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Adenosine triphosphate-induced sliding of tubules in trypsin-treated flagella of sea-urchin sperm.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 01 Dec 1971, 68(12):3092-3096
https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.68.12.3092 PMID: 5289252 PMCID: PMC389597

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Abstract 

Axonemes isolated from the sperm of the sea urchin, Tripneustes gratilla, were briefly digested with trypsin. The digested axonemes retained their typical structure of a cylinder of nine doublet-tubules surrounding a pair of single tubules. The digestion modified the axonemes so that the subsequent addition of 0.1 mM ATP caused them to disintegrate actively into individual tubules and groups. The nucleotide specificity and divalent-cation requirements of this disintegration reaction paralleled those of flagellar motility, suggesting that the underlying mechanisms were closely related. Observations by dark-field microscopy showed that the disintegration resulted from active sliding between groups of the outer doublet-tubules, together with a tendency for the partially disintegrated axoneme to coil into a helix. Our evidence supports the hypothesis that the propagated bending waves of live-sperm tails are the result of ATP-induced shearing forces between outer tubules which, when resisted by the native structure, lead to localized sliding and generate an active bending moment.

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Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1971 Dec; 68(12): 3092–3096.
PMCID: PMC389597
PMID: 5289252

Adenosine Triphosphate-Induced Sliding of Tubules in Trypsin-Treated Flagella of Sea-Urchin Sperm

Keith E. Summers and I. R. Gibbons
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Abstract

Axonemes isolated from the sperm of the sea urchin, Tripneustes gratilla, were briefly digested with trypsin. The digested axonemes retained their typical structure of a cylinder of nine doublet-tubules surrounding a pair of single tubules. The digestion modified the axonemes so that the subsequent addition of 0.1 mM ATP caused them to disintegrate actively into individual tubules and groups. The nucleotide specificity and divalent-cation requirements of this disintegration reaction paralleled those of flagellar motility, suggesting that the underlying mechanisms were closely related. Observations by dark-field microscopy showed that the disintegration resulted from active sliding between groups of the outer doublet-tubules, together with a tendency for the partially disintegrated axoneme to coil into a helix. Our evidence supports the hypothesis that the propagated bending waves of live-sperm tails are the result of ATP-induced shearing forces between outer tubules which, when resisted by the native structure, lead to localized sliding and generate an active bending moment.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.
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