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Intermediate filaments

P. Steinert,J. C. Jones,R. Goldman

Published 1984 in Journal of Cell Biology

ABSTRACT

Intermediate filaments form a class of insoluble cytoplasmic filaments ofdimensions intermediate in size between those of microtubules (about 25 nm in diameter) and microfilaments (about 7 nm in diameter). Thus, they are generally known as intermediate-sized filaments (IF)' or 10-nm filaments . They have been identified in virtually all differentiated types ofcells and it seems possible that IF-like proteins also are present in even the simplest eukaryote cell types . With immunological, biochemical, and molecular biological techniques, it has been possible to distinguish at least five distinct classes of proteins that constitute IF in different cells or tissues (30, 31, 46, 67) : desmin or skeletin in myogenic cells; neurofilaments in neuronal cells ; glial filaments in astroglia and related cells ; vimentin or decamin in mesenchymally derived cells; and a more complex group of keratins or cytokeratins in epithelial tissues . Some embryonic cells seem not to contain IF, but further studies are required to confirm this (36) . Although this simple cell-type classification system is of considerable value in understanding IF and has provided information on cellular origins during development, there is a growing list of addenda and exceptions . For example, it was recognized some time ago that some cells express vimentin in addition to their celltype class of IF subunit (32, 67) . Some fibroblastic cell lines have been shown to possess keratin-like IF proteins associated with their nuclear surfaces (69) . We expect that more exceptions will be identified in the future, possibly requiring a revised system ofIF subunit nomenclature . Each IF system is currently the subject of intense research and the understanding of IF is increasing rapidly . Here, we will briefly review some ofthe salient features ofthe different types of IF and present recent data from our laboratories on structural-functional aspects of IF .

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