Nanomechanics of vimentin intermediate filament networks
Nanomechanics of vimentin intermediate filament networks
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DOI：
10.1039/c000113a
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发表时间：
2010-01-01
期刊：
影响因子：
3.4
通讯作者：
Weitz, David A.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Koester, Sarah;Lin, Yi-Chia;Weitz, David A.
中间丝是真核生物细胞骨架中三类纤维蛋白之一，其他是肌动蛋白丝和微管。致密的丝状网络和束为细胞提供了重要的机械稳定性。在这里，我们直接测量了由纯化的波形蛋白以 1 mg mL(-1) 重构的中间丝的体外模型系统的结构和机械性能。我们表明，网格尺寸约为 1 毫米，添加二价离子后仍保留该值。这些离子充当有效的交联剂，进一步加固网络。
Intermediate filaments are one of three classes of fibrous proteins in the cytoskeleton of eukaryotes, the others being actin filaments and microtubules. The dense filamentous networks and bundles provide important mechanical stability for the cell. Here we directly measure both the structure and mechanical properties of an in vitro model system for intermediate filaments reconstituted from purified vimentin protein at 1 mg mL(-1). We show that the mesh size is on the order of 1 mm, a value that is preserved upon addition of divalent ions. These ions act as effective cross-linkers, further stiffening the network.