Abstract
To identify novel proteins regulating the microtubule cytoskeleton, we screened a library of purine derivatives using mitotic spindle assembly in Xenopus egg extracts as an assay. Out of a collection of 1561 compounds, we identified 15 that destabilized microtubules without targeting tubulin directly, resulting in small spindles. Affinity chromatography with one compound, named diminutol, revealed a potential target as NQO1, an NADP-dependent oxidoreductase. A role for NQO1 in influencing microtubule polymerization was confirmed through inhibition studies using known inhibitors and immunodepletion. Therefore, this chemical approach has identified a novel factor required for microtubule morphogenesis and cell division.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 135-146 |
Number of pages | 12 |
Journal | Chemistry and Biology |
Volume | 11 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Jan 2004 |
Funding
We thank Shiuan Chen and Kebin Wu (Beckman Institute of the City of Hope, Duarte, CA) for measuring the K i of diminutol using human NQO1, Jennifer Banks for critical reading of the manuscript, the Heald lab for helpful discussions, and G.O. Nads for sperm nuclei. This work was supported by the National Institutes of Health (R.H., GM57839), the Pew Charitable Trust (R.H.), the Cancer Research Coordinating Committee (R.H.), and a predoctoral NSF fellowship (S.M.W.).
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Biochemistry
- Molecular Medicine
- Molecular Biology
- Pharmacology
- Drug Discovery
- Clinical Biochemistry