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Updated: Jun 6, 2025

Biophysical Characterization of Flagellar Motor Functions
Published on: January 18, 2017
Cell motility, cytoskeleton, and motor proteins-21st IUPAB Congress session commentary
Ikuko Fujiwara1, Sarah Köster2
1Department of Materials Science and Bioengineering, Nagaoka University of Technology, 1603-1 Kamitomioka-Cho, Nagaoka, Niigata, 940-2188 Japan.
None:
The cytoskeleton is the major mechanical unit of the cell and is essential for cellular processes such as motility, division, and contraction. It consists of three types of biopolymers-actin filaments, microtubules, and intermediate filaments-along with passive cross-linkers and active motor proteins. This composite biological material determines the enormous viscoelastic adaptability of cells to varying mechanical demands. In the session entitled "Cell Motility, Cytoskeleton, and Motor Proteins" at the IUPAB 2024 Congress in Kyoto, Japan, we elucidated specific examples of cell mechanics and dynamics from a physical point of view, including different length scales from molecular to cellular, as well as in vitro reconstituted systems and cellular systems.
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