Discovery of cellular counting mechanism used for size control in algae with links to cancer genetics

James Umen, Ph.D., associate member at Donald Danforth Plant Science Center, and colleagues have discovered a protein that enables the single-celled green alga Chlamydomonas to count cell divisions, a process that is critically important for its cells to maintain optimal size. The findings were published March 25, in a paper titled, "A new class of cyclin dependent kinase in Chlamydomonas is required for coupling cell size to cell division," in the open access journal eLife. Umen and his team in