# The role of the subpellicular microtubule array in Trypanosoma brucei cytokinesis

> **NIH NIH F31** · BROWN UNIVERSITY · 2020 · $45,520

## Abstract

Project summary for: The role of the subpellicular microtubule array in Trypanosoma brucei cytokinesis
 Microtubules are essential cytoskeletal filaments in eukaryotic cells. They have an inherently dynamic
nature and can rapidly alter their length to fulfill different functions in the cell. Often, microtubules are crosslinked
into bundles to create stable structures for long-term force propagation, such as the mitotic spindle microtubules.
The subpellicular microtubule corset of the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma brucei, the causative agent of
African sleeping sickness, is a remarkable example of a highly specialized microtubule bundle. The subpellicular
microtubule corset maintains the highly asymmetric, tapered shape of T. brucei. The microtubules in the corset
are crosslinked to each other and to the plasma membrane and do not break down at any point in the cell cycle;
this puts unique constraints on cytokinesis in the parasite. However, it is not known how the array is replicated
and segregated during cell division. Determining how the subpellicular array is built is of vital importance
to understanding the life cycle of T. brucei, as its unique cell shape is required for its motility and
pathogenicity.
 We have recently identified a microtubule-associated protein that localizes to the subpellicular array we
called PAVE1. PAVE1 is necessary for the creation of the tapered shape of the trypanosome cell; when the
protein is depleted, cells lack a posterior end, the subpellicular array becomes frayed, and cell division is
inhibited. Thus, we hypothesize that PAVE1 is a microtubule crosslinking protein that promotes
microtubule stabilization to form the tapered shape of the trypanosome posterior, which is essential for
proper cytokinesis. We will conduct in vitro single-molecule assays with polymerized microtubules and
heterologous expression of PAVE1 in mammalian cells to determine how PAVE1 affects microtubule behavior.
Then, we will conduct live-cell experiments, pulse-chase assays, and serial block-face scanning electron
microscopy to define how PAVE1 forms the subpellicular array, how the array is segregated during division, and
why cell division is inhibited in cells lacking PAVE1. Elucidating PAVE1 function will reveal how trypanosomes
build and maintain their remarkable subpellicular array, and inform on how microtubule crosslinking proteins
change microtubule dynamics in general cell biology.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9825377
- **Project number:** 5F31AI143163-02
- **Recipient organization:** BROWN UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Amy Sinclair
- **Activity code:** F31 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $45,520
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-12-01 → 2020-11-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9825377

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9825377, The role of the subpellicular microtubule array in Trypanosoma brucei cytokinesis (5F31AI143163-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9825377. Licensed CC0.

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