Dye Natalie A, Shapiro Lucy
Department of Biochemistry, Beckman Center, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA.
Trends Cell Biol. 2007 May;17(5):239-45. doi: 10.1016/j.tcb.2007.03.005. Epub 2007 Apr 16.
A crucial function for eukaryotic cytoskeletal filaments is to organize the intracellular space: facilitate communication across the cell and enable the active transport of cellular components. It was assumed for many years that the small size of the bacterial cell eliminates the need for a cytoskeleton, because simple diffusion of proteins is rapid over micron-scale distances. However, in the last decade, cytoskeletal proteins have indeed been found to exist in bacteria where they have an important role in organizing the bacterial cell. Here, we review the progress that has been made towards understanding the mechanisms by which bacterial cytoskeletal proteins influence cellular organization. These discoveries have advanced our understanding of bacterial physiology and provided insight into the evolution of the eukaryotic cytoskeleton.
促进细胞内的通讯并使细胞成分能够进行主动运输。多年来人们一直认为，细菌细胞体积小，无需细胞骨架，因为蛋白质在微米尺度距离上的简单扩散速度很快。然而，在过去十年中，确实发现细胞骨架蛋白存在于细菌中，它们在组织细菌细胞方面发挥着重要作用。在这里，我们回顾了在理解细菌细胞骨架蛋白影响细胞组织的机制方面所取得的进展。这些发现推动了我们对细菌生理学的理解，并为真核细胞骨架的进化提供了见解。
