The cytoskeleton, cellular motility and the reductionist agenda

Eukaryotic cells depend on cytoskeletal polymers and molecular motors to establish their asymmetrical shapes, to transport intracellular constituents and to drive their motility. Cell biologists are using diverse experimental approaches to understand the molecular basis of cellular movements and to...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Nature (London) 2003-04, Vol.422 (6933), p.741-745
Main Author: Pollard, Thomas D
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Actins - metabolism
Animals
Biological Evolution
Biopolymers - metabolism
Cell Movement
Cellular biology
Cytoskeleton - metabolism
Eukaryotic Cells - cytology
Eukaryotic Cells - metabolism
Gene Deletion
Humanities and Social Sciences
Models, Biological
Molecular Motor Proteins - metabolism
multidisciplinary
overview
Polymers
Pseudopodia - metabolism
Science
Science (multidisciplinary)
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Summary:Eukaryotic cells depend on cytoskeletal polymers and molecular motors to establish their asymmetrical shapes, to transport intracellular constituents and to drive their motility. Cell biologists are using diverse experimental approaches to understand the molecular basis of cellular movements and to explain why defects in the component proteins cause disease. Much of the molecular machinery for motility evolved in early eukaryotes, so a limited set of general principles can explain the motility of most cells.
ISSN:0028-0836
1476-4687
DOI:10.1038/nature01598