Abstract
In the last mitotic division of the epidermal lineage in the ascidian embryo, the cells divide stereotypically along the anterior-posterior axis. During interphase, we found that a unique membrane structure invaginates from the posterior to the centre of the cell, in a microtubule-dependent manner. The invagination projects toward centrioles on the apical side of the nucleus and associates with one of them. Further, a cilium forms on the posterior side of the cell and its basal body remains associated with the invagination. A laser ablation experiment suggests that the invagination is under tensile force and promotes the posterior positioning of the centrosome. Finally, we showed that the orientation of the invaginations is coupled with the polarized dynamics of centrosome movements and the orientation of cell division. Based on these findings, we propose a model whereby this novel membrane structure orchestrates centrosome positioning and thus the orientation of cell division axis.
Highlights
The orientation of the mitotic division axis has been proposed to control tissue morphogenesis as well as cell fate determination, playing an important role in shaping embryonic forms (Lu and Johnston, 2013; Moorhouse and Burgess, 2014; Siller and Doe, 2009)
We report here that an unusual membrane structure, which forms during interphase of a specific embryonic cell cycle, is correlated with the dynamics of centrosomes
We propose a model whereby these events are coupled by physical interaction between a centriole and plasma membrane, which results in the generation of a tensile force in the latter
Summary
The orientation of the mitotic division axis has been proposed to control tissue morphogenesis as well as cell fate determination, playing an important role in shaping embryonic forms (Lu and Johnston, 2013; Moorhouse and Burgess, 2014; Siller and Doe, 2009). Specific mother-daughter centrosome inheritance coupled with asymmetric cell division is a highly conserved phenomenon (Yamashita, 2009). It has been first reported in budding yeast that the ’old’ spindle pole body corresponding to the mother centrosome, segregates into the bud (Pereira et al, 2001).
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