BIO 327 Chapter Notes - Chapter 17: Mitotic Inhibitor, Reflectron, Leading Edge
Document Summary
Cytoskeleton || intricate network of protein filaments that extends throughout the cytoplasm. Helps to support large volume of cytoplasm (especially in cell-wall deprived animal cells) Highly dynamic structure that is continuously reorganized as a cell changes shape, divides, and responds to environment. Responsible for large-scale movements (crawling of cells, contraction, changes in cell shape in embryo) Built on framework of three types of protein filaments each with distinct mechanical properties. Main function: enable cells to withstand mechanical stress that occurs when cells are stretched. Great tensile strength, most durable/tough: like a twisted rope made of fibrous subunits and alpha-helical central rod domain, central rod domains are all similar in size/amino acid sequence and pack together to form filaments to similar size/structure. Anchored to plasma membrane at cell-cell junctions called desmosomes. Form nuclear lamina underlies the nuclear envelope. Present in large numbers in nerve cell axons, muscle cells, epithelial cells: keratin filaments | epithelial cells.
