title: Muscle intermediate filaments and their links to membranes and membranous organelles.
abstract: Intermediate filaments (IFs) play a key role in the integration of structure and function of striated muscle, primarily by mediating mechanochemical links between the contractile apparatus and mitochondria, myonuclei, the sarcolemma and potentially the vesicle trafficking apparatus. Linkage of all these membranous structures to the contractile apparatus, mainly through the Z-disks, supports the integration and coordination of growth and energy demands of the working myocyte, not only with force transmission, but also with de novo gene expression, energy production and efficient protein and lipid trafficking and targeting. Desmin, the most abundant and intensively studied muscle intermediate filament protein, is linked to proper costamere organization, myoblast and stem cell fusion and differentiation, nuclear shape and positioning, as well as mitochondrial shape, structure, positioning and function. Similar links have been established for lysosomes and lysosome-related organelles, consistent with the presence of widespread links between IFs and membranous structures and the regulation of their fusion, morphology and stabilization necessary for cell survival.
authors.affiliation: Cell Biology Division, Center of Basic Research, Biomedical Research Foundation Academy of Athens, Soranou Efessiou 4, 12965 Athens, Greece. ycapetanaki@bioacademy.gr
authors.forename: Yassemi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Capetanaki
authors.forename: Robert J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Bloch
authors.forename: Asimina
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kouloumenta
authors.forename: Manolis
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mavroidis
authors.forename: Stelios
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Psarras
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000502:physiology; D003893:Desmin / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007382:Intermediate Filaments / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D007425:Intracellular Membranes / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D008928:Mitochondria / Q000378:metabolism; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D009135:Muscular Diseases / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism / Q000503:physiopathology; D032446:Myoblasts / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure; D015388:Organelles / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure
chemical_list: D003893:Desmin