Post-Translational Modifications of C-Terminal Tails of Microtubules Tune Bi-Directional Intracellular Transport

In intracellular transport the basic components of eukaryotic cells cannot rely on free diffusion, but the efficient delivery of cargos involves kinesin and dynein motor proteins and their filamentous tracks, primarily microtubules. It is revealed that both these motors are always found on the same cargo on the same time ready for action. Opposite polarity of motors are somehow coordinated so that they usually do not interfere with each other function. The mechanism of such coordination is still largely unknown. In addition to global cellular signaling, there must also be some sort of efficient local signaling to specifically control different cargos. In this paper, we offer an appealing scenario for intracellular transport based on the dynamics of C-terminal tails of microtubules. The emphasis is on the role of their post-translational modifications appearing in the presence or absence of tyrosine amino acid.