Cilia control homeostasis of the mammalian body by generating fluid flow. It has long been assumed that ciliary length-control mechanisms are essential for proper flow generation, because fluid flow generation is a function of ciliary length. However, the molecular mechanisms of ciliary length control in mammals remain elusive. Here, we suggest that KIF19A, a member of the kinesin superfamily, regulates ciliary length by depolymerizing microtubules at the tips of cilia. Kif19a(-/-) mice displayed hydrocephalus and female infertility phenotypes due to abnormally elongated cilia that cannot generate proper fluid flow. KIF19A localized to cilia tips, and recombinant KIF19A controlled the length of microtubules polymerized from axonemes in vitro. KIF19A had ATP-dependent microtubule-depolymerizing activity mainly at the plus end of microtubules. Our results indicated a molecular mechanism of ciliary length regulation in mammals, which plays an important role in the maintenance of the mammalian body.

KIF5 (also known as kinesin-1) family members, consisting of KIF5A, KIF5B, and KIF5C, are microtubule-dependent molecular motors that are important for neuronal function. Among the KIF5s, KIF5A is neuron specific and highly expressed in the central nervous system. However, the specific roles of KIF5A remain unknown. Here, we established conditional Kif5a-knockout mice in which KIF5A protein expression was postnatally suppressed in neurons. Epileptic phenotypes were observed by electroencephalogram abnormalities in knockout mice because of impaired GABA(A) receptor (GABA(A)R)-mediated synaptic transmission. We also identified reduced cell surface expression of GABA(A)R in knockout neurons. Importantly, we identified that KIF5A specifically interacted with GABA(A)R-associated protein (GABARAP) that is known to be involved in GABA(A)R trafficking. KIF5A regulated neuronal surface expression of GABA(A)Rs via an interaction with GABARAP. These results provide an insight into the molecular mechanisms of KIF5A, which regulate inhibitory neural transmission.

No abstract

We observed two-dimensional (2D) nucleation behavior on {110} and {101} faces of tetragonal crystals of model protein lysozyme by laser confocal microscopy combined with differential interference contrast microscopy (LCM-DIM). We measured, for the first time directly and noninvasively, the 2D nucleation rates using 99.99% pure lysozyme, 98.5% pure lysozyme (Seikagaku Co.), and 99.99% pure lysozyme with intentionally added impure proteins (fluorescent-labeled lysozyme, covalently bonded dimer of lysozyme, and 18 kDa polypeptide). We found that 2D nucleation was the dominant growth mechanism under conditions adopted in this study, and the 2D nucleation occurred randomly on the entire crystal surface irrespective of supersaturation within the range of σ ) ln(C/C e ) ) 0-1.4, where C is a bulk lysozyme concentration and C e the solubility (crystal size: 0.2-0.3 mm). Repeated 2D nucleation, which continued for 3-4 layers, was also observed mainly when the impure proteins were present. In addition, multilayered 2D islands were formed after the adsorption of relatively large foreign particles on the crystal surface. From the comparison between the 2D nucleation rates determined on the {110} faces with and without the impure proteins, we concluded that homogeneous 2D nucleation occurred under a higher supersaturation range (σ > 0.8), irrespective of the presence of the impurities. In contrast, under a lower supersaturation range (σ < 0.8), we found that significant heterogeneous 2D nucleation dominated the growth mainly when the impure proteins were present. The {101} faces exhibited more significant heterogeneous 2D nucleation induced by smaller amounts of impurities than in the case of the {110} faces. We also determined the ledge free energies of the homogeneous and heterogeneous nucleation. Within the experimental conditions used in this study, we could not find significant dependence of the ledge free energies of the heterogeneous nucleation on the kinds of impure proteins.

No abstract