The microvillus 110K cytoskeletal protein is an integral membrane protein

A protein of 110,000 MW connects actin filaments to the plasma membrane in microvilli of intestinal epithelial cells. In the present study four independent lines of evidence suggest that the 110K protein is directly bound to the lipid bilayer. The solubilization of the 110K protein requires detergents and removal of detergent after solubilization results in aggregation. The 110K protein partitions into the detergent phase in Triton X-114 solutions. It is selectively incorporated into liposomes. It is specifically labeled with the hydrophobic probe ¹⁴C-phenylisothiocyanate. In addition we present a purification scheme for the 110K protein in milligram amounts. This represents the simplest system of membrane to filament attachment, in which an integral membrane protein is also a cytoskeletal protein.