Characterization and Reconstitution of Microtubule Assemblies by in vitro and in vivo Methods

当细胞分裂时，染色体形式的DNA被拉入两个新的子细胞。这种机器施加分离染色体所需的力，由微小的柔性管组成，我们称之为微管。 微管必须在细胞分裂过程中非常快速和精确地形成和生长。它们必须非常稳定，同时非常活跃，并不断得到补充。 为了制造这些微管，帮助它们生长，稳定它们并最终再次将它们分开，细胞使用一系列蛋白质，称为MAP（微管相关蛋白）。 虽然我们知道一些地图，这些蛋白质的绝大多数仍然没有得到很好的表征或完全未知。 我将鉴定新的MAP，并确定MAP与微管的确切相互作用。我将揭示这些蛋白质是否有助于微管的形成、生长、收缩或协助微管形成细胞分裂机制所需的任何其他特性。 在未来，我希望能够很好地理解机器，以便能够在试管中重新构建它，并在显微镜下观察它。 了解MAP和微管将有助于我们了解细胞如何分裂。细胞分裂的错误会导致疾病，例如癌症。因此，完全了解驱动细胞分裂的机器将非常有用。 我的工作也将增加有关MAP如何工作的知识，并帮助我们更好地了解这些蛋白质。 MAP和微管不仅参与细胞分裂。这些分子在从面包酵母到人脑细胞的每一个细胞中扮演着许多重要的角色。

When cells divide, the DNA in form of chromosomes is pulled into the two new daughter cells. The machinery that exerts the force necessary for separating the chromosomes and is made out of tiny flexible tubes, which we call microtubules. Microtubules have to form and grow very quickly and precisely during cell division. They have to be very stable and very dynamic at the same time and constantly be replenished. To make these microtubules, help them grow, stabilize them and ultimately break them apart again, cells use an army of proteins, called MAPs (microtubule-associated proteins). While we know some MAPs, the large majority of these proteins is still not well characterized or completely unknown. I will identify new MAPs and determine how exactly MAPs interact with microtubules. I will uncover if these proteins help microtubules to form, grow, shrink or assist in any of the other properties that microtubules need to form the cell division machinery. In the future, I would like to understand the machinery so well, that I will be able to re-build it from its parts in a test tube and observe it under a microscope. Learning about MAPs and microtubules will help us understand how cells divide. Errors in cell division can result in diseases, for example cancer. Therefore, a complete understanding of the machine that drives cell division will be immensely useful. My work will also increase the knowledge about how MAPs work and help us to understand these proteins better. MAPs and microtubules are not only involved in cell division. These molecules play many important roles in every cell from the small baker's yeast to human brain cells.