The association of α‐actinin with the plasma membrane

Abstract
The role of α-actinin in the attachment of actin to plasma membranes has been investigated. Specific antibody staining of SDS gels has indicated that α-actinin is a major component in isolated plasma membranes prepared from three different cell types by two different procedures. Using specific extraction conditions, most of the α-actinin can be selectively extracted from the membranes with relatively little parallel release of actin. This selective dissociation of α-actinin from the plasma membrane leads us to conclude that α-actinin is present in these membrane preparations, because it is bound to actin, and that α-actinin does not form a direct link between actin and the membrane.