myosin

American  

[mahy-uh-sin] / ˈmaɪ ə sɪn /

noun

Biochemistry.

1. the principal contractile protein of muscle.

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myosin British  

/ ˈmaɪəsɪn /

noun

1. the chief protein of muscle that interacts with actin to form actomyosin during muscle contraction; it is also present in many other cell types

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myosin Scientific  

/ mī′ə-sĭn /

1. A protein found in muscle tissue as a thick filament made up of an aggregate of similar proteins. Myosin and the protein actin form the contractile units (sarcomeres) of skeletal muscle. In the sarcomere, actin and myosin filaments slide past each other to cause the shortening of a muscle fiber.

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Etymology

Origin of myosin

First recorded in 1865–70; my- + -ose ² + -in ²

Example Sentences

By modulating the spatial distribution of myosin -- the molecular motor that drives cell movement -- the researchers were able to control the positioning of these attractors, directing cell accumulation to targeted areas of the embryo.

From Science Daily

The guideline includes recommendations for adding cardiac myosin inhibitors, a new class of medication for patients with symptomatic obstructive HCM who do not get adequate symptom relief from first-line drug therapy.

From Science Daily

They therefore conclude that Myh2 hyper-phosphorylation is specifically associated with torpor, rather than hibernation in general, and propose that this serves to increase myosin stability in small mammals.

From Science Daily

Active RhoA turns on the motor protein non-muscle myosin II, which causes the back ends of the cells to constrict and let go of the surface they are moving along.

From Science Daily

The study titled "Cryo-EM structure of the human cardiac myosin filament" was published online in the journal Nature earlier this month.

From Science Daily