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Updated: May 23, 2026
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Live Cell Imaging to Assess the Dynamics of Metaphase Timing and Cell Fate Following Mitotic Spindle Perturbations
Published on: September 20, 2019
Mechanical impulses can control metaphase progression in a mammalian cell
Takeshi Itabashi1, Yasuhiko Terada, Kenta Kuwana
1Department of Physics, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Waseda University, 3-4-1 Okubo, Shinjuku, Tokyo 169-8555, Japan.
Summary
External mechanical forces applied to cells can control chromosome segregation timing. Increased spindle tension accelerates anaphase onset, while decreased tension delays it by activating the spindle assembly checkpoint.
Area of Science:
- Cell Biology
- Mechanobiology
- Biophysics
Background:
- Chromosome segregation relies on precise regulation of the mitotic spindle.
- Tension within the mitotic spindle, governed by molecular motors and microtubule dynamics, is crucial for timely chromosome segregation.
- The precise role of externally applied mechanical forces in modulating spindle tension and subsequent segregation remains unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how externally applied mechanical forces influence mitotic spindle tension.
- To determine the mechanochemical responses of cells to mechanical perturbations during mitosis.
- To elucidate the impact of altered spindle tension on the timing of chromosome segregation.
Main Methods:
- Application of mechanical impulses to mitotic HeLa cells.
- Observation and analysis of cellular responses, including anaphase onset and spindle assembly checkpoint activity.
- Quantification of spindle tension and its correlation with cellular events.
Main Results:
- Externally applied mechanical forces alter the force balance within the mitotic spindle.
- Increased spindle tension accelerates anaphase onset by facilitating sister chromatid cohesion cleavage.
- Decreased spindle tension activates the spindle assembly checkpoint, delaying chromosome segregation.
Conclusions:
- External mechanical forces act as critical regulators of metaphase progression.
- Modulation of internal spindle force balance by external forces triggers specific mechanochemical cellular reactions.
- Cellular responses to mechanical force are direction- and compression-dependent, leading to either accelerated or delayed anaphase onset.
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