Dynein

Dynein is a group of motor proteins in eukaryotic cells. In cooperation with other motor proteins such as myosin, they are much involved in the intracellular transport of biological loads such as biological macromolecules, vesicles and organelles. Dynein comes along with kinesin to microtubule ( constituents of the cytoskeleton ) as a transporter of cell organelles and vesicles before. In addition, the flagella and motile cilia become motile and aligned only by dynein as a component. Mutations in the genes DNAL1, DNAI1, DNAH5 and DNAH11 can cause rare inherited disorders such as Kartagener syndrome and primary ciliary dyskinesia.

Design and function

The Dyneinkomplex consists of two heavy chains of protein and other components. The dynein protein itself consists of a head region, which can bind to microtubules, and a tail that can interact with other proteins. The energy required for the transport is obtained from the cleavage of adenosine triphosphate ( ATP). Dyneinkomplexe bind to a transporting molecule per se and ' run ' then along a microtubule (similar to myosin on actin). Transport shall be addressed, as dynein can move only in the direction of the so-called minus - end on the microtubule. So dyneins transport their cargo from the periphery (usually the plasma membrane ) in the direction of the MTOCs ( microtubule organizing center, mostly in the vicinity of the nucleus ). This is known as retrograde transport. This property is exploited by some viruses to be so transported to the nucleus (eg, herpes simplex by the axon of the facial nerve ). The transport on the microtubule in the other direction is done by kinesin.

• Protein complex
• Hereditary disease - associated protein