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Perspectives
Motors and Their Tethers: The Role of Secondary Binding Sites in Processive Motility
Margaret M Kincaid and Stephen J King
volume 5 | issue 23
1 december 2006Pages: 2733 - 2737
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Cytoskeletal motors convert the energy from binding and hydrolyzing ATP into conformational changes that direct movement along a cytoskeletal polymer substrate. These enzymes utilize different mechanisms to generate long-range motion on the order of a micron or more that is required for functions ranging from muscle contraction to transport of growth factors along a nerve axon. Several of the individual cytoskeletal motors are processive, meaning that they have the ability to take sequential steps along their polymer substrate without dissociating from the polymer. This ability to maintain contact with the polymer allows individual motors to move cargos quickly from one cellular location to another. Many of the processive motors have now been found to utilize secondary binding sites that aid in motor processivity.
Authors
Margaret M Kincaid
University of Missouri-Kansas City, Kansas City, MO
Stephen J King
University of Missouri-Kansas City, Kansas City, MO
We now provide open access to journal articles published online for one year or more. This article may be downloaded at the following link:
Download PDF If the document does not open, please right-click on the link (control-click on a Macintosh) and select the option to save the file to disk.