Systems-level feedback in cell-cycle control.
Novák B., Vinod PK., Freire P., Kapuy O.
Alternation of chromosome replication and segregation is essential for successful completion of the cell cycle and it requires an oscillation of Cdk1 (cyclin-dependent kinase 1)-CycB (cyclin B) activity. In the present review, we illustrate the essential features of checkpoint controlled and uncontrolled cell-cycle oscillations by using mechanical metaphors. Despite variations in the molecular details of the oscillatory mechanism, the underlying network motifs responsible for the oscillations are always well-conserved. The checkpoint-controlled cell cycles are always driven by a negative-feedback loop amplified by double-negative feedbacks (antagonism).