Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 4, 2026
07:47
Microscopy of Fission Yeast Sexual Lifecycle
Published on: March 9, 2016
14.4K
Cell polarization in budding and fission yeasts
Sophie G Martin1, Robert A Arkowitz
1Department of Fundamental Microbiology, Faculty of Biology and Medicine, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.
FEMS Microbiology Reviews
|December 21, 2013
Summary
This review compares cell polarization mechanisms in budding yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) and fission yeast (Schizosaccharomyces pombe). It highlights conserved pathways and distinct strategies underlying their unique growth patterns and cell shapes.
Area of Science:
- Cell Biology
- Molecular Biology
- Genetics
Background:
- Cell polarization is crucial for cell function.
- Budding yeast and fission yeast are key model organisms for studying cell polarization.
- These yeasts are evolutionarily distant, exhibiting different growth characteristics.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare and contrast cell polarization mechanisms in Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Schizosaccharomyces pombe.
- To identify common pathways and unique strategies in yeast cell polarization.
- To understand how these differences contribute to distinct cell shapes and growth.
Main Methods:
- Comparative analysis of established research on budding and fission yeast.
- Review of literature on conserved cell polarization pathways.
- Examination of distinct growth site selection and compartmentalization strategies.
Main Results:
- Identified conserved roles of Rho GTPases, cytoskeleton, membrane trafficking, lipids, and protein scaffolds in cell polarization.
- Highlighted differences in growth site selection and growth zone dimensions between the two yeast species.
- Suggested these differences underpin their distinct cellular morphologies.
Conclusions:
- Both budding and fission yeast utilize fundamental, conserved mechanisms for cell polarization.
- Distinct strategies in growth control contribute to the diverse shapes and functions of these model organisms.
- Understanding these yeast systems provides broad insights into eukaryotic cell polarity.
Related Concept Videos
01:28Yeast Signaling
15.7K
Yeasts are single-celled organisms, but unlike bacteria, they are eukaryotes (cells with a nucleus). Cell signaling in yeast is similar to signaling in other eukaryotic cells. A ligand, such as a protein or a small molecule released from a yeast cell, attaches to a receptor on the cell surface. The binding stimulates second-messenger kinases to activate or inactivate transcription factors that further regulate gene expression. Many of the yeast intracellular signaling cascades have similar...
15.7K
01:20Binary Fission
52.3K
Fission is the division of a single entity into two or more parts, which regenerate into separate entities that resemble the original. Organisms in the Archaea and Bacteria domains reproduce using binary fission, in which a parent cell splits into two parts that can each grow to the size of the original parent cell. This asexual method of reproduction produces cells that are all genetically identical.
52.3K
01:26Binary Fission
6.2K
Binary fission is the primary mode of asexual reproduction in prokaryotes, such as bacteria. It results in the production of two genetically identical daughter cells. This highly efficient process ensures the rapid propagation of bacterial populations under favorable conditions and involves coordinated cellular and molecular events.DNA Replication and SeparationThe process begins with the replication of the bacterial chromosome. The circular DNA molecule unwinds at a specific origin of...
6.2K
02:13Determining the Plane of Cell Division
2.7K
Positioning the cell division plane is a critical step during development and cell differentiation, particularly during mitosis when the plane is essential for determining the size of the two daughter cells. The cell division plane is perpendicular to the plane of chromosome segregation, but different types of organisms have different cell division mechanisms to suit their morphology and function.
Animal cells
In animal cells, the cleavage furrow forms along the plane of cell division...
Animal cells
In animal cells, the cleavage furrow forms along the plane of cell division...
2.7K
01:21Cell Polarization by Rho Proteins
3.2K
Cell polarity is the asymmetric distribution of cellular and membrane components, making one side of the cell different from the other. This polarity is essential to many processes such as embryogenesis, axon migration, glucose transport across epithelial cells, and directional cell migration. A migrating cell responds to intracellular or extracellular signals via molecular cascades that reorganize the actin cytoskeleton to establish this polarity. In these cells, the Rho family proteins Cdc42,...
3.2K
02:36Cells Coordinate Growth and Proliferation
3.8K
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,...
3.8K