The electrical properties of isolated microtubules

GUTIERREZ, BRENDA C.; CANTIELLO HORACIO F; CANTERO MARIA DEL ROCIO

Scientific Reports

Springer Nature

Año: 2023

2045-2322

This study examines the electrical properties of isolated brain microtubules (MTs), which are longhollow cylinders assembled from αβ-tubulin dimers that form cytoskeletal structures engagedin several functions. MTs are implicated in sensory functions in cilia and flagella and cellularactivities that range from cell motility, vesicular traffic, and neuronal processes to cell division inthe centrosomes and centrioles. We determined the electrical properties of the MTs with the loosepatch clamp technique in either the presence or absence of the MT stabilizer Paclitaxel. We observed electrical oscillations at different holding potentials that responded accordingly in amplitude and polarity. At zero mV in symmetrical ionic conditions, a single MT radiated an electrical power of10–17 W. The spectral analysis of the time records disclosed a single fundamental peak at 39 Hz in the Paclitaxel-stabilized. However, a richer oscillatory response and two mean conductances were observed in the non-Paclitaxel MTs. The findings evidence that the brain MTs are electrical oscillators that behave as "ionic-based" transistors to generate, propagate, and amplify electrical signals.