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Updated: Jun 29, 2026

Myosin-Specific Adaptations of In vitro Fluorescence Microscopy-Based Motility Assays
Published on: February 4, 2021
Functions of unconventional myosins
X Wu1, G Jung, J A Hammer
1Laboratory of Cell Biology, Section on Molecular Cell Biology, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, 20892-0301, USA.
Abstract:
To date, fourteen classes of unconventional myosins have been identified. Recent reports have implicated a number of these myosins in organelle transport, and in the formation, maintenance and/or dynamics of actin-rich structures involved in a variety of cellular processes including endocytosis, cell migration, and sensory transduction. Characterizations of organelle dynamics in pigment cells and neurons have further defined the contributions made by unconventional myosins and microtubule motors to the transport and distribution of organelles. Several studies have provided evidence of complexes through which cooperative organelle transport may be coordinated. Finally, the myosin superfamily has been shown to contain at least one processive motor and one backwards motor.
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