Functional diversification of the kinesin-14 family in land plants
- FEBS Lett. 2018 Jun;592(12):1918-1928. doi: 10.1002/1873-3468.13094.
- 1. Department of Physics, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, USA.
- 2. Department of Plant Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA.
- 3. Department of Genetics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA.
In most eukaryotes, cytoplasmic dynein serves as the primary cytoskeletal motor for minus-end-directed processes along microtubules. However, land Plants lack dynein, having instead a large number of kinesin-14s, which suggests that kinesin-14s may have evolved to fill the cellular niche left by dynein. In addition, land Plants do not have centrosomes, but contain specialized microtubule-based structures called phragmoplasts that facilitate the formation of new cell walls following cell division. This Review aims to compile the evidence for functional diversification of kinesin-14s in land Plants. Known functions include spindle morphogenesis, microtubule-based trafficking, nuclear migration, chloroplast distribution, and phragmoplast expansion. Plant kinesin-14s have also evolved direct roles in chromosome segregation in maize and novel biochemical features such as actin transport and processive motility in the homodimeric state.