One of the main tools used by our lab is time-lapse fluorescence microscopy. This allows us to monitor dynamic processes within living cells. Moreover, we can use this technique to observe the behavior of purified molecules in an environment that recapitulates real life processes, such as purified molecular motors walking along their tracks (microtubules).
Movies:
Movie illustrating dynein mediated spindle movements in budding yeast. Images were acquired on a wide-field fluorescence microscope.
Movie depicting single molecules of purified GFP-tagged yeast dynein motors walking along microtubules (MT) in vitro. Images were acquired on a total internal reflection fluorescence (TIRF) microscope. Arrows indicate the minus ends of the microtubules (the end of the track for dynein motors).
Movie depicting microtubules gliding along the surface of a coverslip by recombinant human dynein complexes (like crowd surfing!). These dynein motors were purified from insect (Sf9) cells using strategies adopted from the Carter lab.
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