Living cells exhibit an enormous bandwidth of mechanical and morphological properties that are mainly determined by the cytoskeleton.<br> In metazoan cells this composite network is constituted of three<br> different types of filamentous systems: actin filaments, microtubules<br> and intermediate filaments. Keratin-type intermediate filaments are an<br> essential component of epithelial tissues, where they comprise networks<br> of filaments and filament bundles. However, the underlying mechanisms<br> leading to this inherently polymorphic structure remain elusive. Here,<br> we show that keratin filaments form kinetically trapped networks of<br> bundles under near-physiological conditions in vitro. The network<br> structure is determined by the intricate interplay between filament<br> elongation and their lateral association to bundles and clusters.
Heat Shock Proteins Regulate Structure of Intermediate Filament Networks
Jona Kayser,
Martin Haslbeck,
Harald Herrmann,
Johannes Buchner,
Andreas R. Bausch
