Professor
UT
Research
All cells have some form of polarity, meaning that their constituents are not randomly distributed inside them or along their surface. This organization requires transport processes to get cell components (proteins, membranes, organelles, ...) to different places as well as specific recognition events to ensure proper targeting of these transport processes. The Nebenführ lab is studying these transport processes in the model plant species Arabidopsis thaliana which offers a large number of genomic tools. The main focus is the function of myosin motor proteins that drive rapid (up to 8 µm/s) organelle movements along actin filaments, commonly referred to as cytoplasmic streaming. We are using a combination of genetic, molecular, biochemical, cell biological, and bioinformatic approaches to gain a systems level understanding of myosin function in plant cells.
Education
- PhD: Oregon State University
Publications
J.-F. Li, E. Park, A.G. von Arnim, A. Nebenführ (2009) The FAST technique: a simplified Agrobacterium-based transformation method for transient gene expression analysis in seedlings of Arabidopsis and other plant species. Plant Methods 5:6.
J.-F. Li, A. Nebenführ (2008) Inter-dependence of dimerization and organelle binding in myosin XI. Plant Journal 55:478-490.
J.-F. Li, A. Nebenführ (2008) The tail that wags the dog: The globular tail domain defines the function of myosin V/XI. Traffic 9:290-298.
A. Nebenführ (2007) Organelle dynamics during cell division. in: Cell division control in plants (Eds. DPS Verma and Z. Hong) Plant Cell Monographs 9:195-206.
B.K. Nelson, X. Cai, A. Nebenführ (2007) A multi-color set of in vivo organelle markers for colocalization studies in Arabidopsis and other plants. Plant Journal 51:1126-1136.
J.-F. Li, A. Nebenführ (2007) Organelle targeting of myosin XI is mediated by two globular tail subdomains with separate cargo binding sites. Journal of Biological Chemistry 282:20593-20602.
C. Saint-Jore-Dupas, A. Nebenführ, A. Boulaflous, M.-L. Follet-Gueye, C. Plasson, C. Hawes, A. Driouich, L. Faye, V. Gomord (2006) Plant N-glycan processing enzymes employ different targeting mechanisms for their spatial arrangement along the secretory pathway. Plant Cell 18:3182-3200.
A. Hoffmann, A.Nebenführ (2004) Dynamic rearrangements of transvacuolar strands in BY-2 cells imply a role of myosin in remodeling the plant actin cytoskeleton. Protoplasma 224:201-210.
C.Ritzenthaler, A. Nebenführ, A. Movafeghi, C. Stussi-Garaud, L. Behnia, P. Pimpl, L.A. Staehelin, and D.G. Robinson (2002) Reevaluation of the effects of brefeldin A on plant cells using tobacco BY-2 cells expressing Golgi-targeted GFP and COP I antisera. Plant Cell 14:237-261.
A. Nebenführ, L. Gallagher, T.G. Dunahay, J.A. Frohlick, A.M. Mazurkiewicz, J.B. Meehl, L.A. Staehelin (1999) Stop-and-go movements of plant Golgi stacks are mediated by the acto-myosin system. Plant Physiology 121:1127-1141.