How cells determine the number of polarity sites.
Abstract
The diversity of cell morphologies arises, in part, through regulation of cell polarity
by Rho-family GTPases. A poorly understood but fundamental question concerns the regulatory
mechanisms by which different cells generate different numbers of polarity sites.
Mass-conserved activator-substrate (MCAS) models that describe polarity circuits develop
multiple initial polarity sites, but then those sites engage in competition, leaving
a single winner. Theoretical analyses predicted that competition would slow dramatically
as GTPase concentrations at different polarity sites increase toward a 'saturation
point', allowing polarity sites to coexist. Here, we test this prediction using budding
yeast cells, and confirm that increasing the amount of key polarity proteins results
in multiple polarity sites and simultaneous budding. Further, we elucidate a novel
design principle whereby cells can switch from competition to equalization among polarity
sites. These findings provide insight into how cells with diverse morphologies may
determine the number of polarity sites.
Type
Journal articleSubject
Saccharomyces cerevisiaecdc42 GTP-Binding Protein, Saccharomyces cerevisiae
Cell Cycle Proteins
Cytoskeletal Proteins
Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins
Signal Transduction
Cell Division
Cell Polarity
Cell Shape
Gene Expression Regulation, Fungal
Models, Biological
Time Factors
Computer Simulation
Numerical Analysis, Computer-Assisted
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https://hdl.handle.net/10161/24507Published Version (Please cite this version)
10.7554/elife.58768Publication Info
Chiou, Jian-Geng; Moran, Kyle D; & Lew, Daniel J (2021). How cells determine the number of polarity sites. eLife, 10. 10.7554/elife.58768. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10161/24507.This is constructed from limited available data and may be imprecise. To cite this
article, please review & use the official citation provided by the journal.
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Show full item recordScholars@Duke
Daniel Julio Lew
James B. Duke Distinguished Professor of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology
Our research interests focus on the control of cell polarity. Cell polarity is a
nearly universal feature of eukaryotic cells. A polarized cell usually has a single,
clear axis of asymmetry: a “front” and a “back”. In the past
several years it has become apparent that the highly conserved Rho-family GTPase Cdc42,
first discovered in yeast, is a component of a master pathway, employed time and again
to promote polarity in different contexts.
This author no longer has a Scholars@Duke profile, so the information shown here reflects
their Duke status at the time this item was deposited.

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