Phylogenetic analysis identifies many uncharacterized actin-like proteins (Alps) in bacteria: regulated polymerization, dynamic instability and treadmilling in Alp7A.

Actin, one of the most abundant proteins in the eukaryotic cell, also has an abundance of relatives in the eukaryotic proteome. To date though, only five families of actins have been characterized in bacteria. We have conducted a phylogenetic search and uncovered more than 35 highly divergent families of actin-like proteins (Alps) in bacteria.