AUTHOR=Kim Amelia J. , Griffin Erik E. 

TITLE=PLK-1 Regulation of Asymmetric Cell Division in the Early C. elegans Embryo

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology

VOLUME=8

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/cell-and-developmental-biology/articles/10.3389/fcell.2020.632253

DOI=10.3389/fcell.2020.632253

ISSN=2296-634X

ABSTRACT=<p>PLK1 is a conserved mitotic kinase that is essential for the entry into and progression through mitosis. In addition to its canonical mitotic functions, recent studies have characterized a critical role for PLK-1 in regulating the polarization and asymmetric division of the one-cell <italic>C. elegans</italic> embryo. Prior to cell division, PLK-1 regulates both the polarization of the PAR proteins at the cell cortex and the segregation of cell fate determinants in the cytoplasm. Following cell division, PLK-1 is preferentially inherited to one daughter cell where it acts to regulate the timing of centrosome separation and cell division. PLK1 also regulates cell polarity in asymmetrically dividing <italic>Drosophila</italic> neuroblasts and during mammalian planar cell polarity, suggesting it may act broadly to connect cell polarity and cell cycle mechanisms.</p>