Genetic and molecular analysis of a Caenorhabditis elegans beta-tubulin that conveys benzimidazole sensitivity.
Open Access
- 1 December 1989
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Rockefeller University Press in The Journal of cell biology
- Vol. 109 (6), 2993-3003
- https://doi.org/10.1083/jcb.109.6.2993
Abstract
Benzimidazole anti-microtubule drugs, such as benomyl, induce paralysis and slow the growth of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. We have identified 28 mutations in C. elegans that confer resistance to benzimidazoles. All resistant mutations map to a single locus, ben-1. Virtually all these mutations are genetically dominant. Molecular cloning and DNA sequence analysis established that ben-1 encodes a beta-tubulin. Some resistant mutants are completely deleted for the ben-1 gene. Since the deletion strains appear to be fully resistant to the drugs, the ben-1 product appears to be the only benzimidazole-sensitive beta-tubulin in C. elegans. Furthermore, since animals lacking ben-1 are viable and coordinated, the ben-1 beta-tubulin appears to be nonessential for growth and movement. The ben-1 function is likely to be redundant in the nematode genome.Keywords
This publication has 74 references indexed in Scilit:
- Three expressed sequences within the human β-tubulin multigene family each define a distinct isotypeJournal of Molecular Biology, 1985
- Improved M13 phage cloning vectors and host strains: nucleotide sequences of the M13mpl8 and pUC19 vectorsGene, 1985
- DNA rearrangements of the actin gene cluster in Caenorhabditis-elegans accompany reversion of three muscle mutantsJournal of Molecular Biology, 1984
- Sequence of a highly divergent beta tubulin gene reveals regional heterogeneity in the beta tubulin polypeptide.The Journal of cell biology, 1984
- Lambda replacement vectors carrying polylinker sequencesJournal of Molecular Biology, 1983
- Control of the structural fidelity of microtubules by initiation sitesJournal of Molecular Biology, 1982
- Developmental genetics of the mechanosensory neurons of Caenorhabditis elegansDevelopmental Biology, 1981
- Inhibition of tubulin polymerization by MebendazoleBiochemical and Biophysical Research Communications, 1980
- Labeling deoxyribonucleic acid to high specific activity in vitro by nick translation with DNA polymerase IJournal of Molecular Biology, 1977
- Detection of specific sequences among DNA fragments separated by gel electrophoresisJournal of Molecular Biology, 1975