Step-size is determined by neck length in myosin V

Biochemistry. 2005 Dec 13;44(49):16203-10. doi: 10.1021/bi0512086.

Abstract

The highly processive motor, myosin V, has an extremely long neck containing six calmodulin-binding IQ motifs that allows it to take multiple 36 nm steps corresponding to the pseudo-repeat of actin. To further investigate how myosin V moves processively on actin filaments, we altered the length of the neck by adding or deleting IQ motifs in myosin constructs lacking the globular tail domain. These myosin V IQ mutants were fluorescently labeled by exchange of a single Cy3-labeled calmodulin into the neck region of one head. We measured the step-size of these individual IQ mutants with nanometer precision and subsecond resolution using FIONA. The step-size was proportional to neck length for constructs containing 2, 4, 6, and 8 IQ motifs, providing strong support for the swinging lever-arm model of myosin motility. In addition, the kinetics of stepping provided additional support for the hand-over-hand model whereby the two heads alternately assume the leading position. Interestingly, the 8IQ myosin V mutant gave a broad distribution of step-sizes with multiple peaks, suggesting that this mutant has many choices of binding sites on an actin filament. These data demonstrate that the step-size of myosin V is affected by the length of its neck and is not solely determined by the pseudo-repeat of the actin filament.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Intramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Actin Cytoskeleton / metabolism
  • Amino Acid Sequence
  • Animals
  • Calmodulin / metabolism*
  • Carbocyanines / metabolism
  • Fluorescent Dyes / metabolism
  • Models, Molecular
  • Muscle, Skeletal / chemistry
  • Mutation
  • Myosin Type V / chemistry*
  • Myosin Type V / genetics
  • Myosin Type V / metabolism
  • Protein Structure, Tertiary*
  • Rabbits

Substances

  • Calmodulin
  • Carbocyanines
  • Fluorescent Dyes
  • cyanine dye 3
  • Myosin Type V