Polymerization Characteristics of Different Microtubules’ Interaction with Tau Protein and Taxol

We previously reported that the interaction of one of the microtubule-associated protein (MAP), tau protein, is significantly different on two different types of microtubules; brain microtubules versus human breast cancer microtubules in vitro. These two types of microtubules are distinct from one another due to structural differences that exist in beta-tubulin isotype distributions. In addition, microtubules are known as one of the best targets for anti-cancer drugs such as Taxol. It is known that the direct interaction of Taxol with tubulin or microtubules changes the polymerization specifications of them. Due to the existence of Tau protein in brain cells and some breast cancer cells, it is important to study how the presence of both Tau protein and Taxol may affect the polymerization specifications of these two structurally different microtubules. In this study, we explain the outcomes of our experiments in identifying the distinct polymerization properties of Tau protein and Taxol interacting with different beta-tubulin isotypes in these two types of microtubules.