Inhibitors of Polo-like kinase reveal roles in spindle-pole maintenance.

Polo-like kinases (Plks) have several functions in mitotic progression and are upregulated in many tumor types. Small-molecule Plk inhibitors would be valuable as tools for studying Plk biology and for developing antitumor agents. Guided by homology modeling of the Plk1 kinase domain, we have discovered a chemical series that shows potent and selective Plk1 inhibition.

How one becomes many: blastoderm cellularization in Drosophila melanogaster.

Embryonic development in Drosophila melanogaster begins with a rapid series of mitotic nuclear divisions, unaccompanied by cytokinesis, to produce a multi-nucleated single cell embryo, the syncytial blastoderm. The syncytium then undergoes a process of cell formation, in which the individual nuclei become enclosed in individual cells. This process of cellularization involves integrating mechanisms of cell polarity, cell-cell adhesion and a specialized form of cytokinesis.