Investigations into the control of cell form and polarity: the use of morphological mutants in fission yeast.

The fission yeast has been extensively used for investigating the cell cycle and is now being used to initiate studies into the control of cell form. There are a number of factors contributing to the generation of polarity in this organism, which are closely linked with the control of the cell cycle, including the redistributions of cytoskeletal components throughout the cycle and their correlation with patterns of end growth seen at different cell cycle stages. The controlled positioning of elements such as the nucleus and septum with respect to other cellular structures in order to produce viable daughter cells is clearly an important part of the fission yeast life cycle. This review will describe work already published concerning the control of cell form in this organism, including the isolation of various mutants displaying abnormal polarity, and will introduce work currently in progress to identify new elements involved in this control.