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Related Concept Videos

Role of Myosin in Cell Migration01:18

Role of Myosin in Cell Migration

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Myosins are multimeric motor proteins involved in various cellular processes such as migration, adhesion, and proliferation. Myosin II is the most common type in animal cells, which binds and cross-links actin filaments.
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Cell Motility through Blebbing01:16

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Blebs are a type of membrane protrusion formed by the internal hydrostatic pressure of the cytoplasm. Blebs are observed in several cell types, including fibroblasts, immune cells, and single-celled organisms like the amoeba. The primary function of blebs is cell locomotion and apoptosis, but they are also found during necrosis and cell division. The life cycle of a bleb comprises an initiation phase followed by the expansion and retraction phases.
Blebbing Through the Matrix
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The Role of Actin and Myosin in Non-muscle Cells01:10

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Actin and myosin or actomyosin filaments also play a significant role in cells other than those involved in muscle contraction (which occurs within the sarcomere of muscle cells). The mechanism of non-muscle cell contractile bundles was first observed in Dictyostelium and Acanthamoeba. In non-muscle cells, two bundles are commonly found: stress fibers and actomyosin adherence belts. These contractile bundles are smaller and less organized than the ones found in muscle cells. They  are held...
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Actin Polymerization and Cell Motility01:13

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Actin is a family of globular proteins that are highly abundant in eukaryotic cells. It makes up approximately 1-5% of total cell protein concentration. Actin monomers polymerize to form a complex network of polarized filaments, the actin cytoskeleton, that plays a crucial role in many cellular processes, including cell motility, division, endocytosis, and metastasis of cancer cells.
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Mechanism of Lamellipodia Formation01:31

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Cells migrating in response to external stimuli form lamellipodia, which are thin membrane protrusions supported by a mesh of linked, branched, or unbranched actin filaments. These actin filaments interact with myosin motor proteins, creating the dynamic actomyosin complex within the cytoskeleton. Contractility, or the ability to generate contractile stress, is inherent to the actomyosin complex. It helps cells detect the stiffness of the surrounding ECM and exert contractile force for...
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Cytoskeletal Coordination in Cell Migration01:32

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A migrating cell changes its shape during the cyclic events of attachment and detachment from the substratum and repositions the cell organelles correspondingly. These complex events are orchestrated by the dynamic cytoskeletal network comprising actin filaments, intermediate filaments, and microtubules. Cytoskeletal crosstalk — the direct and indirect communication between the different components — is crucial for this coordination. Direct communication involves various linker...
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Mar 3, 2026

A Cell-based Assay to Investigate Non-muscle Myosin II Contractility via the Folded-gastrulation Signaling Pathway in Drosophila S2R+ Cells
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Actomyosin-based tissue folding requires a multicellular myosin gradient.

Natalie C Heer1, Pearson W Miller2,3, Soline Chanet1

  • 1Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA.

Development (Cambridge, England)
|April 23, 2017
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Tissue folding relies on gradients of active myosin, not just its presence. This myosin gradient, driven by signaling, is crucial for shaping tissues during embryonic development.

Keywords:
EpitheliaFoldGradientMyosinTwist

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Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Mar 3, 2026

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Analysis of Actomyosin Dynamics at Local Cellular and Tissue Scales Using Time-lapse Movies of Cultured Drosophila Egg Chambers
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Analysis of Actomyosin Dynamics at Local Cellular and Tissue Scales Using Time-lapse Movies of Cultured Drosophila Egg Chambers

Published on: June 3, 2019

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Area of Science:

  • Developmental Biology
  • Cell Biology
  • Biophysics

Background:

  • Tissue folding is essential for establishing three-dimensional (3D) embryonic forms.
  • Apical myosin accumulation drives cell constriction, a proposed mechanism for tissue folding.
  • Previous studies observed myosin at apical surfaces during folding events like neural tube formation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the spatial patterns of transcription, signaling, myosin activation, and cell shape.
  • To determine the role of myosin gradients in 3D tissue morphogenesis.
  • To elucidate the relationship between signaling gradients, myosin contractility, and tissue curvature.

Main Methods:

  • Quantitative microscopy was employed to analyze gene expression, protein localization, and cell morphology.
  • A 3D continuum biophysical model simulated tissue folding with induced contractility gradients.
  • In vivo experiments manipulated myosin distribution to test model predictions.

Main Results:

  • A gradient of active apical non-muscle myosin 2 was identified in the Drosophila mesoderm, varying with distance from the ventral midline.
  • This myosin gradient was correlated with previously unquantified gradients in upstream signaling proteins.
  • Computational modeling revealed that gradients in contractility, not uniform contractility, alter surface curvature and promote folding.

Conclusions:

  • Apical contractility gradients, influenced by signaling gradients, are critical drivers of tissue folding.
  • Disrupting myosin domain uniformity experimentally altered tissue curvature, supporting the model's predictions.
  • The findings highlight the importance of spatial regulation of myosin for embryonic morphogenesis.