Convergent evolution is common throughout the tree of life, but the molecular mechanisms
causing similar phenotypes to appear repeatedly are obscure. Yeasts have arisen in …

The contractile ring is essential for cytokinesis in most fungal and animal cells. In fission
yeast, cytokinesis nodes are precursors of the contractile ring and mark the future cleavage …

Actin filaments and myosin II are evolutionarily conserved force-generating components of
the contractile ring during cytokinesis. Here we show that in budding yeast, actin filament …

Phosphorylation of myosin II is important in many aspects of cell function and involves a
myosin kinase, eg myosin light chain kinase, and a myosin phosphatase (MP). MP is …

A paradigm of cytokinesis in animal cells is that the actomyosin contractile ring provides the
primary force to divide the cell [1]. In the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe …

Eukaryotic cells display a wide range of morphologies important for cellular function and
development. A particular cell shape is made via the generation of asymmetry in the …

Productive cell proliferation involves efficient and accurate splitting of the dividing cell into
two separate entities. This orderly process reflects coordination of diverse cytological events …

The visualization of biologically relevant molecules and activities inside living cells
continues to transform cell biology into a truly quantitative science. However, despite the …

mDia proteins are mammalian homologues of Drosophila diaphanous and belong to the
formin family proteins that catalyze actin nucleation and polymerization. Although formin …

Cytokinesis partitions the cytoplasm between two or more nuclei. In higher plants,
cytokinesis is initiated by cytoskeleton-assisted targeted delivery of membrane vesicles to …