Microtubule capping structures at the tips of tracheal cilia: evidence for their firm attachment during ciliary bend formation and the restriction of microtubule sliding.

The distal tips of the central pair and A-microtubules are capped in mammalian and avian tracheal cilia. The capping structures are similar to those found in protozoan cilia and flagella [Dentler, 1981], and consist of a central microtubule cap that links the central microtubules to the membrane or to the ciliary crown and A-microtubule plugs that insert into the lumen of each of the A-microtubules. In contrast to the protozoan capping structures, each of the A-microtubule plugs is bound to the central microtubule cap by distal filaments. The ends of the central and outer doublet microtubules are tightly bound to the cap in both intact and in demembranated and reactivated tracheal cilia. Analysis of the displacement of the microtubule tips in cilia fixed at various bend angles revealed that the displacements of A-microtubules are only partially in agreement with those predicted by the sliding filament model [Satir, 1968]. These results are discussed with respect to the regulation of microtubule sliding in capped cilia and the role of the microtubule capping structures in microtubule assembly.