Microtubules Methods and Protocols

This volume provides state-of-the-art methodology to functionalize microtubules and construct microtubule-based materials. Chapters consists of six sections detailing modification of microtubule structures, observation and control of microtubule movement, material applications of microtubules in vitro, development of microtubule-binding molecules, comprehensive approaches to analyze properties of microtubules, and functionalization of microtubules in living cells. Written in the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series format, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls.

Authoritative and cutting-edge, Microtubules: Methods and Protocols aims to provide useful information for construction of microtubule-based materials and help to create new ideas for the next-generation of materials and applications through detailed protocols.

Purification of Tubulin from Porcine Brain and its Fluorescence Dye Modification.- Facile Method of Tubulin Purification from Goat Brain for Reconstitution of Microtubule Associated Intracellular Function.- Functionalization of Tubulin: Approaches to Modify Tubulin with Biotin and DNA.- Electro-Modulation of Tubulin Properties and Function.- In Vitro Reconstitution of Microtubule Dynamics and Severing Imaged by Label-Free Interference Reflection Microscopy.- Characterizing the Number of Kinesin Motors Bound to Microtubules in the Gliding Motility Assay using FLIC Microscopy.- Design of Mechanical and Electrical Properties for Multi-Directional Control of Microtubules.- Linear-Zero Mode Waveguides for Single-Molecule Fluorescence Observation of Nucleotides in Kinesin-Microtubule Motility Assay.- Microtubules and Quantum Dots Integration Leads to Conjugates with Applications in Biosensors and Bionanodevices.- Assembling Microtubule-Based Active Matter.- Spontaneous Alignment of Microtubules via Tubulin Polymerization in a Narrow Space under a Temperature Gradient.- Dynamic Pattern Formation of Active Matters Triggered by Mechanical Stimuli.- Spontaneously Beating Biomimetic Structures.- Construction of Molecular Robots from Microtubules for Programmable Swarming.- Fabrication of Artificial Muscle from Microtubules, Kinesins and DNA Origami Nanostructures.- Encapsulation of Nanomaterials Inside Microtubules by Using a Tau-derived Peptide.- Investigating Tubulin-Drug Interaction Using Fluorescence Spectroscopy.- Visualization and Quantification of Microtubule Self-repair.- Cargo Transport by Microtubule-Associated Motor Protein Along Mechanically Deformed Microtubules.- Mechanical Deformation of Microtubules on a Two-Dimensional Elastic Medium.- Real-Time Imaging of Single ?TuRC-Mediated Microtubule Nucleation Events In Vitro by TIRF Microscopy.- Microtubule Preparation for Investigation with High-Speed Atomic Force Microscopy.- Crystallization Systems for the High-Resolution Structural Analysis of Tubulin-Ligand Complexes.- Cryo-EM Visualization of Neuronal Particles Inside Microtubules.- Reconstituting the Interaction Between Purified Nuclei and Microtubule Network.- Photocontrolling Microtubule Dynamics with Photoswitchable Chemical Reagents.- Monitoring the Disruptive Effects of Tubulin Binding Agents on Cellular Microtubules.- Pacific Blue-Taxoids as Fluorescent Molecular Probes of Microtubules.- Controlling Cell Shape and Microtubule Organization by Extracellular Matrix Micropatterning.