Editing Cell (biology) (section)

=== Cytoskeleton ===

{{main|Cytoskeleton}}
{{further|Morphogenesis}}

[[File:DAPIMitoTrackerRedAlexaFluor488BPAE.jpg|thumb|A fluorescent image of an endothelial cell. Nuclei are stained blue, [[mitochondria]] are stained red, and microfilaments are stained green.]]

The cytoskeleton acts to organize and maintain the cell's shape; anchors organelles in place; helps during [[endocytosis]], the uptake of external materials by a cell, and [[cytokinesis]], the separation of daughter cells after [[cell division]]; and moves parts of the cell in processes of growth and mobility. The eukaryotic cytoskeleton is composed of [[microtubule]]s, [[intermediate filament]]s and [[microfilament]]s. In the cytoskeleton of a [[neuron]] the intermediate filaments are known as [[neurofilament]]s. There are a great number of proteins associated with them, each controlling a cell's structure by directing, bundling, and aligning filaments.<ref name="NCBI"/> The prokaryotic cytoskeleton is less well-studied but is involved in the maintenance of cell shape, [[cell polarity|polarity]] and cytokinesis.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Michie |first1=K. A. |last2=Löwe |first2=J. |title=Dynamic filaments of the bacterial cytoskeleton |journal=Annual Review of Biochemistry |volume=75 |pages=467–492 |year=2006 |pmid=16756499 |doi=10.1146/annurev.biochem.75.103004.142452 |s2cid=4550126 }}</ref> The subunit protein of microfilaments is a small, monomeric protein called [[actin]]. The subunit of microtubules is a dimeric molecule called [[tubulin]]. Intermediate filaments are heteropolymers whose subunits vary among the cell types in different tissues. Some of the subunit proteins of intermediate filaments include [[vimentin]], [[desmin]], [[lamin]] (lamins A, B and C), [[keratin]] (multiple acidic and basic keratins), and [[neurofilament proteins]] ([[NEFL|NF–L]], [[NEFM|NF–M]]).