AUTHOR=Sulimenko Vadym , Dráberová Eduarda , Dráber Pavel TITLE=γ-Tubulin in microtubule nucleation and beyond JOURNAL=Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology VOLUME=10 YEAR=2022 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/cell-and-developmental-biology/articles/10.3389/fcell.2022.880761 DOI=10.3389/fcell.2022.880761 ISSN=2296-634X ABSTRACT=

Microtubules composed of αβ-tubulin dimers are dynamic cytoskeletal polymers that play key roles in essential cellular processes such as cell division, organelle positioning, intracellular transport, and cell migration. γ-Tubulin is a highly conserved member of the tubulin family that is required for microtubule nucleation. γ-Tubulin, together with its associated proteins, forms the γ-tubulin ring complex (γ-TuRC), that templates microtubules. Here we review recent advances in the structure of γ-TuRC, its activation, and centrosomal recruitment. This provides new mechanistic insights into the molecular mechanism of microtubule nucleation. Accumulating data suggest that γ-tubulin also has other, less well understood functions. We discuss emerging evidence that γ-tubulin can form oligomers and filaments, has specific nuclear functions, and might be involved in centrosomal cross-talk between microtubules and microfilaments.