Gotta group publishes study on mechanisms of mitosis in Cell Reports
The group of Prof. Monica Gotta recently published a study entitled "Cdk1 Phosphorylates SPAT-1/Bora to Promote Plk1 Activation in C. elegans and Human Cells" (Thomas Y., Cirrilo L. et al.) in the journal Cell Reports.
During mitosis cells divide to form two daughter cells, each with a complete copy of the genetic information. Once a cell has committed to divide, this decision is irreversible. Entry into mitosis is therefore a highly regulated process. Several players are known to control mitotic entry, however it is not completely understood how they work together. The teams of Prof. Gotta and Lionel Pintard (Institut Jacques Monod, Paris) had previously described how some of these players coordinate their action to promote mitotic entry in the C. elegans embryo. The two teams now report that their findings in C. elegans are conserved and reveal an important step in the regulation of mitotic entry in human cells. Understanding how mitotic entry is regulated is crucial since it can constitute a target for cancer therapy.
Posted by: M. Gotta, P. Nunes