Mitosis and Spindle Flux

Spindle microtubules undergo a unique form of microtubule motion called flux that results from the coordinated addition and loss of tubulin at opposite ends of spindle microtubules. In the first movie, the events of mitosis are imaged in a cell expressing GFP-tubulin, which labels all of the spindle microtubules. In the next two movies, photoactivation marks are made on spindle microtubules in cells expressing a photoactivatable variant of GFP linked to tubulin. In the first sequence, photoactivation is performed twice, in the second, photoactivation is performed near the middle of a prometaphase spindle, and some microtubules extending from each pole are activated. Movies by Nick Ferenz.

Click on a thumbnail image to view the corresponding movie clip. (You will need QuickTime 7 to view these movies.)

		Movie 1: Mitosis in an LLC-Pk1 cell expressing GFP-tubulin
		Movie 2: Double Photoactivation in a Metaphase cell
		Movie 3: Photoactivation near the spindle equator

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