Cell Division

official impact factor 4.09

Open Access Highly Access Review

The centrosome and cell proliferation

Vlastimil Srsen and Andreas Merdes*

Author Affiliations

Wellcome Trust Centre for Cell Biology, University of Edinburgh, King's Buildings, Edinburgh EH9 3JR, UK

For all author emails, please log on.

Cell Division 2006, 1:26 doi:10.1186/1747-1028-1-26

Published: 16 November 2006

Abstract

Centrosomes are frequently amplified in cancer cells. Increased numbers of centrosomes can give rise to multipolar spindles in mitosis, and thereby lead to the formation of aneuploid daughter cells. However, whether centrosome amplification is a cause or a consequence of cancer is unclear. In contrast, loss of a functional centrosome has been shown to lead to cell cycle arrest. In this review, the potential mechanisms underlying centrosome amplification and centrosome-dependent cell cycle regulation are discussed.