MCGB - Importance Of Mitosis Flashcards
What is the function of the mitotic spindle?
It ensures accuracy of chromosome segregation
How many centrosomes are there in a heathy cell?
Two
How can cancer treatments target the mitotic spindle?
They stop the spindle fibres from forming, which means the chromosomes are not separated and the cells do not divide. This could prevent growth of a tumour.
True or false - most cancer cells are aneuploid?
True - they exhibit chromosome instability
What is the difference between numerical and structural instability?
Numerical has different numbers of chromosomes, while structural means bits of the chromosomes have been swapped around.
True or false - every tumour within the same patient will be of the same type?
False - there are multiple variants of the tumours, known as “plasticity” of cancer
If a cell is seen to have more than two centrosomes, is it likely that this cell is cancerous?
Yes
What is microtubule nucleation?
The process where several tubulin molecules interact to form a microtubule seed.
What effect does oncogene and TSG mutation often have on centrosome number?
It causes them to be amplified
How are some cancer cells still able to divide despite being multipolar?
They have mechanisms to cluster the amplified centrosomes, so they can undergo pseudobipolar mitosis.
How can cancer treatments target this centrosome clustering mechanism?
It prevents it, meaning that they cannot be clustered, so cell death occurs
