About
Kinetochore
Influenza Virus
Bacteriophage T4 Infection
HIV-Infected Cell
Caulobacter Polar Microdomain
HIV Vaccine
Insulin Release
JCVI-syn3A Minimal Cell
Casein Micelle and Fat Globule in Milk
Escherichia coli Bacterium
Cellulose Synthase
Myoglobin in a Whale Muscle Cell
Collagen and Extracellular Matrix
CytoSkeleton
Transfer RNA and Gag Protein
RecA and DNA
Model of a Mycoplasma Cell
Phage-based COVID-19 Vaccine
SARS-CoV-2 and Neutralizing Antibodies
Red Blood Cell Cytoskeleton
SARS-CoV-2 mRNA Vaccine
SARS-CoV-2 Fusion
Respiratory Droplet
Coronavirus Life Cycle
Myelin
Immunological Synapse
Coronavirus
Influenza Vaccine
Poliovirus Neutralization
Lipid Droplets
Measles Virus Proteins
Last Universal Common Ancestor
Abiogenesis
Excitatory and Inhibitory Synapses
Insulin Action
Zika Virus
Ebola Virus
Chloroplast
Autophagy
Mycoplasma mycoides
Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VegF) Signaling
Biosites: Cytoplasm
Biosites: Basement Membrane
Biosites: Red Blood Cell
Biosites: Blood Plasma
Biosites: Muscle
Biosites: Nucleus
Blood
HIV in Blood Plasma
Escherichia coli

Molecular Landscapes by David S. Goodsell

Red Blood Cell Cytoskeleton, 2020


Download high quality TIFF image

Acknowledgement: Illustration by David S. Goodsell, RCSB Protein Data Bank. doi: 10.2210/rcsb_pdb/goodsell-gallery-031

A cross section through a red blood cell is shown at the bottom, with hemoglobin in red and the cell membrane in purple. A distinctive cytoskeleton forms a structural network bracing the membrane, with several large membrane-bound protein assemblies and short actin filaments, all linked by long, flexible spectrin proteins. Blood plasma is shown at the top.

Selected References

  • Lux SE (2016) Anatomy of the red cell membrane skeleton: unanswered questions. Blood 127, 187-199.
  • Burton NM & Bruce LJ (2011) Modelling the structure of the red cell membrane. Biochem. Cell Biol. 89, 200-215.
  • Nans A, Mohandas N & Stokes DL (2011) Native ultrastructure of the red cell cytoskeleton by cryo-electron tomography. Biophys. J. 101, 2341-2350.
  • Baines AJ (2010) The spectrin-ankyrin-4.1-adducin membrane skeleton: adapting eukaryotic cells to the demands of life. Protoplasma 244, 99-131.