The mitotic spindle is a microtubule-based machine that pulls the two identical sets of chromosomes to opposite ends of the cell during cell division. The fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe is an important model organism for studying mitosis due to its simple, stereotyped spindle structure and well-established genetic toolset. S. pombe spindle length is a useful metric for mitotic progression, but manually tracking spindle ends in each frame to measure spindle length over time is laborious and can limit experimental throughput. We have developed an ImageJ plugin that can automatically track S. pombe spindle length over time and replace manual or semi-automated tracking of spindle elongation dynamics. Using an algorithm that detects the principal axis of the spindle and then finds its ends, we reliably track the length of the spindle as the cell divides. The plugin integrates with existing ImageJ features, exports its data for further analysis outside of ImageJ and does not require any programming by the user. Thus, the plugin provides an accessible tool for quantification of S. pombe spindle length that will allow automatic analysis of large microscopy data sets and facilitate screening for effects of cell biological perturbations on mitotic progression.

中文翻译：

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自动跟踪粟酒裂殖酵母纺锤体伸长动态


有丝分裂纺锤体是一种基于微管的机器，在细胞分裂过程中将两组相同的染色体拉到细胞的相对两端。裂殖酵母粟酒裂殖酵母因其简单、定型的纺锤体结构和完善的遗传工具集而成为研究有丝分裂的重要模型生物。粟酒裂殖酵母纺锤体长度是有丝分裂进展的有用指标，但手动跟踪每个帧中的纺锤体末端以测量随时间变化的纺锤体长度非常费力，并且会限制实验通量。我们开发了一个 ImageJ 插件，可以自动跟踪粟酒裂殖酵母纺锤体长度随时间的变化，并取代手动或半自动跟踪纺锤体伸长动态。使用检测纺锤体主轴然后找到其末端的算法，我们可以可靠地跟踪细胞分裂时纺锤体的长度。该插件与现有的 ImageJ 功能集成，导出其数据以在 ImageJ 之外进行进一步分析，并且不需要用户进行任何编程。因此，该插件提供了一种量化粟酒裂殖酵母纺锤体长度的易于使用的工具，该工具将允许自动分析大型显微镜数据集，并有助于筛选细胞生物扰动对有丝分裂进展的影响。