Research Article 4847 β-Dystrobrevin interacts directly with kinesin heavy chain in brain P. Macioce*, G. Gambara, M. Bernassola, L. Gaddini, P. Torreri, G. Macchia, C. Ramoni, M. Ceccarini and T. C. Petrucci Laboratory of Cell Biology, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161 Rome, Italy *Author for correspondence (e-mail:
[email protected]) Accepted 28 July 2003 Journal of Cell Science 116, 4847-4856 © 2003 The Company of Biologists Ltd doi:10.1242/jcs.00805 Summary β-Dystrobrevin, a member of the dystrobrevin protein α- and β-dystrobrevin, indicating that this interaction is not family, is a dystrophin-related and -associated protein restricted to the β-dystrobrevin isoform. The site for Kif5A restricted to non-muscle tissues and is highly expressed in binding to β-dystrobrevin was localized in a carboxyl- kidney, liver and brain. Dystrobrevins are now thought to terminal region that seems to be important in heavy chain- play an important role in intracellular signal transduction, mediated kinesin interactions and is highly homologous in in addition to providing a membrane scaffold in muscle, but all three Kif5 isoforms, Kif5A, Kif5B and Kif5C. Pull-down the precise role of β-dystrobrevin has not yet been and immunofluorescence experiments also showed a direct determined. To study β-dystrobrevin’s function in brain, interaction between β-dystrobrevin and Kif5B. Our we used the yeast two-hybrid approach to look for findings suggest a novel function for dystrobrevin as a interacting proteins. Four overlapping clones were motor protein receptor that might play a major role in the identified that encoded Kif5A, a neuronal member of the transport of components of the dystrophin-associated Kif5 family of proteins that consists of the heavy chains of protein complex to specific sites in the cell.