α Internexin

A type IV intermediate filament of neurons

General Information

The cytoskeleton of most eukaryotic cells is composed of three distinct components: Actin-based microfilaments, tubulin based microtubules and intermediate filaments (IFs).
α-Internexin is a neuronal intermediate filament of type four. It is assumed to be expressed by all neurons and preceeds the onset of the expression of the heavy medium and light variants of neurofilaments which are major components of the neuronal IFs.
Alterations in the phosphorylation state of IFs have been associated with neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer, Parkinson, dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), and motor neuron disease (MND).