Ueda Haruko, Tamura Kentaro, Hara-Nishimura Ikuko
Department of Botany, Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, Kyoto 606-8502, Japan.
Department of Botany, Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, Kyoto 606-8502, Japan.
Curr Opin Plant Biol. 2015 Dec;28:30-8. doi: 10.1016/j.pbi.2015.08.006. Epub 2015 Sep 30.
The plant-specific protein motor class myosin XI is known to function in rapid bulk flow of the cytoplasm (cytoplasmic streaming) and in organellar movements. Recent studies unveiled a wide range of physiological functions of myosin XI motors, from intracellular motility to organ movements. Arabidopsis thaliana has 13 members of myosin XI class. In vegetative organs, myosins XIk, XI1, and XI2 primarily contribute to dynamics and spatial configurations of endoplasmic reticulum that develops a tubular network in the cell periphery and thick strand-like structures in the inner cell regions. Myosin XI-i forms a nucleocytoplasmic linker and is responsible for nuclear movement and shape. In addition to these intracellular functions, myosin XIf together with myosin XIk is involved in the fundamental nature of plants; the actin-myosin XI cytoskeleton regulates organ straightening to adjust plant posture.