Search results
Results From The WOW.Com Content Network
Intermediate filaments (IFs) are cytoskeletal structural components found in the cells of vertebrates, and many invertebrates. [1] [2] [3] Homologues of the IF protein have been noted in an invertebrate, the cephalochordate Branchiostoma. [4] Intermediate filaments are composed of a family of related proteins sharing common structural and ...
The term cytokeratin began to be used in the late 1970s, when the protein subunits of keratin intermediate filaments inside cells were first being identified and characterized. [2] In 2006 a new systematic nomenclature for mammalian keratins was created, and the proteins previously called cytokeratins are simply called keratins (human ...
Intermediate filaments are most commonly known as the support system or "scaffolding" for the cell and nucleus while also playing a role in some cell functions. In combination with proteins and desmosomes , the intermediate filaments form cell-cell connections and anchor the cell-matrix junctions that are used in messaging between cells as well ...
Intermediate filaments composed of keratin or desmin are attached to membrane-associated attachment proteins that form a dense plaque on the cytoplasmic face of the membrane. Cadherin molecules form the actual anchor by attaching to the cytoplasmic plaque, extending through the membrane and binding strongly to cadherins coming through the ...
Type 5 intermediate filaments are composed of nuclear lamins which can be found in the nuclear envelope of many eukaryotic cells. They will help to assemble an orthogonal network in these cells in the nuclear membrane. Type 6 intermediate filaments are involved with nestin that interact with the stem cells of central nervous system. [6]
The protein composition of neurofilaments varies widely across different animal phyla. Most is known about mammalian neurofilaments. Historically, mammalian neurofilaments were originally thought to be composed of just three proteins called neurofilament protein NF-L (low molecular weight; NF-L), NF-M (medium molecular weight; NF-M) and NF-H (high molecular weight; NF-H).
In muscle, plectin binds to the periphery of Z-discs, [12] and along with the intermediate filament protein desmin, may form lateral linkages among neighboring Z-discs. This interaction between plectin and desmin intermediate filaments also appears to facilitate the close association of myofibrils and mitochondria, both at Z-discs and along the ...
Type IIA keratins have a unique structural feature that allows them to form coiled-coil dimers, which then assemble into tetramers and eventually into intermediate filaments. This structural organization provides the mechanical strength and resilience necessary to withstand the stresses experienced by the tissues in which they are expressed. [6]