Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 17, 2026
06:31
Reconstitution of Cell-cycle Oscillations in Microemulsions of Cell-free Xenopus Egg Extracts
Published on: September 27, 2018
Synchronization ability of coupled cell-cycle oscillators in changing environments.
1School of Mathematics and Statistics, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China.
BMC Systems Biology
|October 11, 2012
Summary
This study models coupled Xenopus cell cycle oscillators, finding that cyclin-CDK1 activation of Plk1 is crucial for synchronization. A square-wave cyclin synthesis signal enhances oscillator robustness and synchronization ability.
Area of Science:
- * Developmental Biology
- * Systems Biology
- * Biophysics
Background:
- * The Xenopus embryonic cell cycle is governed by biochemical oscillators centered on cyclin-dependent protein kinase 1 (CDK1) and the anaphase-promoting complex (APC).
- * While oscillator interactions and synchronization are studied, the impact of collective behavior on system robustness remains less understood.
- * This research models a multi-cell Xenopus system coupled via a common protein to analyze synchronization under diverse external stimuli.
Purpose of the Study:
- * To investigate and model a multi-cell Xenopus embryonic cell cycle oscillator system.
- * To analyze the synchronization ability of coupled oscillators under constant, square-wave, sinusoidal, and noise signals.
- * To determine how parameter variations and external stimuli influence synchronization dynamics and robustness.
Main Methods:
- * Employed bifurcation analysis and numerical simulations to study coupled cell cycle oscillators.
- * Determined synchronization intervals for individual oscillator and coupling parameters.
- * Quantified synchronization speed and robustness using synchronization time and robustness index.
Main Results:
- * Identified synchronization intervals for key parameters, revealing distinct influences on synchronization period and amplitude.
- * Found an optimal signal strength that maximizes the synchronization index across different external stimuli.
- * Demonstrated that a square-wave periodic signal for cyclin synthesis yields the strongest synchronization ability and robustness compared to other signals.
Conclusions:
- * The activation of Plk1 by cyclin-CDK1 significantly impacts the synchronization ability of coupled cell cycle oscillators.
- * Square-wave periodic cyclin synthesis signals are most effective for synchronizing and enhancing the robustness of Xenopus cell cycle oscillators.
- * Findings offer insights into cell cycle mechanisms and generate hypotheses for future research.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
02:19Circadian Rhythms and Gene Regulation
The biological clock is involved in many aspects of regulating complex physiology in all animals. It was in 1935 when German zoologists, Hans Kalmus and Erwin Bünning, discovered the existence of circadian rhythm in Drosophila melanogaster. However, the internal molecular mechanisms behind the circadian clock remained a mystery until 1984, when Jeffrey C. Hall, Michael Rosbash, and Michael W. Young discovered the expression of the Per gene oscillating over a 24-hour cycle. In subsequent years,...
02:19Circadian Rhythms and Gene Regulation
The biological clock is involved in many aspects of regulating complex physiology in all animals. It was in 1935 when German zoologists, Hans Kalmus and Erwin Bünning, discovered the existence of circadian rhythm in Drosophila melanogaster. However, the internal molecular mechanisms behind the circadian clock remained a mystery until 1984, when Jeffrey C. Hall, Michael Rosbash, and Michael W. Young discovered the expression of the Per gene oscillating over a 24-hour cycle. In subsequent years,...
02:36Cells Coordinate Growth and Proliferation
Cell size is a significant factor impacting cellular design, function, and fitness. There exists some internal coordination by which cells double their masses before division, thus, achieving homeostasis. Coordination between cell growth and proliferation depends on the checkpoints in between cell cycle phases. Loss of coordination or failure in the checkpoint mechanism can drive the cell to uncontrolled growth and loss of cellular function. Like dividing cells that coordinate cellular growth,...
02:36Cells Coordinate Growth and Proliferation
Cell size is a significant factor impacting cellular design, function, and fitness. There exists some internal coordination by which cells double their masses before division, thus, achieving homeostasis. Coordination between cell growth and proliferation depends on the checkpoints in between cell cycle phases. Loss of coordination or failure in the checkpoint mechanism can drive the cell to uncontrolled growth and loss of cellular function. Like dividing cells that coordinate cellular growth,...
01:28The Cell Cycle Control System
The cell cycle regulation directs how a cell proceeds from one phase to the next and begins mitosis. The cell cycle control system includes intracellular regulatory molecules and external triggers. They provide "stop" or "advance" signals and operate at specific cell cycle stages termed checkpoints to ensure that a particular process is completed before the cell advances to the next phase.
Cyclins and cyclin-dependent kinases (Cdks) are the primary cell cycle regulators and function at the cell...
Cyclins and cyclin-dependent kinases (Cdks) are the primary cell cycle regulators and function at the cell...
02:11The Cell Cycle Control System
The cell cycle is an organized set of events that leads the cell to divide into two daughter cells, each containing chromosomes identical to the parent cell. It is the cell cycle that leads to the formation of an entire organism from a single-cell zygote. Besides, cell division also functions in the renewal or repair of tissues in adult multicellular eukaryotes. For example, in the bone marrow, the stem cells divide to form new blood cells. Although essential for several functions, cell...