Decoding microtubule detyrosination: enzyme families, structures, and functional implications

Abstract

Microtubules are a major component of the cytoskeleton and can accumulate a plethora of modifications. The microtubule detyrosination cycle is one of these modifications; it involves the enzymatic removal of the C‐terminal tyrosine of α‐tubulin on assembled microtubules and the re‐ligation of tyrosine on detyrosinated tubulin dimers. This modification cycle has been implicated in cardiac disease, neuronal development, and mitotic defects. The vasohibin and microtubule‐associated tyrosine carboxypeptidase enzyme families are responsible for microtubule detyrosination. Their long‐sought discovery allows to review and summarise differences and similarities between the two enzymes families and discuss how they interplay with other modifications and functions of the tubulin code.