ABSTRACT
Progress on the study of the molecular and cellular biology of septins would be greatly accelerated by the development of small molecules that directly inhibit higher-order septin assembly in vivo. By comparison, molecules like latrunculin, paclitaxil, benomyl, etc. allow researchers to acutely perturb the actin or tubulin cytoskeletal networks. Two small molecules, forchlorfenuron (FCF; N-(2-chloro-4pyridyl)-N-phenylurea) and 1-ethyl-3-(4-methoxyphenyl)-6-methylpyrimido[5,4-e][1,2,4]triazine-5,7-dione (PubChem CID 906558), have documented effects on septin localization and/or function, although for each molecule there is also strong evidence for off-target effects. In this chapter we provide a summary of ways to utilize FCF to alter higher-order septin assembly properties in living cells.
