Calcium ionophore a23187 stimulates cytokinin-like mitosis in funaria.

The plant hormone cytokinin stimulates asymmetrical division in target cells of the protonema of the moss Funaria hygrometrica, leading to bud formation. The initial division can be induced in the absence of cytokinin by the calcium ionophore A23187 in medium containing calcium. These findings suggest that increases in the concentration of intracellular calcium are essential to bud initiation. Therefore mitotic regulation by cytokinin may be due, at least in part, to the modulation of intracellular calcium ion concentration.