Centrosomes back in the limelight

Subdiffraction resolution microscopy methods for analyzing centrosomes organization

“…With this new wealth of information, a complex and more realistic picture of the centrosome's role in cells is emerging. The centrosome is no longer viewed just as a microtubule-organizing center but also as a hub at the crossroads of signal transduction pathways (Arquint, Gabryjonczyk, & Nigg, 2014;Bornens & Gönczy, 2014). As new centrosome functions are revealed, it is critical to determine the mechanisms through which the centrosome's structural plasticity is determined (Brito, Gouveia, & Bettencourt-Dias, 2012;Gönczy, 2012); how the centrosome, either by acquiring or exchanging structural and functional modules (Brito et al, 2012), coordinates many functions such as the organization of the microtubule cytoskeleton (Bornens, 2012;Nigg & Raff, 2009), ciliogenesis (Ishikawa & Marshall, 2011;Kobayashi & Dynlacht, 2011), cell polarity and migration (Bornens, 2012;Tang & Marshall, 2012), formation of the immunological synapse (Stinchcombe & Griffiths, 2014), and DNA damage control (Arquint et al, 2014).…”

A comparative overview of the sperm centriolar complex in mammals and birds: Variations on a theme

“…Since their identification in the late nineteenth century through the pioneering work of Theodor Boveri, Edouard van Beneden, Walther Flemming and others (Bornens and Gönczy 2014;Scheer, 2014;Schatten and Sun, 2015), the structure and function of centrosomes and centrioles have intrigued scientists. An extensive amount of data has been generated on this complex organelle during the past 120 years, both in terms of its morphology and in respect of its role in cell division, ciliogenesis and fertilization.…”

“…Each centriole forms a hollow cylinder, the walls of which are composed of nine circularly arranged sets of triplet microtubules (Avidor-Reiss et al, 2 2015; Sathananthan, 2012;Sathananthan et al, 1996;Winey and O"Toole, 2014). In the centrosome a distinction can be made between the older (mother) centriole and the newly formed daughter centriole, although both organelles remain attached to each other (Bornens and Gönczy, 2014;Avidor-Reiss, 2015) Early ultrastructural studies on sperm from diverse species revealed the presence of a pair of centrioles located in the neck region of the cell. This observation initiated an intense and ongoing study on the structure and role of the centrosome during spermiogenesis and fertilization (Fawcett, 1971(Fawcett, , 1975.…”

“…The ultrastructural features of the centrosome have been documented in numerous publications. It consists essentially of a pair of centrioles aligned perpendicular to each other (forming a diplosome) and surrounded by an osmiophilic, fibro-granular matrix, the pericentriolar material (PCM) (Avidor-Reiss et al, 2015;Bornens and Gönczy, 2014;Chemes, 2012;Manandhar et al, 2005;Sathananthan, 2012;Sathananthan et al, 1996). Each centriole forms a hollow cylinder, the walls of which are composed of nine circularly arranged sets of triplet microtubules (Avidor-Reiss et al, 2 2015; Sathananthan, 2012;Sathananthan et al, 1996;Winey and O"Toole, 2014).…”

The centrosome: a multifaceted cellular weapon against chromosome instability

“…It was not until decades after Boveri's observations and theories that the scientific community re-discovered the centrosome. This renewed interest has led to a wealth of studies on the regulation of centrosome structure and function and its contribution to tumorigenesis (Bornens and Gonczy 2014;Gonczy 2015).…”