Automated mitotic spindle tracking suggests a link between spindle dynamics, spindle orientation, and anaphase onset in epithelial cells.

ABSTRACT: Proper spindle positioning at anaphase onset is essential for normal tissue organization and function. Here we develop automated spindle-tracking software and apply it to characterize mitotic spindle dynamics in the Xenopus laevis embryonic epithelium. We find that metaphase spindles first undergo a sustained rotation that brings them on-axis with their final orientation. This sustained rotation is followed by a set of striking stereotyped rotational oscillations that bring the spindle into near contact with the cortex and then move it rapidly away from the cortex. These oscillations begin to subside soon before anaphase onset. Metrics extracted from the automatically tracked spindles indicate that final spindle position is determined largely by cell morphology and that spindles con

SUBMITTER: Larson ME 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5349782 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature