Interspecific hybrids can be studied using methodologies in which the male gamete with high reproduction potential, viability, and fertility is prioritized. Passiflora species, lush, showy, exotic colors, have great potential for ornamental plant market. In addition, artificial were developed without many difficulties because of weak reproductive barriers. Thus, meiotic post-meiotic behaviors a...

Dynamic actin reorganization is the main driving force for spindle migration and asymmetric cell division in mammalian oocytes. It has been reported that various actin nucleators including Formin-2 are involved in the polarization of the spindle and in asymmetric cell division. In mammals, the formin family is comprised of 15 proteins. However, their individual roles in spindle migration and/or...

In assisted reproductive techniques, the operator attempts to select morphologically best embryos to predict embryo viability. Development of polarized light microscope, which evaluates the oocytes' spindles according to birefringence of living cells, had been helpful in oocyte selection. The aim of this study is evaluating the relationship between meiotic spindles visualization and intracytopl...

BACKGROUND This study examined the primary effect of selected cryoprotective agents (CPAs) on the meiotic spindles of human oocytes during cooling. METHODS Fresh metaphase II oocytes (n=26) donated from patients undergoing IVF treatment were analyzed via Polscope. In experiment one, 16 oocytes with visible spindle at 37°C were cooled to 20°C and rewarmed to 37°C to test the spindle response t...

The first meiotic cell division (meiotic maturation) of the dictyate stage of mouse oocytes, removed from the follicle, resumes spontaneously in vitro. This study indicates that estramustine phosphate reversibly blocks meiotic maturation by inhibiting germinal vesicle breakdown. Oocyte cryostat sections were stained with anti-tubulin and two antibodies (anti-MAP1: JA2 and 5051) which decorated ...

In Drosophila oocytes, after the completion of recombination, meiotic chromosomes form a compact cluster called the karyosome within the nucleus, and later assemble spindle microtubules without centrosomes. Although these oocyte-specific phenomena are also observed in humans, their molecular basis is not well understood. Here, we report essential roles for the conserved kinase SRPK in both kary...

During the mitotic cell cycle, microtubule depolymerization leads to a cell cycle arrest in metaphase, due to activation of the spindle checkpoint. Here, we show that under microtubule-destabilizing conditions, such as low temperature or the presence of the spindle-depolymerizing drug benomyl, meiotic budding yeast cells arrest in G(1) or G(2), instead of metaphase. Cells arrest in G(1) if micr...

Cell division is inherently mechanical, with cell mechanics being a critical determinant governing the cell shape changes that accompany progression through the cell cycle. The mechanical properties of symmetrically dividing mitotic cells have been well characterized, whereas the contribution of cellular mechanics to the strikingly asymmetric divisions of female meiosis is very poorly understoo...