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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2023 Nov 14.
Published in final edited form as: Bioessays. 2022 Nov 18;45(1):e2200081. doi: 10.1002/bies.202200081

FIGURE 3.

FIGURE 3

The GTP-cap size is not the sole determinant of the microtubule lifetime. (A) Schematic time–distance plots (kymographs) of microtubule end dynamics and corresponding GTP-cap sizes in different polymerization conditions. Microtubule minus ends grow slower than plus ends and have a smaller GTP-cap, but undergo catastrophe less frequently.[46] With the addition of tubulin, microtubule plus ends display increased growth rate and GTP-cap sizes, as well as decreased catastrophe frequency, consistent with the canonical model of microtubule stability. In contrast, the addition of XMAP215 or CLASP breaks the canonical relationship between microtubule growth and catastrophe. XMAP215 increases microtubule growth rate, GTP-cap size and catastrophe frequency.[41] CLASP suppresses microtubule catastrophe without increasing the microtubule growth rate or the GTP-cap size.[74] (B) Functional relationship between microtubule growth rate, GTP-cap ength, and catastrophe frequency at the microtubule plus end in different polymerization conditions.