citokinezisszel

Cytokinesis is a fundamental biological process that follows nuclear division, ensuring that each daughter cell receives a complete set of genetic material. It is the division of the cytoplasm of a parent cell into two daughter cells. This process is crucial for cell proliferation and the development of multicellular organisms.

In animal cells, cytokinesis typically occurs through the formation of a cleavage furrow. A contractile ring, composed of actin and myosin filaments, assembles beneath the plasma membrane at the midpoint of the cell. This ring constricts, pulling the cell membrane inward, eventually pinching the cell into two separate entities.

Plant cells undergo a different mechanism for cytokinesis due to the presence of a rigid cell wall. Instead of a cleavage furrow, a cell plate forms in the middle of the dividing cell. Vesicles derived from the Golgi apparatus, containing cell wall materials, migrate to the equatorial region and fuse. This creates a new cell wall, the cell plate, which then expands outward until it fuses with the existing plasma membrane and cell wall, separating the two daughter cells.

The precise timing and coordination of cytokinesis with mitosis or meiosis are tightly regulated by a complex network of proteins and signaling pathways. Disruptions in cytokinesis can lead to aneuploidy, where daughter cells have an abnormal number of chromosomes, which can have significant consequences for cell function and organismal health.