Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 1988;11(2):83-96.
doi: 10.1002/cm.970110202.

Micromanipulation studies of the asymmetric positioning of the maturation spindle in Chaetopterus sp. oocytes: I. Anchorage of the spindle to the cortex and migration of a displaced spindle

D A Lutz  1 , Y Hamaguchi, S Inoué
Affiliations

Micromanipulation studies of the asymmetric positioning of the maturation spindle in Chaetopterus sp. oocytes: I. Anchorage of the spindle to the cortex and migration of a displaced spindle

D A Lutz et al. Cell Motil Cytoskeleton. 1988.

Abstract

We investigated the nature of the asymmetric positioning and attachment of Chaetopterus oocyte meiotic spindles to the animal pole cortex by micromanipulation. The manipulated spindle's behavior was analyzed in clarified oocyte fragments using video-enhanced polarized light microscopy. As the spindle was drawn towards the cell interior with a microneedle, the cell surface dimpled inwards adjacent to the outer spindle pole. As the spindle was pulled further inwards, the dimple suddenly receded indicating a rupture of a mechanical link between the cell cortex and outer spindle pole. The spindle paused briefly when released from the microneedle; then it spontaneously migrated back to the original attachment site and reassociated with the cell cortex. Positive birefringent astral fibers were seen running between the outer spindle pole and the cortex during the migration. The velocity of the spindle during its migration tended to increase as it came closer to the cortex. Velocities as high as 1.25 micron/sec. were measured. If removed too far from the attachment site cortex (greater than 35 micron), the spindle remained stationary until pushed closer to the original attachment site. Spindles, inverted by micromanipulation, migrated and reattached to the cortical site by their former inner pole; thus either spindle pole can seek out and migrate to the original attachment site. However, spindle poles pushed against other cortical regions did not attach demonstrating that there is only one unique, localized attachment site for spindle attachment.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources