Myosin concentration underlies cell size–dependent scalability of actomyosin ring constriction

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2011-11-28Author
Calvert, Meredith E.K.
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Wright, Graham D.
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Leong, Fong Yew
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Chiam, Keng-Hwee
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Chen, Yinxiao
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Jedd, Gregory
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Balasubramanian, Mohan K.
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https://hdl.handle.net/1912/4922As published
https://doi.org/10.1083/jcb.201101055DOI
10.1083/jcb.201101055Abstract
In eukaryotes, cytokinesis is accomplished by an actomyosin-based contractile ring. Although in Caenorhabditis elegans embryos larger cells divide at a faster rate than smaller cells, it remains unknown whether a similar mode of scalability operates in other cells. We investigated cytokinesis in the filamentous fungus Neurospora crassa, which exhibits a wide range of hyphal circumferences. We found that N. crassa cells divide using an actomyosin ring and larger rings constricted faster than smaller rings. However, unlike in C. elegans, the total amount of myosin remained constant throughout constriction, and there was a size-dependent increase in the starting concentration of myosin in the ring. We predict that the increased number of ring-associated myosin motors in larger rings leads to the increased constriction rate. Accordingly, reduction or inhibition of ring-associated myosin slows down the rate of constriction. Because the mechanical characteristics of contractile rings are conserved, we predict that these findings will be relevant to actomyosin ring constriction in other cell types.
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© The Author(s), 2011. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License. The definitive version was published in Journal of Cell Biology 195 (2011): 799-813, doi:10.1083/jcb.201101055.
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Journal of Cell Biology 195 (2011): 799-813The following license files are associated with this item: