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Science 19 December 2003:
Vol. 302. no. 5653, p. 2029
DOI: 10.1126/science.302.5653.2029m
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This Week in Science
The double-headed motor protein kinesin moves along microtubules in 8-nanometer steps, and proposed mechanisms can be divided into two broad classes--hand-over-hand and inchworm. In hand-over-hand mechanisms, the heads exchange leading and trailing roles with each step, whereas in inchworm mechanisms, one head always leads. Asbury et al. (p. 2130) show that some kinesin molecules alternate between two different rates at each sequential step, effectively limping along the microtubule. Thus, stepping must be asymmetric, which excludes inchworm mechanisms and symmetric hand-over-hand mechanisms, but supports an asymmetric hand-over-hand mechanism. Yildiz et al. (Sciencexpress, December 18) show that the average step is made up of alternating steps of 0 and 17 nanometers.
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Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)
