Distinct Binding Modes of Vinculin Isoforms Underlie Their Functional Differences (Structure)

Vinculin and its splice isoform metavinculin differ in their ability to organize F-actin into higher order structures. Krokhotin et al. demonstrate that partial deletions or selective point mutations within the metavinculin tail domain can convert its F-actin reorganization properties to that of vinculin. The authors propose a model to describe this phenomenon.