The Cytoskeleton and Its Roles in Self-Organization Phenomena: Insights from Xenopus Egg Extracts

Self-organization of and by the cytoskeleton is central to the biology of the cell. Since their introduction in the early 1980s, cytoplasmic extracts derived from the eggs of the African clawed-frog, Xenopus laevis, have flourished as a major experimental system to study the various facets of cytosk...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Cells (Basel, Switzerland) Switzerland), 2021-08, Vol.10 (9), p.2197
Main Authors: Geisterfer, Zachary M., Guilloux, Gabriel, Gatlin, Jesse C., Gibeaux, Romain
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
actin
Actomyosin
Cell cycle
Cell division
Cellular Biology
Cytoskeleton
Eggs
Filaments
Investigations
Life Sciences
microtubule
Review
Roles
self-organization
Sperm
Structure-function relationships
Xenopus egg extract
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Summary:Self-organization of and by the cytoskeleton is central to the biology of the cell. Since their introduction in the early 1980s, cytoplasmic extracts derived from the eggs of the African clawed-frog, Xenopus laevis, have flourished as a major experimental system to study the various facets of cytoskeleton-dependent self-organization. Over the years, the many investigations that have used these extracts uniquely benefited from their simplified cell cycle, large experimental volumes, biochemical tractability and cell-free nature. Here, we review the contributions of egg extracts to our understanding of the cytoplasmic aspects of self-organization by the microtubule and the actomyosin cytoskeletons as well as the importance of cytoskeletal filaments in organizing nuclear structure and function.
ISSN:2073-4409
2073-4409
DOI:10.3390/cells10092197