Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 30, 2026

Use of the TetON System to Study Molecular Mechanisms of Zebrafish Regeneration
Published on: June 25, 2015
Molecular Mechanism of Cytokinesis
Thomas D Pollard1,2,3, Ben O'Shaughnessy4
1Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520-8103, USA;
Abstract:
Division of amoebas, fungi, and animal cells into two daughter cells at the end of the cell cycle depends on a common set of ancient proteins, principally actin filaments and myosin-II motors. Anillin, formins, IQGAPs, and many other proteins regulate the assembly of the actin filaments into a contractile ring positioned between the daughter nuclei by different mechanisms in fungi and animal cells. Interactions of myosin-II with actin filaments produce force to assemble and then constrict the contractile ring to form a cleavage furrow. Contractile rings disassemble as they constrict. In some cases, knowledge about the numbers of participating proteins and their biochemical mechanisms has made it possible to formulate molecularly explicit mathematical models that reproduce the observed physical events during cytokinesis by computer simulations.
Related Concept Videos
Mitosis and Cytokinesis
The processes of the cell cycle occur over approximately 24 hours (in typical human cells) and in two major distinguishable stages. The...
Mitosis and Cytokinesis
The processes of the cell cycle occur over approximately 24 hours (in typical human cells) and in two major distinguishable stages. The...
Reaction Mechanisms
For instance, the decomposition of ozone appears to follow a mechanism with two steps:
Molecular Models
Molecular Orbital Theory II
Molecular Orbital Theory I

