Regulation of Microtubule Dynamics by Protein: Interaction Networks at Microtubule Tips

Microtubules are cytoskeletal fi laments, which play essenti al roles in cell division, morphology, migrati on and organizati on of intracellular organelles. Many of these functi ons are regulated by the associati on of microtubule plus ends with a group of structurally diverse and unrelated proteins - the microtubule plus-end tracking proteins (+TIPs). This thesis describes how +TIPs infl uence microtubule dynamics, how the assembly of interacti on networks from a large number of +TIPs at the relati vely small MT end is regulated both in space and ti me, and how this contributes to the cellular functi ons. In additi on, this thesis addresses the identi fi cati on and characterizati on of proteins that control local microtubule dynamics at the cell cortex. Chapter 1 introduces the key players in the fi eld of microtubule dynamic instability.