Kinectin-dependent ER transport supports the focal complex maturation required for chemotaxis in shallow gradients.

Chemotaxis in shallow gradients of chemoattractants is accomplished by preferential maintenance of protrusions oriented towards the chemoattractant; however, the mechanism of preferential maintenance is not known. Here, we test the hypothesis that kinectin-dependent endoplasmic reticulum (ER) transport supports focal complex maturation to preferentially maintain correctly oriented protrusions. We knocked down kinectin expression in MDA-MB-231 cells using small interfering RNA and observed that kinectin contributes to the directional bias, but not the speed, of cell migration.