Microtubules (MTs) are cytoskeletal elements formed by a non-covalent association of α- and β-tubulin heterodimers. They provide structure and shape to all eukaryotic cells and are implicated in a variety of fundamental cellular processes including cell motility, cell division, mechanotransduction as well as long-distance intracellular cargo transport. In neurons, they constitute the molecular frame that maintains the lengthy axonal projections. In view of the relative size of some axons in the human body, which can reach up to 1 m, the active transport of e.g., vesicles over the MT arrays to the synaptic cleft, is of particular importance.
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