Final answer:
The protein essential for the dispersal of pigment granules in Xenopus pigment cells is myosin, which functions as a motor protein moving along actin filaments.
Step-by-step explanation:
The protein important for travel and dispersal of pigment granules, such as melanosomes, in Xenopus pigment cells is myosin. This protein interacts with actin filaments, a component of the cell’s cytoskeleton, to facilitate movement. The movement of pigment granules allows cells to change color in response to environmental factors.
Actin provides the structural framework for myosin to travel along, but it is the energy-dependent motor activity of myosin that directly transports the granules. Keratin, another option, is an intermediate filament protein that provides structural stability to cells but is not involved in pigment granule movement. Lastly, melanin is not a motor protein, but the pigment found within the granules that are being transported.