| Abstrakt: |
Ncd is a kinesin-related microtubule motor protein of Drosophilathat plays essential roles in spindle assembly and function during meiosis in oocytes and mitosis in early embryos. Antibody staining experiments have localized the Ned motor protein to spindle fibers and spindle poles throughout the meiotic and early mitotic divisions, demonstrating that Ncd is a spindle motor.We have made ncd-gfpgene fusions with wild-type and S65T gfpand expressed the chimaeric genes in Drosophilato target GFP to the spindle. Transgenic Drosophilacarrying the ncd-gfpgene fusions in an ncd null mutant background are wild type with respect to chromosome segregation, indicating that the Ncd-GFP fusion proteins can replace the function of wild-type Ncd. The Ncd-GFP fusion proteins in transgenic Drosophilaare expressed under the regulation of the native ncdpromoter.Analysis of live Drosophilaoocytes and early embryos shows green fluorescent spindles, demonstrating association of Ncd-GFP with meiotic and mitotic spindles. In mitotic spindles, Ncd-GFP localizes to centrosomes (Fig. 1a) and spindle fibers (Fig. 1b). |
