Year: 2010
Type: book-chapter
Abstract: Polarity is a fundamental cell property essential for differentiation, proliferation and morphogenesis in unicellular and multicellular organisms. It is well known that polarized distribution of F-actin is important in providing the driving force for directional migration in mammalian leukocytes and Dictyostelium cells. Phosphoinositide (PI) signaling, including phosphatidylinositol kinases and phospholipases, is also critical for the formation of cell polarity in these cells. A monospore from the marine red alga Porphyra yezoensis is well known as a migrating plant cell and thus is a unique and useful material for investigating polarity determination in plant cells. As in leukocytes and Dictyostelium cells, monospore migration requires asymmetrical distribution of F-actin, whose establishment is regulated by the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase and phospholipase C, whereas phospholipase D is involved in the maintenance of F-actin distribution. These findings indicate that the regulation of F-actin asymmetry by PI signaling cascades is evolutionarily conserved in terms of the establishment of cell polarity in migrating eukaryotic cells.
Author: Koji Mikami
Institution: Hokkaido University
Language: English
Subfield: Cell Biology
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2102024096