Anastral meiotic spindle morphogenesis: role of the non-Claret Disjunctional kinesin-like protein

We have used time-lapse laser scanning confocal microscopy to directly examine microtubule reorganization during meiotic spindle assembly in living Drosophila oocytes. These studies indicate that the bipolarity of the meiosis I spindle is not the result of a duplication and separation of centrosomal...

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Published inThe Journal of cell biology Vol. 134; no. 2; pp. 455 - 464
Main Authors Matthies, H.J.G, McDonald, H.B, Goldstein, L.S.B, Theurkauf, W.E
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States Rockefeller University Press 01.07.1996
The Rockefeller University Press
Subjects
Animals
Antibodies
cell biology
Cell Division
cell structures
Cellular biology
Centrosome
Chromatin
Chromatin - physiology
Chromosomes
Diptera
Drosophila
Drosophila melanogaster
Drosophila Proteins
Drosophilidae
Embryos
Female
Fluorescent Antibody Technique, Indirect
interactions
Kinesin - physiology
Lasers
Meiosis
Microscopy, Confocal
Microtubule Proteins - physiology
Microtubules
Mitotic spindle apparatus
Morphogenesis
Mutation
Oocytes
Oocytes - cytology
Proteins
Rabbits
Spindle Apparatus - physiology
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Summary:We have used time-lapse laser scanning confocal microscopy to directly examine microtubule reorganization during meiotic spindle assembly in living Drosophila oocytes. These studies indicate that the bipolarity of the meiosis I spindle is not the result of a duplication and separation of centrosomal microtubule organizing centers (MTOCs). Instead, microtubules first associate with a tight chromatin mass, and then bundle to form a bipolar spindle that lacks asters. Analysis of mutant oocytes indicates that the Non-Claret Disjunctional (NCD) kinesin-like protein is required for normal spindle assembly kinetics and stabilization of the spindle during metaphase arrest. Immunolocalization analyses demonstrate that NCD is associated with spindle microtubules, and that the centrosomal components gamma-tubulin, CP-190, and CP-60 are not concentrated at the meiotic spindle poles. Based on these observations, we propose that microtubule bundling by the NCD kinesin-like protein promotes assembly of a stable bipolar spindle in the absence of typical MTOCs.
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ISSN:0021-9525
1540-8140
DOI:10.1083/jcb.134.2.455