High impact information on cdc8

• Mutations in the Schizosaccharomyces pombe cdc8 gene impair cytokinesis [1].
• Haploid cdc8 gene disruptants are rescued by expression of a fibroblast tropomyosin complementary DNA [1].
• Loss of Ssp1 function inhibits actin relocalization during osmotic stress, in cdc3 and cdc8 mutant backgrounds, and in the presence of latrunculin A, implicating Ssp1 in promotion of actin depolymerization [2].
• We found that the original temperature-sensitive cdc8 mutant frequently failed to undergo cell fusion when mated at a semi-permissive temperature [3].
• One of them turned out to carry a point mutation in cdc8 [3].

Biological context of cdc8

• Collectively these results indicate that cdc8 tropomyosin has a specialized role which, we suggest, is to form part of the F-actin contractile ring at cytokinesis [1].
• Additional cdc8 mutants isolated by targeted mutagenesis also showed defects in both cell fusion and cytokinesis [3].
• In fission yeast, the cdc8 gene encodes tropomyosin, and the gene product Cdc8p is known to be essential for the formation of the F-actin contractile ring and hence for cytokinesis in the mitotic cell cycle [3].

Analytical, diagnostic and therapeutic context of cdc8

• Immunofluorescence microscopy of wild type and cdc8 gene disruptants indicates that cdc8 tropomyosin is present in two distinct cellular distributions: in dispersed patches, and during cytokinesis as a transient medial band [1].

References