Part IV Cell Cycles and Cell Division

Outline

• Introduction to cell cycle

• Introduction to cell division
• M phase
• Mitosis
• Cytokinesis
• Cytoskeletons in M phase
• Mitosis
• Nuclear membrane
• Centrosome
• Mitotic spindle
• Cytokinesis
• Contractile ring
Introduction to cell cycles

18_01_cell_cycle.jpg

Cell cycle is a process

in which cells reproduce
by replicating their
contents and dividing
in two.
Cell cycle is divided into 2 general phases.
It is short, but

18_02_four_phases.jpg
Interval between the end
most dramatic.

of S phase and beginning

of M phase.

is the long period between

one M phase and the next one.

Interval between completion of M

S = synthesis
phase and beginning of S phase.
The cell replicates its DNA
The duration of cell cycle varies greatly from
one cell type to another

Some eukaryotic cell-cycle time

Cell Type Cell-cycle time

Early frog embryo cells 30 minutes

Yeast cells 1.5-3 hours

Intestinal epithelial ~12 hours

cells
Mammalian fibroblasts ~20 hours
in culture
Human liver cells ~1 year
The duration of each phase also varies.

19_02_four_phases.jpg
1-2 hours

3-6 hours

10-12 hours

6-8 hours A cell-cycle of a

Mammalian cell
The essential processes of the cell cycle are triggered
by a cell-cycle control system.

Two types of machinery are

involved in a cell cycle: one
manufactures new components
of the growing cell; the
other hauls the components
into their correct places and
partition them appropriately
when the cell divides in two.

Intracellular and extracellular feedbacks determine

whether the control system will pass through certain
checkpoints.
Checkpoints are the points in the cell cycle where the
control system can be regulated.

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Two important checkpoints G1 and G2 checkpoints

Checkpoints are molecular brakes

that can stop the cell cycle.

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Introduction to cell division - M Phase

Interphase

1. Prophase
2. Prometaphase
3.
4.
Metaphase
Anaphase
19_01_M_phase.jpg
5. Telephase
Mitosis - Prophase
Chromosome condenses and a microtubular framework (the
spindle apparatus) forms.
Cohesin and Condensin
Cohesins tie two adjacent sister chromatids together.
Condensins coil up single DNA chain in the process of
chromosome condensation.

Chromatids

Centromere
region for
attaching to
19_03_Cohesins_conde.jpg cytoskeleton
machine that
will pull
the sister
chromatids
apart.

Together, cohesin and condensin help to reduce the mitotic

chromosomes to small, condensed structures that can be easily
segregated during mitosis.
Prometaphase

19_13_02_mitotic_spindle.jpg

Nuclear membrane breakdown enables spindle microtubules (MTs)

to contact chromatids.
Mitotic spindles attach to centromere region of each
chromatid.
Metaphase

Chromosomes line up at the equator.

Anaphase
Chromatids are pulled apart by mitotic spindles and
move toward opposite the spindle pole each attached.
Anaphase movement involves two parts:
Chromosomes move toward opposite poles
Poles themselves move apart
Anaphase movement driven by the hydrolysis of ATP.
Telophase

Two daughter chromosomes arrive at the poles of the

spindle.
Nuclear membrane Reforms.
Complete the formation of two nuclei marking the end
of mitosis.
Division of the cytoplasm starts.
Cytokinesis

In animal cells, a constriction ring of actin and

myosin forms which pinches in the cells to create
two daughters
In plant cells, a cell plate forms inside and
separates the cells.
Cytoskeletons in M phase
-Nuclear lamins (IF)
-Microtubules (mitotic spindle (MT))
-Actin and myosin (contractile ring (IF))

All 3 types of cytoskeleton

are involved in M phase.
Microtubules in Mitosis
Centrosome duplication Two centrosomes
starts at the beginning remain together.
of S phase and completed
by G2 phase.

Centrosomes separate
and each nucleates its
own aster.

19_05_centrosome.jpg
Biopolar mitotic spindle
is formed.

Attaching to chromosomes
through kinetochore
protein complex
after nuclear membrane
breaks.
Mitotic spindle
Formatation

When two microtubules

from the opposite
19_07_mitotic_spindle.jpg
centrosome interact
in an overlap zone,
motor proteins and
other associated
proteins cross-link
the microtubules
together and stabilise
it.
Kinetochore protein complex attaches chromosome
to mitotic spindle.

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Three types spindle microtubules
- aster, kinetochore and interpolar microtubules
19_13_01_mitotic_spindle.jpg
Sister chromatids separate in anaphse
- two separation processes

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Anaphase promoting complex (APC) triggers the separation
of sister chromatids.

19_16_APC_triggers.jpg
Phosphorylation of nuclear lamins regulates their
assembly and disassembly during mitosis. You add a drug
to cells that are undergoing mitosis that inhibits the
activity of an enzyme that dephosphorylates nuclear
lamins. What do you predict will happen to these cells?
Why?
Phosphorylation of nuclear lamins regulates their
assembly and disassembly during mitosis. You add a drug
to cells that are undergoing mitosis that inhibits the
activity of an enzyme that dephosphorylates nuclear
lamins. What do you predict will happen to these cells?
Why?

Cells should become arrested in mitosis. Normally,

the lamins are phosphorylated in the prophase during
mitosis, causing disassembly of the nuclear envelope.
At the end of mitosis, the nuclear lamins are
dephosphorylated, causing the lamins to reassemble.
Inhibition of this last step should therefore prevent
the nuclear lamins from reassembling after mitosis.
Summary

• Cell cycle is divided into distinct phases: interphase

(S, G1, G2, G0) and M-phase (mitosis [prophase,
prometaphase, metaphase, anaphase, telophase] and
cytokinesis);
• Microtubule instability facilitates the formation of
the mitotic spindle and starts assemble in prophase;
• Chromosomes attach to the mitotic spindle at
prometaphase;
• Chromosomes line up at spindle equator at metaphase;
• Daughter chromosomes segregated at anaphase;
• The nuclear envelope reforms at telophase;
• Actin and myosin filaments form contractile ring in
cytokinesis.
• All three cytoskeleton filaments play important roles
in M phase.