Newly discovered process brings immune cells up to speed

Cancer cells use an unusual mechanism to migrate into new tissue and form metastases there. The same process probably also keeps some immune cells on their toes. This is the result of a recent study led by the University ...

Scientists gain new insights into the mechanisms of cell division

Mitosis is the process by which the genetic information encoded on chromosomes is equally distributed to two daughter cells, a fundamental feature of all life on earth. Scientists led by Alexander Dammermann at the Max Perutz ...

Explaining genome pairs

Scientists have unraveled how the cell replication process destabilizes when it has more, or less, than a pair of chromosome sets, each of which is called a genome—a major step toward understanding chromosome instability ...

Keeping centrioles in check to ensure proper cell division

(Phys.org) —The duplication of cellular contents and their distribution to two daughter cells during cell division are amongst the most fundamental features of all life on earth. How cell division occurs and is coordinated ...

EGF growth factor accelerates cell division, study finds

Biologists at Heidelberg University have discovered new approaches for the treatment of cancer. They investigated how a special signalling molecule, the epidermal growth factor (EGF), stimulates the separation of chromosomes ...

Catalan researchers identify a key component of cell division

A study by the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) and the Center for Genomic Regulation (acronym in Catalan CRG) highlights the protein Nek9 as a decisive factor in cell division, a fundamental process ...

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Centrosome

In cell biology, the centrosome is an organelle that serves as the main microtubule organizing center (MTOC) of the animal cell as well as a regulator of cell-cycle progression. It was discovered by Edouard Van Beneden in 1883 and was described and named in 1888 by Theodor Boveri. In the theory of evolution the centrosome is thought to have evolved only in the metazoan lineage of eukaryotic cells. Fungi and plants use other MTOC structures to organize their microtubules. Although the centrosome has a key role in efficient mitosis in animal cells, it is not essential.

Centrosomes are composed of two orthogonally arranged centrioles surrounded by an amorphous mass of protein termed the pericentriolar material (PCM). The PCM contains proteins responsible for microtubule nucleation and anchoring including γ-tubulin, pericentrin and ninein. In general, each centriole of the centrosome is based on a nine triplet microtubule assembled in a cartwheel structure, and contains centrin, cenexin and tektin.

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