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Anaphase Chromosomes
Early embryonic cell cycles are exceedingly rapid. Rapid cycles occur prior to gastrulation in embryos of all metazoan phyla. This rapid amplification of cell number is likely to set the stage for the embryonic patterning that follows.
A Nucleus Divides (Green: Tubulin, Red: ?, Blue: DNA)
Our studies in Drosophila, showed that the slowing of the early rapid proliferation is associated with changes in cell cycle regulation. Several genes are uniquely required for successful execution of the early cell cycles. Furthermore, changes in DNA replication programs, chromatin structure, general stability of mRNA, and transcription accompany the slowing of the cell cycle.
BrdU Incorporation in the Early Embryo
This remodeling of fundamental cell behaviors is precisely coordinated with onset of gastrulation and pattern formation, yet we know little of the regulation of these events. Several of the projects (mitotic cyclins, cytokinesis, S-phase) in the laboratory explore the features of the early cell cycles and the mechanisms that coordinate these cycles with other cellular and developmental events.
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