Epsin

Espsin (Forked)

Page updated 8/12/02

Not to be confused with Epsins (as I have done in the past!) The espins are small actin bundling protein (Bartles et al, 1998) associated with microvillar protrusions often (e.g. hair cells) with other actin bundling proteins. The Drosophila homolog is known as forked due to the appearance of bristle in the fork mutant fly (Wulfkuhle et al, 1998). Two espin isoforms are expressed a 30 kD form and a 110 kD form (Bartles et al, 1998) in the gut microvillus.

Nancy Petersen's Lab

References:-

Bartles, J. R., Wierds, A. & Zheng, L. (1996) Identification and characterization of espin, an actin-binding protein localized to the F-actin-rich junctional plaques of Sertoli cell ectoplasmic specialization. J.Cell Sci. 109, 1229-1239.

Bartles, J. R., Zheng, L., Li, A., Wierda, A. & Chen, B. (1998) Small espsin: A third actin-bundling protein and potential forked protein homolog in brush border microvilli., J.Cell Biol. 143, 107-119.

Bartles, J. R. (2000) Parallel actin bundles and their multiple actin-bundling proteins. Curr.Op.Cell Biol. 12, 72-78.

Grieshaber, S. & Petersen, N. S. (1999) The Drosophila forked protein induces the formation of actin fiber bundles in vertebrate cells., J.Cell Sci. 112, 2203-2211.

Tilney, L. G., Connelly, P. S., Vranich, K. A., Shaw, M. K. & Guild, G. M. (1998) Why are two different cross-linkers necessary for actin bundle formation in vivo and what does each cross-link contribute?, J.Cell Biol. 143, 121-133.

Watson, H. A., Cope, M. J. T. V., Groen, A. C., Drubin, D. G. & Wendland, B. (2001) In vivo role for actin-regulating kinases in endocytosis and yeast epsin phosphorylation., Mol.Biol.Cell. 12, 3668-3679.

Wulfkuhle, J. D., Petersen, N. S. & Otto, J. J. (1998) Changes in the F-actin cytoskeleton during neurosensory bristle development in Drosophila: The role of Singed and Forked proteins, Cell Motility Cytoskeleton. 40, 119-132.