Cytoskeletal Motility Flashcards
Types of Intermediate Fillaments
Keratin, Vimentin, Neurofilaments
Where is Keratin Expressed
Epithelial Cells
IF provide?
tensile strenght and allow cells to withstand mechanical strength
Which of Cytoskeletal Elements are toughest?
Intermediate Filaments
Vimentin
Found in mesenchymal Cells
Associate with microtubules via accessory proteins
Maintain cell organizanization
Neurofilaments
Fill the core of neuronla axons
Lamins
Line and strengthen the inside surface of the INNER nuclear membrane
Nuclear Lamina
Disassembles and re-forms at each cell division
Phosphorylation Weakens the binding between the tetramers and causes the filaments to fall apart
Dephosphorylation at end of mitosis causes the lamins to reasemble
Intermediate Dependent molecular motors
DO NOT EXIST
Cross Links of IF to MT
Caused by Plectin
IF found in
Desomosomes
Microtubules
Long and relatively stiff HOLLOW tubes of protein that can rapidly dissassemble in one location and resasemble in another
Has Polarity: is essential to provide a track for directed movement
Microtubules Structure
tubulin: a dimer of two similar globular proteins
alpha and beta tubulin
tubulin has 13 tubulin protofilaments
each protofilament has a + and - end
Dynamic Instability
Microtubules innate ability to disassembe and reassemble
Comes from intrinsic capcity of tubulin molecules to hydrolyze GTP
Tubulin with GTP pack tightly
Tubulin with GDP doesn’t pack tightly
Colchicine
Binds tightly to free tubulin and prevents its polymerization of microtubules