title: Imaging Mitosis in the Moss Physcomitrella patens.
abstract: At first glance, mitosis in plants looks quite different from that in animals. In fact, terrestrial plants have lost the centrosome during evolution, and the mitotic spindle is assembled independently of a strong microtubule organizing center. The phragmoplast is a plant-specific mitotic apparatus formed after anaphase, which expands centrifugally towards the cell cortex. However, the extent to which plant mitosis differs from that of animals at the level of the protein repertoire is uncertain, largely because of the difficulty in the identification and in vivo characterization of mitotic genes of plants. Here, we discuss protocols for mitosis imaging that can be combined with endogenous green fluorescent protein (GFP) tagging or conditional RNA interference (RNAi) in the moss Physcomitrella patens, which is an emergent model plant for cell and developmental biology. This system has potential for use in the high-throughput study of mitosis and other intracellular processes, as is being done with various animal cell lines.
authors.affiliation: Division of Biological Science, Graduate School of Science, Nagoya University, Furo-cho, Chikusa-ku, Nagoya, 464-8602, Japan.
authors.forename: Moé
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yamada
authors.affiliation: Division of Biological Science, Graduate School of Science, Nagoya University, Furo-cho, Chikusa-ku, Nagoya, 464-8602, Japan.
authors.forename: Tomohiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Miki
authors.affiliation: Division of Biological Science, Graduate School of Science, Nagoya University, Room 227, Building A, Furo-cho, Chikusa-ku, Nagoya, 464-8602, Japan. goshima@bio.nagoya-u.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Gohta
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Goshima
mesh_terms: D019068:Bryopsida / Q000166:cytology* / Q000235:genetics*; D015870:Gene Expression; D023061:Gene Order; D018390:Gene Targeting; D017930:Genes, Reporter; D005819:Genetic Markers; D016547:Kinesins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D018613:Microscopy, Confocal / Q000379:methods; D008856:Microscopy, Fluorescence / Q000379:methods; D008938:Mitosis / Q000235:genetics; D057054:Molecular Imaging; D030821:Plants, Genetically Modified; D034622:RNA Interference; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D005819:Genetic Markers; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins; D016547:Kinesins
keywords: Caulonemal apical cell; GFP tagging; Kinesin; Mitosis; Physcomitrella patens