Evidence map›Paper›PMID 30315096›Full record

ReviewEssays in biochemistry2018

Microtubule structure by cryo-EM: snapshots of dynamic instability.

Szymon W Manka, Carolyn A Moores

Open access · hybridAbstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Essays in biochemistry, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 49 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
49citing papers in PubMed
4.9field-weighted citation impact, top 4% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

49 citing papers in PubMed, 92 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Review
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  10. Review
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  12. Imaging microtubule dynamics: A new frontier in biomarker development for neurodegenerative diseases.Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association · 2025
    Review
  13. Article
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  15. Article
  16. Review
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  18. Article
  19. Structure of the γ-tubulin ring complex-capped microtubule.Nature structural & molecular biology · 2024
    Article
  20. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

2 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Szymon W MankaInstitute of Structural and Molecular Biology, Department of Biological Sciences, Birkbeck, University of London, London, U.K. s.manka@mail.cryst.bbk.ac.uk.
Carolyn A MooresInstitute of Structural and Molecular Biology, Department of Biological Sciences, Birkbeck, University of London, London, U.K.
Birkbeck, University of London · GB

Funding

Medical Research Council MR/J000973/1Medical Research Council MR/R000352/1
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The development of cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) allowed microtubules to be captured in their solution-like state, enabling decades of insight into their dynamic mechanisms and interactions with binding partners. Cryo-EM micrographs provide 2D visualization of microtubules, and these 2D images can also be used to reconstruct the 3D structure of the polymer and any associated binding partners. In this way, the binding sites for numerous components of the microtubule cytoskeleton-including motor domains from many kinesin motors, and the microtubule-binding domains of dynein motors and an expanding collection of microtubule associated proteins-have been determined. The effects of various microtubule-binding drugs have also been studied. High-resolution cryo-EM structures have also been used to probe the molecular basis of microtubule dynamic instability, driven by the GTPase activity of β-tubulin. These studies have shown the conformational changes in lattice-confined tubulin dimers in response to steps in the tubulin GTPase cycle, most notably lattice compaction at the longitudinal inter-dimer interface. Although work is ongoing to define a complete structural model of dynamic instability, attention has focused on the role of gradual destabilization of lateral contacts between tubulin protofilaments, particularly at the microtubule seam. Furthermore, lower resolution cryo-electron tomography 3D structures are shedding light on the heterogeneity of microtubule ends and how their 3D organization contributes to dynamic instability. The snapshots of these polymers captured using cryo-EM will continue to provide critical insights into their dynamics, interactions with cellular components, and the way microtubules contribute to cellular functions in diverse physiological contexts.

Indexed as

AnimalsBinding SitesCryoelectron MicroscopyHumansMicrotubule-Associated ProteinsMicrotubulesModels, MolecularProtein ConformationMicrotubule-Associated Proteinscryo-electron microscopycryo-electron tomographycytoskeletonMAPsmicrotubulemolecular motors

Identifiers

PMID30315096
PMCPMC6281474
OpenAlexW2895310363

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.