Skip to main content
actin

actin

2 7.3
A protein in muscle and other cells that helps them move and keep their shape
  • noun
  • /ˈæktɪn/
  • Specialized
translation icon : actina
  • So here we have a dendritic cell that is migrating through those channels and in red we can see the DNA and in green the actin cytoskeleton.
  • actin filaments
  • muscle actin
  • actin polymerization

Estrogen is responsible for how strong myosin attaches to actin.

Autoplay Next

Examples

  • When it's hyperactivated, it drives actin depolymerization.

  • What kind of molecules are actin and myosin?

  • Here's a graph of motor activity as a function of actin concentration.

  • Stress fibers are mostly formed by actin and myosin.

    Academic text (2017)
  • Most expressed sarcomeric actin, a specific marker for cardiac myocytes.

    Academic text (2003)
  • F-actin appeared to exhibit a scattered distribution, and the normal junctions between cells were lost.

    Academic text (2018)
  • RhoA GTPase is a major factor responsible for actin fiber stabilization.

    Academic text (2017)
  • In time, the cascade of internal signaling events results in the polymerization of actin filaments at the front of the cell.

    Academic text (2012)
  • We also examined whether actin is contained in the MD- and PD-rings and the microbody in C. merolae.

    Academic text (1996)
  • The protein actin plays a crucial role in muscle contractions by interacting with myosin filaments.

How Polymerized

F-actin
  • Specialized
8.6
actin
  • Specialized
2 7.3

Surface Forms

actin singular
actins plural

Etymology

Actin comes from the Greek aktis, which means 'ray', because actin proteins form thin, ray-like threads inside cells. So, think of a small 'ray' or filament when you remember that actin helps give the cell its shape and lets it move.