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First published online May 8, 2008
doi: 10.1242/10.1242/jcs.018770

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Breaking up is hard to do – membrane traffic in cytokinesis

¹ Department of Cellular and Developmental Biology, School of Medicine, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, 12801 E. 17th Avenue, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
² Henry Wellcome Laboratory of Cell Biology, Division of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Institute of Biomedical and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, G12 8QQ, UK

E-mails: Rytis.Prekeris{at}uchsc.edu; G.Gould{at}bio.gla.ac.uk

Accepted 3 April 2008

Throughout normal development, and in aberrant conditions such as cancer, cells divide by a process called cytokinesis. Most textbooks suggest that animal cells execute cytokinesis using an actomyosin-containing contractile ring, whereas plant cells generate a new cell wall by the assembly of a novel membrane compartment using vesicle-trafficking machinery in an apparently distinct manner. Recent studies have shown that cytokinesis in animal and plant cells may not be as distinct as these models imply – both have an absolute requirement for vesicle traffic. Moreover, some of the key molecular components of cytokinesis have been identified, many of which are proteins that function to control membrane traffic. Here, we review recent advances in this area.

Key words: Cytokinesis, ER, Endosome, Secretory pathway, Membrane traffic