cytoskeletonn.
/ˈsʌɪtəʊˌskɛlᵻt(ə)n/, U.S. /ˈsaɪdəˌskɛlətn/, /ˈsaɪdoʊˌskɛlətn/ Cell Biology.
A framework of protein filaments and tubules in the cytoplasm of a cell, which serves in the maintenance of cell shape and the organization of cytoplasmic contents, and participates in other functions such as cell motility and division.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > biology > substance > cell > cell substance > [noun] > protoplasm or cytoplasm > structure or substance in cytoplasm
microsome1881
myoneme1893
tonofibril1901
Holmgren1921
tonofibrilla1925
cytoskeleton1936
protofibril1948
protofilament1960
microfilament1963
tonofilament1964
cytosol1965
1936 J. Needham Order & Life iii. 149 Could it be that the former [sc. vitellins or ichthulins] are primarily stores of nitrogen and phosphorus..and that the latter [sc. livetins or thuicthins]..are the molecules constituting the 'cytoskeleton'?
1965 Jrnl. Cell Biol. 26 675 The marginal location and the long, unconnected nature of these tubules strongly suggest that they function as a cytoskeleton.
1987 Nature 26 Mar. 332/2 In fact it is not mitochondria, but the nucleus, endomembrane system and cytoskeleton that are the true hallmarks of the eukaryote cell.
2005 C. de Duve Singularities xv. 187 Eukaryotic cells differ from their prokaryotic relatives by..a cytoskeleton (consisting mainly of actin fibers and microtubules), connected with ATP-powered motor elements (myosin, dynein, kinesin).
Derivatives
ˌcytoˈskeletal adj. of or relating to the cytoskeleton.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > biology > substance > cell > cell substance > [adjective] > protoplasm or cytoplasm > of structure or substance in
cytoskeletal1937
cytosolic1969
microfilamentous1970
1937 Proc. Royal Soc. B. 121 589 The way has been smoothed in some respects for the ‘cytoskeletal’ hypothesis.
1984 E. Holtzman & A. Novikoff Cells & Organelles (ed. 3) ii. 287 In mammalian red blood cells, actin is linked to the protein spectrin, forming a cytoskeletal protein network that lies just below the cell surface.
2003 L. Moss What Genes can't Do iii. 93 Actin..is a ubiquitous component of cytoskeletal structures (as well as muscle tissue).
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, November 2010; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1936