Small heat shock proteins and the cytoskeleton: an essential interplay for cell integrity?

Abstract The cytoskeleton is a highly complex network of three major intracellular filaments, microfilaments (MFs), microtubules (MTs) and intermediate filaments (IFs). This network plays a key role in the control of cell shape, division, functions and interactions in animal organs and tissues. Dysregulation of the network can contribute to numerous human diseases. Although small HSPs (sHSPs) and in particular HSP27 (HSPB1) or αB-crystallin (HSPB5) display a wide range of cellular properties, they are mostly known for their ability to protect cells under stress conditions. Mutations in some sHSPs have been found to affect their ability to interact with cytoskeleton proteins, leading to IF a…