Original Article

The Drosophila Protein Asp Is Involved in Microtubule Organization during Spindle Formation and Cytokinesis

Correspondence to: Maurizio Gatti, Dipartimento di Genetica e Biologia Molecolare, Università di Roma “La Sapienza,” P. Aldo Moro, 5, 00185 Roma, Italy. Tel:39-06-49912842 Fax:39-06-4456866 E-mail:gatti{at}axcasp.caspur.it.

Abnormal spindle (Asp) is a 220-kD microtubule-associated protein from Drosophila that has been suggested to be involved in microtubule nucleation from the centrosome. Here, we show that Asp is enriched at the poles of meiotic and mitotic spindles and localizes to the minus ends of central spindle microtubules. Localization to these structures is independent of a functional centrosome. Moreover, colchicine treatment disrupts Asp localization to the centrosome, indicating that Asp is not an integral centrosomal protein. In both meiotic and mitotic divisions of asp mutants, microtubule nucleation occurs from the centrosome, and -tubulin localizes correctly. However, spindle pole focusing and organization are severely affected. By examining cells that carry mutations both in asp and in asterless, a gene required for centrosome function, we have determined the role of Asp in the absence of centrosomes. Phenotypic analysis of these double mutants shows that Asp is required for the aggregation of microtubules into focused spindle poles, reinforcing the conclusion that its function at the spindle poles is independent of any putative role in microtubule nucleation. Our data also suggest that Asp has a role in the formation of the central spindle. The inability of asp mutants to correctly organize the central spindle leads to disruption of the contractile ring machinery and failure in cytokinesis.

Key Words: Asp, meiosis, central spindle, cytokinesis, Drosophila melanogaster

CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    What's this?

This article has been cited by other articles:

• Kwon, M., Godinho, S. A., Chandhok, N. S., Ganem, N. J., Azioune, A., Thery, M., Pellman, D. (2008). Mechanisms to suppress multipolar divisions in cancer cells with extra centrosomes. Genes Dev. 22: 2189-2203 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Lin, S.-Y., Pan, H.-W., Liu, S.-H., Jeng, Y.-M., Hu, F.-C., Peng, S.-Y., Lai, P.-L., Hsu, H.-C. (2008). ASPM Is a Novel Marker for Vascular Invasion, Early Recurrence, and Poor Prognosis of Hepatocellular Carcinoma. Clin. Cancer Res. 14: 4814-4820 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Gao, S., Giansanti, M. G., Buttrick, G. J., Ramasubramanyan, S., Auton, A., Gatti, M., Wakefield, J. G. (2008). Australin: a chromosomal passenger protein required specifically for Drosophila melanogaster male meiosis. J. Cell Biol. 180: 521-535 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Rickmyre, J. L., DasGupta, S., Ooi, D. L.-Y., Keel, J., Lee, E., Kirschner, M. W., Waddell, S., Lee, L. A. (2007). The Drosophila homolog of MCPH1, a human microcephaly gene, is required for genomic stability in the early embryo. J. Cell Sci. 120: 3565-3577 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Zhang, D., Rogers, G. C., Buster, D. W., Sharp, D. J. (2007). Three microtubule severing enzymes contribute to the "Pacman-flux" machinery that moves chromosomes. J. Cell Biol. 177: 231-242 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Fish, J. L., Kosodo, Y., Enard, W., Paabo, S., Huttner, W. B. (2006). Aspm specifically maintains symmetric proliferative divisions of neuroepithelial cells. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 103: 10438-10443 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Verollet, C., Colombie, N., Daubon, T., Bourbon, H.-M., Wright, M., Raynaud-Messina, B. (2006). Drosophila melanogaster {gamma}-TuRC is dispensable for targeting {gamma}-tubulin to the centrosome and microtubule nucleation. J. Cell Biol. 172: 517-528 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Colombie, N., Verollet, C., Sampaio, P., Moisand, A., Sunkel, C., Bourbon, H.-M., Wright, M., Raynaud-Messina, B. (2006). The Drosophila {gamma}-Tubulin Small Complex Subunit Dgrip84 Is Required for Structural and Functional Integrity of the Spindle Apparatus. Mol. Biol. Cell 17: 272-282 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Goshima, G., Nedelec, F., Vale, R. D. (2005). Mechanisms for focusing mitotic spindle poles by minus end-directed motor proteins. J. Cell Biol. 171: 229-240 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Riparbelli, M. G., Callaini, G. (2005). The meiotic spindle of the Drosophila oocyte: the role of Centrosomin and the central aster. J. Cell Sci. 118: 2827-2836 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Morales-Mulia, S., Scholey, J. M. (2005). Spindle Pole Organization in Drosophila S2 Cells by Dynein, Abnormal Spindle Protein (Asp), and KLP10A. Mol. Biol. Cell 16: 3176-3186 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Gatt, M. K., Savoian, M. S., Riparbelli, M. G., Massarelli, C., Callaini, G., Glover, D. M. (2005). Klp67A destabilises pre-anaphase microtubules but subsequently is required to stabilise the central spindle. J. Cell Sci. 118: 2671-2682 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Rogers, G. C., Rogers, S. L., Sharp, D. J. (2005). Spindle microtubules in flux. J. Cell Sci. 118: 1105-1116 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Raynaud-Messina, B., Mazzolini, L., Moisand, A., Cirinesi, A.-M., Wright, M. (2004). Elongation of centriolar microtubule triplets contributes to the formation of the mitotic spindle in {gamma}-tubulin-depleted cells. J. Cell Sci. 117: 5497-5507 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Inoue, Y. H., Savoian, M. S., Suzuki, T., Mathe, E., Yamamoto, M.-T., Glover, D. M. (2004). Mutations in orbit/mast reveal that the central spindle is comprised of two microtubule populations, those that initiate cleavage and those that propagate furrow ingression. J. Cell Biol. 166: 49-60 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Inlow, J. K., Restifo, L. L. (2004). Molecular and Comparative Genetics of Mental Retardation. Genetics 166: 835-881 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Gandhi, R., Bonaccorsi, S., Wentworth, D., Doxsey, S., Gatti, M., Pereira, A. (2004). The Drosophila Kinesin-like Protein KLP67A Is Essential for Mitotic and Male Meiotic Spindle Assembly. Mol. Biol. Cell 15: 121-131 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Zhang, J. (2003). Evolution of the Human ASPM Gene, a Major Determinant of Brain Size. Genetics 165: 2063-2070 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Reynolds, N., Ohkura, H. (2003). Polo boxes form a single functional domain that mediates interactions with multiple proteins in fission yeast polo kinase. J. Cell Sci. 116: 1377-1387 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Barbosa, V., Gatt, M., Rebollo, E., Gonzalez, C., Glover, D. M. (2003). Drosophila dd4 mutants reveal that {gamma}TuRC is required to maintain juxtaposed half spindles in spermatocytes. J. Cell Sci. 116: 929-941 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Haren, L., Merdes, A. (2002). Direct binding of NuMA to tubulin is mediated by a novel sequence motif in the tail domain that bundles and stabilizes microtubules. J. Cell Sci. 115: 1815-1824 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Riparbelli, M. G., Callaini, G., Glover, D. M., Avides, M. d. C. (2002). A requirement for the Abnormal Spindle protein to organise microtubules of the central spindle for cytokinesis in Drosophila. J. Cell Sci. 115: 913-922 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Escalier, D. (2002). Genetic approach to male meiotic division deficiency: the human macronuclear spermatozoa. Mol Hum Reprod 8: 1-7 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Scholey, J. M., Rogers, G. C., Sharp, D. J. (2001). Mitosis, microtubules, and the matrix. J. Cell Biol. 154: 261-266 [Abstract] [Full Text]  

Home | Help | Feedback | Subscriptions | Archive | Search | Table of Contents