Formation of ring-shaped assembly of microtubules with a narrow size distribution at an air–buffer interface

• DOI: 10.1039/c2sm26441b
• Publication Date: 2012-09-04T13:59:46Z
• Authors: Arif Md. Rashedul...; Shoki Wada; Daisuke Inoue; Yoshiki Tamura; Tamaki Kajihara; Hiroyuki Mayama; Kazuki Sada; Akira Kakugo; Jian Ping Gong
• Keywords: Buffer (optical fiber)

Biopolymers such as actin, microtubules and DNA are well known for their fascinating in vivo self-organization phenomena. Considerable efforts have been devoted to mimicking organization process vitro that produced ring-shaped or toroid structures an irreversible manner. However, understanding the factors lead formation of assembled deserves more investigation achieve a unified insight into assembly process, particularly microtubules. Here, we report active (MTs) at air–buffer interface resulted microtubule with narrow size distribution high yield. Using "air–buffer control system" combined newly developed "inert chamber system (ICS)" also successfully observed reversible conformational transition between ring- linear-shaped interface. This is first ever direct situ observation MTs probably provides us valuable discernment understand organizational behavior biopolymers.