Differences in Intrinsic Tubulin Dynamics Properties Contribute to Spindle Length Control in Xenopus Species. 

William G. Hirst, Abin Biswas, Kishore K. Mahalingan, Simone Reber 
Current Biology 30, 1–7 June 8, 2020

In Brief

Hirst et al. show that microtubules assembled from tubulins of two closely related frogs, Xenopus laevis and X. tropicalis, display different dynamic instability parameters in vitro. Computational simulations and spindle assembly assays show that differences in tubulin-dependent microtubule dynamics are sufficient to tune spindle mass and length.

Graphical abstract