Vesicle-Microtubule Interaction and Fast Axonal Transport

细胞内膜结合颗粒从细胞的一个区域到另一个区域的能量驱动运动是由转运分子介导的，转运分子沿着微管运输颗粒。在轴突中，逆行运动是由一种叫做“细胞质动力蛋白”的蛋白质介导的，而顺行运动是由另一种叫做“动力蛋白”的蛋白质介导的。在这个项目中，动力学蛋白和细胞质动力学蛋白的亚细胞分布将在光镜和电镜水平上通过免疫定位来确定。将评估这些蛋白质与轴突中正向与逆行方向移动的囊泡的差异关联。外线粒体膜的成分将被分析，以确定使其在轴突中双向移动的细胞器的特性。最后，将分离编码易位蛋白基因的cDNA克隆。这些实验的重点是增加我们对参与细胞内粒子运动这一重要细胞生物学现象的运动分子的理解。

The energy-driven movement of intracellular membrane-bounded particles from one region of the cell to another is mediated by translocator molecules which transport the particles along microtubules. In axons, retrograde movement is mediated by a protein called "cytoplasmic dynein," while anterograde movement is mediated by a different protein called "kinesin." In this project, the subcellular distribution of kinesin and cytoplasmic dynein will be determined by immunolocalization at the light and electron microscopic levels. The differential association of these proteins with vesicles moving in the orthograde vs. retrograde directions in axons will be assessed. The components of the outer mitochondrial membrane will be analyzed to determine the characteristics of that organelle which allow it to move bidirectionally in axons. Finally, cDNA clones of the genes coding for the translocator proteins will be isolated. These experiments have as their focus increasing our understanding of the motor molecules involved in the important cell biological phenomenon of intracellular particle motility.