Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
Intermediate filaments are composed of a family of related proteins sharing common structural and sequence features. Initially designated 'intermediate' because their average diameter (10 nm ) is between those of narrower microfilaments (actin) and wider myosin filaments found in muscle cells, the diameter of intermediate filaments is now ...
The cytoskeleton consists of (a) microtubules, (b) microfilaments, and (c) intermediate filaments. [1] The cytoskeleton is a complex, dynamic network of interlinking protein filaments present in the cytoplasm of all cells, including those of bacteria and archaea. [2]
Intermediate filaments are part of the cytoskeleton structure found in most eukaryotic cells. An example of an intermediate filament is a Neurofilament . They provide support for the structure of the axon and are a major part of the cytoskeleton.
The intermediate filaments of the eukaryotic cytoskeleton, which the cytokeratins are one of its three components, have been probed to associate also with the ankyrin and spectrin complex protein network that underlies the cell membrane. [citation needed]
Neurofilaments (NF) are classed as type IV intermediate filaments found in the cytoplasm of neurons. They are protein polymers measuring 10 nm in diameter and many micrometers in length. [1] Together with microtubules (~25 nm) and microfilaments (7 nm), they form the neuronal cytoskeleton.
Vimentin is a type III intermediate filament (IF) protein that is expressed in mesenchymal cells. IF proteins are found in all animal cells [6] as well as bacteria. [7] Intermediate filaments, along with tubulin-based microtubules and actin-based microfilaments, comprises the cytoskeleton.
Plectin is a giant protein found in nearly all mammalian cells which acts as a link between the three main components of the cytoskeleton: actin microfilaments, microtubules and intermediate filaments. [5] In addition, plectin links the cytoskeleton to junctions found in the plasma membrane that structurally connect
Hemidesmosomes form rivet-like links between cytoskeleton and extracellular matrix components such as the basal laminae that underlie epithelia. Like desmosomes, they tie to intermediate filaments in the cytoplasm, but in contrast to desmosomes, their transmembrane anchors are integrins rather than cadherins. [8]