Unusual characteristics of ciliate actins

Actin is a cytoskeletal protein that is ubiquitous in eukaryotes, hence the corresponding genes and proteins have been isolated from numerous organisms as different as animals, plants, fungi and protozoa. Several atomic models are available for the monomeric as well as the filamentous form, and more than 70 proteins that bind actin and control filament dynamics have been isolated from diverse eukaryotes. Moreover, the function and dynamics of the actin cytoskeleton in several eukaryotic systems have been depicted in depth. Unlike other protozoa, such as amoeba, actin is not an abundant protein in ciliates, whose cytoskeleton is mainly composed of microtubular arrays. Ciliate actin has been studied in several species, and it was established early on that this ciliate protein is very different from that of other eukaryotes. Similarly, the actin-binding proteins studied in ciliates display great differences with those of other eukaryotes. Consequently, ciliate actin has been considered as "unconventional," and this review focuses on molecular data leading to this conclusion.