Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 19, 2026

Manipulation and Analysis of Cell Cycle-Dependent Processes in Budding Yeast
Published on: September 26, 2025
Cytolethal distending toxin: creating a gap in the cell cycle
Wendy Heywood1, Brian Henderson1, Sean P Nair1
1Division of Microbial Diseases, Eastman Dental Institute, University College London, 256 Gray's Inn Road, London WC1X 8LD, UK.
Abstract:
Cytolethal distending toxin (CDT) is a novel bacterial toxin that is produced by a variety of pathogenic bacteria. The mechanism of cytotoxicity of CDT is unique in that it enters into eukaryotic cells and breaks double-stranded DNA. This initiates the cell's own DNA damage-response mechanisms, resulting in the arrest of the cell cycle at the G2/M boundary. Affected cells enlarge until they finally undergo programmed cell death. This review encompasses recent work on CDT and focuses on the molecular mechanisms used by this toxin to block cell-cycle progression, the benefit to the bacterium of possession of this toxin and the clinical relevance of intoxication.
More Related Videos
08:33Combining Mitotic Cell Synchronization and High Resolution Confocal Microscopy to Study the Role of Multifunctional Cell Cycle Proteins During Mitosis
Published on: December 5, 2017
10:51High-Throughput Robotically Assisted Isolation of Temperature-sensitive Lethal Mutants in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii
Published on: December 5, 2016
Related Concept Videos
DNA Damage can Stall the Cell Cycle
DNA Damage Can Stall the Cell Cycle
The Contractile Ring
A small GTPase, RhoA, controls the function and assembly of the contractile ring. RhoA belongs to the Ras superfamily of proteins. The activation of formins by RhoA promotes...
Negative Regulator Molecules
The Cell Cycle Control System
Cyclins and cyclin-dependent kinases (Cdks) are the primary cell cycle regulators and function at the cell...
The Cell Cycle Control System