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Glite Dictionary
tropomyosin

tropomyosin

1 9.6
A protein in muscles and shellfish that helps muscles contract and can cause allergies
  • noun
  • /ˌtroʊpəˈmaɪəsɪn/
  • Specialized
: tropomiosina
  • Calcium binds with troponin, changing the position of tropomyosin.

Examples

  • Calcium binds with tropomyosin, changing the position of the protein during muscle contraction.

  • With that, we add the muscle proteins of myosin, actin and... Tropomyosin.

    Bride of Re-Animator (1990)

  • This more than likely (it cannot be observed with current science) means that fewer actual contractions happen since there needs to be a three-molecule chain in order to make a contraction (troponin, calcium, tropomyosin), which is less likely the further these molecules are apart.

    Blog text (20)

  • In some individuals, tropomyosin can trigger allergic reactions, particularly after consuming certain shellfish.

  • Tropomyosin is a coiled-coil protein that regulates contraction in muscle cells.

Surface Forms

tropomyosin singular
tropomyosins plural

Morphology

tropomyosin = myosin (semi-transparent) = tropo + myosin

Combining form 'tropo-' attached to 'myosin' indicates a myosin-related protein, but the specific biological function is specialized and not obvious to general learners.

Etymology

Tropomyosin comes from three parts: tropo- meaning 'turn', myo- meaning 'muscle' and -in which marks a protein. So think of tropomyosin as a 'turning' muscle protein that helps muscles change shape when they contract and can cause allergic reactions in shellfish.