Microtubule is a cytoskeletal protein filament that holds great promise for various applications in nanotechnology. However, controlling the length of reconstructed microtubules has been a challenging task. Here we show that the length of microtubules can be easily controlled in vitro by manipulating the polymerization condition. The number of polymerization cycle and time of polymerization under controlled conditions are found to be useful in regulating the length of microtubules. This work is important for widening the applications of microtubules in nanotechnology, such as a nano-shuttle, success of which greatly relies on the length of the microtubules.
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