Eukaryotic organisms rely on intracellular transport to position organelles and other components within their cells. Pigment cells provide an excellent model to study organelle transport as they specialize in the translocation of pigment granules in response to defined chemical signals. Pigment cells of lower vertebrates have traditionally been used as a model for these studies because these cells transport pigment organelles in a highly coordinated fashion, are easily cultured and transfected, are ideal for microsurgery, and are good for biochemical experiments, including in vitro analysis of organelle motility. Many important properties of organelle transport, for example, the requirement of two cytoskeletal filaments (actin and microtubules), the motor proteins involved, and the mechanisms of their regulation and interactions, have been studied using pigment cells of lower vertebrates. Genetic studies of mouse melanocytes allowed the discovery of essential elements involved in organelle transport including the myosin-Va motor and its receptor and adaptor molecules on the organelle surface. Future studies of pigment cells will contribute to our understanding of issues such as the cooperation among multiple motor proteins and the mechanisms of regulation of microtubule motors.

中文翻译：

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色素细胞：用于细胞器运输研究的模型。

真核生物依靠细胞内运输将细胞器和其他成分定位在其细胞内。色素细胞为研究细胞器运输提供了一个极好的模型，因为它们专门研究色素颗粒对已定义化学信号的响应而易位。传统上将低等脊椎动物的色素细胞用作这些研究的模型，因为这些细胞以高度协调的方式运输色素细胞，易于培养和转染，是显微外科手术的理想选择，并且对生化实验（包括体外分析）有良好的作用。细胞器运动。细胞器运输的许多重要特性，例如，需要两条细胞骨架丝（肌动蛋白和微管），所涉及的运动蛋白，以及它们调控和相互作用的机制，已经使用低等脊椎动物的色素细胞进行了研究。小鼠黑素细胞的遗传学研究发现了细胞器运输中涉及的基本元素，包括肌球蛋白-Va马达及其在细胞器表面的受体和衔接子分子。色素细胞的未来研究将有助于我们理解诸如多种运动蛋白之间的协作以及微管运动调节机制等问题。