Editor's Summary

9 June 2005

Myosin VI: reverse gear

Because it moves in the opposite direction to most other members of the myosin superfamily, the myosin VI motor is of particular interest. It travels towards the pointed end of the actin filament and away from the barbed (or 'plus') end. The structure of a truncated version of myosin VI has now been determined to 2.4 Å resolution. The atomic details of the lever arm re-orientation in this molecule reveal two unique inserts that are key to its reversed directionality.

Article: The structure of the myosin VI motor reveals the mechanism of directionality reversal

Julie Ménétrey, Amel Bahloul, Amber L. Wells, Christopher M. Yengo, Carl A. Morris, H. Lee Sweeney and Anne Houdusse

doi:10.1038/nature03592

Abstract | Full Text | PDF (566K) | Supplementary information