An active contour ImageJ plugin to monitor daughter cell size in 3D during cytokinesis.

Controlling relative daughter cell size is key during cytokinesis. Uncontrolled size asymmetries can lead to aneuploidy and division failure. At the same time, precisely regulated size asymmetries are of crucial importance in many divisions during embryonic development. Therefore, being able to monitor daughter cell size is important in cytokinesis studies. However, freely available tools allowing to effectively measure the size of daughter cells in three dimensions during cytokinesis are missing. Here, we describe an open-access plugin for ImageJ or Fiji based on an active contour surface representation of the cells. Our method provides a user-friendly and accurate way to monitor the size of the two daughter cells throughout cytokinesis.

A narrow window of cortical tension guides asymmetric spindle positioning in the mouse oocyte.

Cell mechanics control the outcome of cell division. In mitosis, external forces applied on a stiff cortex direct spindle orientation and morphogenesis. During oocyte meiosis on the contrary, spindle positioning depends on cortex softening. How changes in cortical organization induce cortex softening has not yet been addressed. Furthermore, the range of tension that allows spindle migration remains unknown. Here, using artificial manipulation of mouse oocyte cortex as well as theoretical modelling, we show that cortical tension has to be tightly regulated to allow off-center spindle positioning: a too low or too high cortical tension both lead to unsuccessful spindle migration. We demonstrate that the decrease in cortical tension required for spindle positioning is fine-tuned by a branched F-actin network that triggers the delocalization of myosin-II from the cortex, which sheds new light on the interplay between actin network architecture and cortex tension.

Time-domain simulation of damped impacted plates. I. Theory and experiments.

A time-domain formulation for the flexural vibrations in damped rectangular isotropic and orthotropic plates is developed, in order to investigate transient excitation of plates by means of sound synthesis. The model includes three basic mechanisms of damping (thermoelasticity, viscoelasticity and radiation) using a general differential operator. The four rigidity factors of the plate are modified by perturbation terms, each term corresponding to one specific damping mechanism. The first damping term is derived from the coupling between the thermoelastic stress-strain relations and the heat diffusion equation. The second term is obtained from the general differential formulation of viscoelasticity. The third term is obtained through a Pade approximation of the damping factor which governs the coupling of the plate with the surrounding air. The decay factors predicted by the model reproduce adequately the dependence on both dimensions and frequency of the decay factors measured on rectangular plates of various sizes and thicknesses made of four different materials (aluminum, glass, carbon fiber, and wood). The numerical resolution of the complete problem, including initial and boundary conditions, and the comparison between real and simulated sounds are presented in a companion paper.

Time-domain simulation of damped impacted plates. II. Numerical model and results.

A time-domain model for the flexural vibrations of damped plates was presented in a companion paper [Part I, J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 109, 1422-1432 (2001)]. In this paper (Part II), the damped-plate model is extended to impact excitation, using Hertz's law of contact, and is solved numerically in order to synthesize sounds. The numerical method is based on the use of a finite-difference scheme of second order in time and fourth order in space. As a consequence of the damping terms, the stability and dispersion properties of this scheme are modified, compared to the undamped case. The numerical model is used for the time-domain simulation of vibrations and sounds produced by impact on isotropic and orthotropic plates made of various materials (aluminum, glass, carbon fiber and wood). The efficiency of the method is validated by comparisons with analytical and experimental data. The sounds produced show a high degree of similarity with real sounds and allow a clear recognition of each constitutive material of the plate without ambiguity.