Size and speed go hand in hand in cytokinesis.
In animal cells, cytokinesis is mediated by the constriction of a cortical ring. In this issue, Carvalho et al. (2009) show in embryos of the worm Caenorhabditis elegans that the rate of ring constriction during cytokinesis is proportional to the initial cell perimeter, ensuring that the duration of cytokinesis is cell-size independent.
Wühr
Martin
M
Department of Systems Biology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
Mitchison
Timothy J
TJ
Field
Christine M
CM
D000818:Animals; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000166:cytology* / Q000196:embryology; D048429:Cell Size; D048749:Cytokinesis; D004625:Embryo, Nonmammalian / Q000166:cytology