The cytoskeleton is found throughout the cytoplasm and is a network of filaments which serve as a scaffolding for movement of organelles. The function of cilia and flagella allow for smooth movement among the filaments. The filaments within the cytoskeleton consist of: microtubules, microfilaments, and intermediate filaments.
Microfilaments include actin, thin filaments, and myosin, thick filaments, which make up centromeres in muscles. These essentially slide past one another; the myosin releases anchors that the actin attaches to during a muscle contraction which causes the muscle to shorten and calcium to be released.
Microtubules are about twenty-five nanometers