Asexual Reproduction

Audesirk Textbook: Chapter 11 (p.185-198) Cell and Molecular Biology Textbook: Chapter 14.1 and 14.2

Cell Theory: All Cells Arise from Preexisting Cells

The cell theory states that all cells must arise

from preexisting cells, disproving spontaneous generation To create new cells, the old cell must go through cellular reproduction Cell division happens under a variety of circumstances:
Reproduction of an entire unicellular organism Growth of a fertilized egg into an adult multicellular

organism Repair and replacement of cells in an adult

Not all cells go through reproduction, after

differentiation
Blood cells have been specialized so that they do

Properties of Cell Division

In cell division, the parent cell (old) divides to

form two new daughter cells (new) After reproduction, the parent cell does not exist anymore Each daughter cell is genetically identical to the parent cell from receiving the parent cells complete set of hereditary information, with the exception of mutations Each daughter cell receives about half of the parent cytoplasm

Types of Asexual Reproduction

Binary fission
Prokaryotes are relatively simple DNA replicates and cell pinches to form daughter cells

Eukaryotic cellular division

Eukaryotes are more complex than prokaryotes The cell cycle goes through a complex series of steps

Budding
A part of the cell/organism grows outwards from the general

body and eventually cuts off from the parent Common in yeasts and hydra
Vegetative Clones

Some plants produce genetically identical reproductive

structures that result in a genetically identical plant

Regeneration
Some planarians have the ability for a cut off piece to grow

back into a full organism

Binary Fission
replication

Bidirectional DNA

The cell cycle of prokaryotes is relatively simple:

Cell growth and DNA replication Cell division by binary fission

Prokaryotic DNA is circular and attaches to the cellular

membrane using a protein. The attachment site is the origin DNA replication in prokaryotes is called bidirectional replication 1. The cell grows and expands its cytoplasm 2. The DNA starts replication from the origin and continues replication in opposite directions 3. The replicated DNA folds over to the other side of the cytoplasm 4. The continuing expansion of the cytoplasm pulls the DNA strands further apart 5. A protein called FtsZ goes into the center of the cell and marks the location for the cell membrane to pinch in, creating two daughter cells

Eukaryotic DNA and Chromosomes

During Interphase, the time when the cell is not going

through mitosis, the eukaryotic nucleus exists as a loosely organized complex of DNA strands and proteins, called chromatin After DNA is replicated, the two copies of the same DNA strand are called sister chromatids To prepare for mitosis, a variety of proteins compact chromatin to form chromosomes. Chromosomes are sturdier for mitosis than loosely stranded DNA After full compaction, chromosomes appear as two sister chromatids (identical DNA sequences) next to each other The sister chromatids are joined at a narrow region consisting of many proteins, called the centromere

Eukaryotic DNA and Chromosomes

A chromosome consists of four major parts:
Sister chromatid: appear next to each other in

condensed chromosomes THAT HAVE ALREADY GONE THROUGH DUPLICATION, have identical DNA sequences, and separate during division to be the DNA of the daughter cells Gene loci: the space on the chromosome one gene takes up Centromere: the complex of proteins in the chromosome center that help join the two sister chromatids together Telomeres: extraneous DNA sequences at the tips of chromosomes that do not code for any genes; every time DNA replicates, some of the strand is destroyed or chopped off in the process; the telomeres act as a

Homologous Chromosomes
Homologous chromosomes: are pairs of chromosomes

that code for the same genes Homologous chromosomes express the genes they code for in different ways due to difference in nucleotide sequence Therefore, every gene in eukaryotes has two DNA sequences coding for it due to the homologous chromosomes Cells with homologous chromosome pairs are called diploid cells (2n), because they contain two chromosomes to code for each gene Cells without homologous chromosome pairs only have one chromosome coding for each gene are called haploid cells (n) Humans have 23 pairs of homologous chromosomes, for a total of 46 chromosomes The first 22 pairs in humans are called autosomes The 23 pair is called the sex chromosomes and are

The Cell Cycle

Animation

Cell Cycle

The cell cycle is an ordered sequence of events

for cell division The cell cycle consists of four stages Interphase: duplication and growth of cell contents
1. G1: cell and cytoplasm growth, organelle

duplication, normal cellular metabolic activities 2. S: duplication of DNA and centrosomes 3. G2: cell growth and preparation of mitosis

Mitotic Phase (M): division of the nucleus into two Cytokinesis (C): division of cytoplasm

Control of the Cell Cycle: Transition into Different Phases

Transition from one phase into another in the cell cycle is

stimulated by a change in cell chemistry Transition from one phase to another:

Depends on an enzyme whose sole activity is to

phosphorylate other proteins The activity of this enzyme is controlled by other protein subunits
The progression into another phase of the cell cycle is

caused by the phosphorylation of different cellular proteins by using a phosphate group from ATP; the enzymes responsible for this are called cyclin-dependent kinases (Cdks) The activity of Cdks are regulated by protein subunits called cyclins Cyclins bind to Cdks, which causes a conformational change allowing for the Cdk to phosphorylate other cellular proteins The activity of Cdks can be excited or inhibited by other

 cdc2 kinase is a type of

Cdk G1 cyclins attach to Cdks to move cells into S phase Mitotic cyclins attach to Cdks to move cells into M phase

Control of the Cell Cycle: Checkpoints

Control of the Cell Cycle Animation

Checkpoints are mechanisms that halt the progress of the

cell cycle if:

Any of the chromosomal DNA is damaged
Certain critical processes, such as DNA replication during S

phase or chromosome alignment during M phase, have not been properly completed
There are three major checkpoints:
G1-S transition G2-M transition Metaphase-anaphase transition

Checkpoints ensure that each of the various events that

make up the cell cycle occurs accurately and in the proper order Checkpoints arrest the cell in its current cell cycle phase, allowing time for the repair and correction of DNA or other errors

Checkpoint Response to Damaged DNA

If a cell preparing to

enter mitosis is subjected to UV irradiation, ATR kinase catalyzes a cascade of reactions that arrests the cell in G2 phase If a cell is exposed to ionizing radiation, ATM causes the production of p53, which causes the transcription of DNA to produce p21, a protein that arrests the cell in the G1 phase

Mitosis: Cell Division of Eukaryotes

Mitosis is the division of the nucleus and its

chromosomes into two in eukaryotic cells Mitosis progresses through a series of stages:
Prophase Prometaphase (sometimes included within

prophase) Metaphase Anaphase Telophase

Cytokinesis is the division of the cytoplasm into

two in eukaryotic cells Cytokinesis often overlaps with telophase

Prophase
Prophase is the first phase of mitosis

In prophase, the following happen:

Duplicated chromosomes condense Mitotic microtubule spindles form from centrosomes Nuclear envelope breaks down; nucleolus

dissipates Golgi complex and ER fragment and cytoskeleton is disassembled

Prophase: Chromosome Condensation

DNA is found in the nucleus as loose strands of chromatin and

other proteins In order for chromosomal division to occur properly, DNA has to go through chromosome compaction, which stabilizes the DNA against damage The DNA wraps around histone proteins which compact the DNA partially For the DNA to coil and completely condense, the use of a protein called condensin is needed Condensin binds to DNA in the presence of topoisomerase and ATP The structure of condensin allows for the supercoiling of DNA, transforming the DNA conformation to its most compact form Condensin is activated by the phosphorylation of its subunits by Cdks that transition the cell into the M phase Cohesin is another protein that is essential for chromosome formation Cohesin has a circular structure, which hold the sister chromatids together and is most abundant at the centromere

Prophase: Formation of Mitotic Spindle and Dissolution of Nuclear Envelope

During S phase, DNA duplicates as well as centrosomes When activated by certain proteins, the cytoskeleton of the

cell rapidly disassembles After the duplication of the centrosomes, disassembled cytoskeleton start rebuilding into microtubules starting from the centrosomes, creating mitotic spindles Motor proteins aid in moving the centrosomes to the opposite poles The disassembly of the nuclear envelope is caused by the phosphorylation of certain membrane proteins, which are promoted by mitotic Cdks The fragmented nuclear envelope become vesicles and are dispersed throughout the cell The Golgi apparatus and the ER fragment into separate vesicles

Prometaphase
Prometaphase is sometimes included within

prophase, in which prometaphase is called late prophase The primary objective of prometaphase is to:
Attach chromosomes to spindle fibers To start the alignment of chromosomes

The spindle microtubules attach to certain

proteins on the chromosome, called kinetochores, which are located at the chromosomal centromere The spindle microtubules begin pull chromosomes back and forth, in a process known as congression, which starts to pull the chromosomes towards the center of the cell

Metaphase
In metaphase, congression continues until all the

chromosomes are aligned in the center The result of metaphase is that all the chromosomes are aligned on an imaginary line called the metaphase plate, which is near the cellular equator The alignment of chromosomes is very important to the cell cycle, and there is a checkpoint to make sure that the chromosomes are aligned

Metaphase-Anaphase Checkpoint
The checkpoint between metaphase and anaphase is

called the spindle checkpoint The spindle checkpoint prevents a cell from going into anaphase when a chromosome fails to align properly This is important, because when cells go through with anaphase while having a misaligned chromosomes, the chromosomes are not divided evenly between daughter cells A daughter cell with an abnormal amount of chromosomes is called an aneuploidy Unattached kinetochores have a protein complex attached called Mad2 Mad2 arrests the cell in metaphase, preventing the cell from entering anaphase Once the chromosomes are properly aligned, the Mad2 complex detaches, and the cell is no longer arrested in metaphase

Anaphase: Activation and Preparation

Cohesin Animation

Transition into anaphase is regulated by APC

(anaphase promoting complex), Cdc20, securin, and separase When given certain signals, APC interacts with Cdc20 The protein complex destroys securin, which is a major anaphase inhibitor When securin is destroyed, a protease (an enzyme that lyses proteins) called separase is released Separase denatures the cohesin molecules holding the two sister chromatids together

Anaphase
The objective of anaphase is to separate the two

sister chromatids, which will form the DNA of the daughter cells Spindle microtubules that are attached to the kinetochores pull the sister chromatids apart in synchrony The chromatids move towards opposite poles of the cell as spindle microtubules shorten The movement process is very slow compared to the rate of other cellular activities Anaphase A refers to the separation and movement of chromatids to the opposite poles Anaphase B occurs simultaneously to anaphase A, and refers to the movement of the spindle poles further and further apart, which is caused by unattached spindle microtubules pressing against teach other

Telophase
Animation

Mitosis

Telophase is the last phase of mitosis

They major events of telophase are:

Mitotic spindle disassembles Chromosomes decondense Nuclear envelope reforms

The ultimate objective of telophase is to return

daughter cells to the interphase condition Telophase is NOT the partitioning of the cytoplasm into two separate cells

Cytokinesis
Cytokinesis is the partitioning of the parent

cytoplasm into two separate daughter cells Cytokinesis is not part of mitosis, and is considered as its own phase (C) Cytokinesis is different in animal and plant cells due to the difference in their outer structures

Cytokinesis in Animal Cells

Cytokinesis in animal cells is performed through the use of

a cleavage furrow The formation of a cleavage furrow is made possible by actin and myosin filaments, which interact in similarly to how muscles contract 1. The cell membrane begins to pinch slightly in, starting a cleavage furrow 2. The release of a protein called RhoA assembles actin and myosin and activates the motor activity of myosin 3. The sliding of the actin and myosin filaments pull the plasma membrane deeper into the cell, increasing the cleavage furrow 4. Cytoplasmic vesicles containing materials needed to build the plasma membrane fuse on the cleavage furrow, generating more membrane 5. This continues until a new membrane has completely formed in between and the parent cell has now been partitioned into two daughter cells

Cytokinesis in Plant Cells

Animation

Cytokinesis

Because of the rigidity of the cell wall, the cell wall and cell

membrane cannot pinch in using cleavage furrows like animal cells do Therefore, the cell wall and cell membrane has to form inside the cell and are extended outwards The imaginary line of where the new cell wall will be formed to partition the cytoplasm is called the cell plate The formation of a new cell wall comes from Golgi-derived carbohydrate-filled vesicles that fuse together The phragmoplast is a cluster of microtubules, actin filaments, and vesicles that are the remnants of the spindle fibers The phragmoplast guides the Golgi-derived carbohydrate vesicles towards the cell plate The carbohydrate vesicles fuse to form the cell wall and the cell membrane