Subgroup S

Subgroup S: Patterning the Cytoskeleton – PTMs, MAPs, ABPs

Saturday, December 8, 1:30 pm-5:30 pm
Room: 28E

Organizers: Antonina Roll-Mecak, National Institutes of Health; and Kristen Verhey, University of Michigan

The cytoskeleton consists of three interconnected filamentous networks—microtubules, actin filaments, intermediate filaments—that play critical roles in cell structure, division, migration, and intracellular trafficking. All microtubules are assembled from tubulin subunits and all actin filaments are assembled from actin monomers. Yet cells can generate specialized microtubule and actin filament structures with distinct spatial and temporal patterns and distinct functional outputs. How these specialized filaments are generated by cells and then “read” by filament-associated proteins is an area of active research. Recent work has shown that diversity in filament architecture can be provided by different actin or tubulin isotypes as well as chemically diverse posttranslational modifications (PTMs). In addition, diverse filament architectures are specified and regulated by a large number of accessory factors such as microtubule associated proteins (MAPs) and actin binding proteins (ABPs). In this subgroup, we will explore a variety of mechanisms for generating specific cytoskeletal structures (PTMs, MAPs, ABPs) as well as the functional output of these structures in a variety of experimental systems (yeast, flies, worms, mice, cell culture).

Presentations:

1:30 pm          Introduction. Antonina Roll-Mecak, National Institutes of Health

1:35 pm          Self-organization of the actin cytoskeleton for diverse functions in fission yeast. Dave Kovar, University of Chicago

1:55 pm          Site-specific oxidation by Mical primes actin for rapid disassembly. Elena Grintsevich, University of California, Los Angeles

2:15 pm          Reversible Redox post-translational modification of actin to control cellular form and function. Jonathan Terman, University of Texas Southwestern

2:35 pm          Microtubules Gate the Condensation of Tau to Locally Regulate Microtubule Function. Rick McKenney, University of California, Davis

2:55 pm          MAP6 proteins: from microtubule stabilization to actin dynamics in neurons. Annie Andrieux, CNRS Grenoble

3:15 pm          Break

3:35 pm          Microtubule organization during anaphase in human cells. Tarun Kapoor, Rockefeller University

3:55 pm          How to find readers of the tubulin code? Carsten Janke, Institute Curie, Paris

4:15 pm          Methylation versus acetylation at alpha tubulin K40. Kristen Verhey, University of Michigan

4:35 pm          Tubulin PTMs and their regulation of the heartbeat. Ben Prosser, University of Pennsylvania

4:55 pm          Microtubule dynamics away from the tips. Antonina Roll-Mecak, National Institutes of Health

5:15 pm          General discussion with all speakers

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