The cells that make up our bodies are constantly exposed to a wide variety of mechanical stresses. For example, the heart and lungs have to withstand lifelong expansion and contraction, our skin has ...

Just as the skeleton and muscles move the human body and hold its shape, the cells of the body are stabilized and moved by a cellular skeleton. This cellular skeleton is a dynamic structure, ...

The cytoplasm of eukaryotic cells contains an elaborate filamentous protein meshwork — the cytoskeleton — which comprises three distinct but integrated fibrous polymers: filamentous actin (F-actin; ...

Using a mAb, referred to as 08L, we have identified a protein, of M r ≈ 140,000, associated with desmosomes of epithelial cells. The 08L antibody stained the intracellular side of lateral cell margins ...

We previously demonstrated that truncated desmoplakin I (DP I) molecules containing the carboxyl terminus specifically coalign with and disrupt both keratin and vimentin intermediate filament (IF) ...

Structures called desmosomes connect cells to each other and transfer mechanical stress. They are especially important in tissues under continual mechanical stress, such as heart muscle (pictured).

Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein (GFAP) is a class-III intermediate filament that is mostly produced in astrocytic glial cells in the central nervous system. Astrocytes have important functions in ...

Most biological cells have a fixed place in an organism. However, cells can become mobile and move through the body. This happens, for example, during wound healing or when tumour cells divide ...

The story of the cell cycle is often told only through the perspective of the chromosomes as they replicate and then divide. This resource beautifully illustrates the role of the cytoskeleton in that ...

Living cells are constantly exposed to a wide variety of mechanical stresses: heart and lungs must withstand expansion and contraction; our skin must be resistant to tearing whilst retaining ...