Functional analysis of cytoplasmic dynein heavy chain in Caenorhabditis elegans with fast-acting temperature-sensitive mutations.

ABSTRACT: Cytoplasmic dynein, a minus-end-directed microtubule motor, has been implicated in many cellular and developmental processes. Identification of specific cellular processes that rely directly on dynein would be facilitated by a means to induce specific and rapid inhibition of its function. We have identified conditional variants of a Caenorhabditis elegans dynein heavy chain (DHC-1) that lose function within a minute of a modest temperature upshift. Mutant embryos generated at elevated temperature show defects in centrosome separation, pronuclear migration, rotation of the centrosome/nucleus complex, bipolar spindle assembly, anaphase chromosome segregation, and cytokinesis. Our analyses of mutant embryos generated at permissive temperature and then upshifted quickly just before events of i

SUBMITTER: Schmidt DJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC551485 | biostudies-literature | 2005 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature