Determining the position of the cell division plane

Julie C. Canman, Lisa A. Cameron, Paul S. Maddox, Aaron Straight, Jennifer S. Tirnauer, Timothy J. Mitchison, Guowei Fang, Tarun M. Kapoor and E. D. Salmon ()
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Julie C. Canman: University of North Carolina
Lisa A. Cameron: University of North Carolina
Paul S. Maddox: University of North Carolina
Aaron Straight: Harvard Medical School
Jennifer S. Tirnauer: Harvard Medical School
Timothy J. Mitchison: Harvard Medical School
Guowei Fang: Stanford University
Tarun M. Kapoor: The Rockefeller University
E. D. Salmon: University of North Carolina

Nature, 2003, vol. 424, issue 6952, 1074-1078

Abstract: Abstract Proper positioning of the cell division plane during mitosis is essential for determining the size and position of the two daughter cells—a critical step during development and cell differentiation1. A bipolar microtubule array has been proposed to be a minimum requirement for furrow positioning in mammalian cells, with furrows forming at the site of microtubule plus-end overlap between the spindle poles2,4,4. Observations in other species have suggested, however, that this may not be true5,6. Here we show, by inducing mammalian tissue cells with monopolar spindles to enter anaphase7,8, that furrow formation in cultured mammalian cells does not require a bipolar spindle. Unexpectedly, cytokinesis occurs at high frequency in monopolar cells. Division always occurs at a cortical position distal to the chromosomes. Analysis of microtubules during cytokinesis in cells with monopolar and bipolar spindles shows that a subpopulation of stable microtubules extends past chromosomes and binds to the cell cortex at the site of furrow formation. Our data are consistent with a model in which chromosomes supply microtubules with factors that promote microtubule stability and furrowing.

Date: 2003
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DOI: 10.1038/nature01860

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