filament

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filament
1. A thin strand (e.g. of a feather or gill).

2. One of the strands of protein, variously grouped according to diameter (in the range 4–15 nm), found in many types of cell. Their functional significance is incompletely understood, but since they are largely composed of the contractile proteins actin and/or myosin it is presumed that the motility of the cell or its contents forms part of their role.

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