Katanin is an ATP-dependent microtubule severing protein composed of 60kDa (katanin-p60) and 80kDa (katanin-p80) subunits (KATNA1 and KATNB1, respectively) [1-4]. In mammals, there are two additional A-like subunits (KATNAL1 and KATNAL2) and one additional B-like subunit (KATNBL1) [4]. KATNA1 has the enzymatic activity for microtubule severing and plays a key role in cytoskeletal reorganisation, while KATNB is the regulatory subunit. Formation of the katanin A/B heterodimer is mediated by the N-terminal Microtubule Interacting and Trafficking domain (MIT, represented in this entry) of KATNA1/KATNAL1) and a conserved C-terminal domain of KATNB [2]. This domain is organised in an antiparallel three-helix bundle [1].

1: A common substrate recognition mode conserved between katanin p60 and VPS4 governs microtubule severing and membrane skeleton reorganization. Iwaya N, Kuwahara Y, Fujiwara Y, Goda N, Tenno T, Akiyama K, Mase S, Tochio H, Ikegami T, Shirakawa M, Hiroaki H; J Biol Chem. 2010;285:16822-16829. PMID:20339000

2: Microtubule minus-end regulation at spindle poles by an ASPM-katanin complex. Jiang K, Rezabkova L, Hua S, Liu Q, Capitani G, Altelaar AFM, Heck AJR, Kammerer RA, Steinmetz MO, Akhmanova A; Nat Cell Biol. 2017;19:480-492. PMID:28436967

3: Katanin-p80 gene promoter characterization and regulation via Elk1. Selcuk E, Kirimtay K, Canbaz D, Cesur GI, Korulu S, Karabay A; PLoS One. 2013;8:e69423. PMID:23894477

4: Proteomic Analysis of the Mammalian Katanin Family of Microtubule-severing Enzymes Defines Katanin p80 subunit B-like 1 (KATNBL1) as a Regulator of Mammalian Katanin Microtubule-severing. Cheung K, Senese S, Kuang J, Bui N, Ongpipattanakul C, Gholkar A, Cohn W, Capri J, Whitelegge JP, Torres JZ; Mol Cell Proteomics. 2016;15:1658-1669. PMID:26929214