Although chats about the cytoskeleton at Oberlin College are far outnumbered by conversations regarding President Bush, organic spinach or safer-sex attire, the invaluable cell component holds its own in the classroom and lab of two scientists on campus, where it is treated with due respect.

The cytoskeleton is a dynamic network of filamentous proteins present in every cell, which facilitates cell motion, movement of structures within the cell and changes in cell shape.

The cellular movements facilitated by the cytoskeleton are essential to the functions of each living cell as it grows, replicates its DNA and divides in two, not to mention being necessary for specialized functions in differentiated cells of multi-cellular organisms. 

The functions of the cytoskeleton are also relevant to current medicine and human health issues.  For example, when cell division – facilitated by the cytoskeleton – goes unchecked, cancer results. Hence, the cytoskeleton is an important topic in biomedical research.

Oberlin science students are fortunate to have the opportunity to study the cytoskeleton, both in the classroom and in the lab, and from two different perspectives.

Biology Professor Taylor Allen teaches a course on the eukaryotic cytoskeleton and its myriad functions. Called “The Living Cell,” the course emphasizes the importance of the cytoskeleton to life at the level of life’s smallest functional unit, the cell.

Additionally, Professor of Biology Laura Romberg conducts research on the cytoskeleton in her lab.  A biochemist, Romberg studies a protein of the bacterial cytoskeleton, FtsZ. Her research probes the biochemistry of FtsZ polymer formation (a polymer is a chain composed of like units) from individual FtsZ protein monomers (the individual “links” in the chain).

Senior biochemistry major David Smith has studied the cytoskeleton in both these venues. Smith was introduced to the topic through “The Living Cell” course, and that same semester he joined the Romberg lab, where he is currently engaged in an honors research project. While he agrees that the topics treated in Allen’s course overlap with his research, he points out that there are differences between these two approaches to cytoskeleton study.

Both “The Living Cell” and work in the Romberg lab aim to offer an understanding of how cytoskeletal proteins perform their many roles, using the reasoning of chemistry and physics to lend insight to this biological topic. Some of the same biochemical assays performed in the Romberg lab are discussed in “The Living Cell.”

But the similarities end there, once one gets into the details. The Romberg lab studies the cytoskeletons of bacteria, while “The Living Cell” treats the cytoskeleton of eukaryotic cells.

Though the cytoskeletal proteins in prokaryotes (bacteria) and eukaryotes are related and likely come from a common ancestor, their functions are different in these two kinds of cells. For example, the prokaryotic protein FtsZ and the eukaryotic protein tubulin have very similar structures and DNA sequences, suggesting their derivation from a common ancestor.

Despite these structural similarities, FtsZ and tubulin have different functions.  Many of the functions mediated by FtsZ in bacteria, for example, the physical pinching in two cells during division, are carried out by actin in eukaryotes. Similarly, the prokaryotic protein MreB is homologous to the eukaryotic protein actin, yet at least one of its functions, that of separating the duplicated chromosomes during cell division, is accomplished by tubulin in eukaryotes. The cytoskeletal proteins in eukaryotes and prokaryotes are structurally similar, but their functions have been reversed over the course of evolution. 

Smith’s dual perspective on the cytoskeleton has enriched his education, he says. The biochemical approach of the Romberg lab appeals to Smith because he “enjoys working at the interface of biology and chemistry.”

In comparing studies in the classroom and in the lab, he says that “The Living Cell” is good for developing the “big picture of a cell,” whereas a research project studies only one part of the picture at a time.

Both perspectives are important to consider. Smith notes that approaches to studying the cytoskeleton in bacteria and eukaryotes are similar, but that one must not fall into the trap of assuming that the cytoskeleton functions the same way in these two domains of life.