The perpetual movements of anaphase

Abstract

One of the most extraordinary events in the lifetime of a cell is the coordinated separation of sister chromatids during cell division. This is truly the essence of the entire mitotic process and the reason for the most profound morphological changes in cytoskeleton and nuclear organization that a cell may ever experience. It all occurs within a very short time window known as "anaphase", as if the cell had spent the rest of its existence getting ready for this moment in an ultimate act of survival. And there is a good reason for this: no space for mistakes. Problems in the distribution of chromosomes during cell division have been correlated with aneuploidy, a common feature observed in cancers and several birth defects, and the main cause of spontaneous abortion in humans. In this paper we critically review the mechanisms of anaphase chromosome motion that resisted the scrutiny of more than one hundred years of research as part of a tribute to the pioneering work of Miguel Mota.

Anaphase asymmetry and dynamic repositioning of the division plane during maize meiosis

“…2B). The usage of these two mechanisms and their degree of contribution to chromosome separation varies from species to species (Maiato and Lince-Faria, 2010). We found that spindles did not elongate from their metaphase length during anaphase ( Fig.…”

Investigating the Regulation of Stem and Progenitor Cell Mitotic Progression by In Situ Imaging

“…Thus, dietary restriction may prolong the duration of congression by limiting the amount of energy available to GSPCs. If so, other energy-dependent mitotic processes, such as spindle elongation during anaphase [37], should be similarly affected. Indeed, the rate of spindle elongation was reduced after dietary restriction, and the duration of congression correlated with the rate of spindle elongation (r = À0.55; Figures 3C and 3D).…”

4D imaging reveals a shift in chromosome segregation dynamics during mouse pre-implantation development

“…In contrast, anaphase-B precedes anaphase-A in mouse eggs, 16 and the two mechanisms occur simultaneously in some other cell types. 3 Moreover, some developmental systems segregate chromosomes in a manner that apparently dispenses with Images to the right illustrate the measurements made, with colored lines matching the colors of data points. Cell diameter was measured along the axis of the spindle as illustrated.…”