzoyl)taxol. Analysis of the sequences of β-tubulin near the Taxol binding site indicated that, in addition to the M-loop that is known to be involved in drug binding, the leucine cluster region of βIII-tubulin contains a unique residue, alanine, at 218, compared with other isotypes that contain threonine. Molecular dynamic simulations indicated that the frequency of Taxol-accommodating conformations decreased dramatically in the T218A variant, compared with other β-tubulins. Our results indicate that the difference in residue 218 in βIII-tubulin may be responsible for inhibition of drug binding to this isotype, which could influence downstream cellular events.

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