Centrosome as a micro-electronic generator in live cell

• Published in: BioSystems 2020-11, Vol.197, p.104210, Article 104210
• Main Authors: Nygren, Johan, Adelman, Roger A., Myakishev-Rempel, Max, Sun, Guogui, Li, Jiong, Zhao, Yue
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Centrosome; Electromagnetic field; Electron; Medicin och hälsovetenskap; Microtubule; Mitosis
• ISSN: 0303-2647; 1872-8324; 1872-8324
• DOI: 10.1016/j.biosystems.2020.104210

Centrosome, composed of two centrioles arranged in an orthogonal configuration, is an indispensable cellular organelle for mitosis. 130 years after its discovery, the structural-functional relationship of centrosome is still obscure. Encouraged by the telltale signs of the “Mouse and Magnet experiment”, Paul Schafer pioneered in the research on electromagnetism of centriole with electron microscopy(EM) in the late 1960s. Followed by the decades-long slow progression of the field with sporadic reports indicating the electromagnetisms of mitosis. Piecing together the evidences, we generated a mechanistic model for centrosome function during mitosis, in which centrosome functions as an electronic generator. In particular, the spinal rotations of centrioles transform the cellular chemical energy into cellular electromagnetic energy. The model is strongly supported by multiple experimental evidences. It offers an elegant explanation for the self-organized orthogonal configuration of the two centrioles in a centrosome, that is through the dynamic electromagnetic interactions of both centrioles of the centrosome. •We provide a model to describe centrosome function in correlation with its structural organizations.•We suggested electromagnetic field is the missing link for centrosome function during mitosis.•We offered physical explanations for the orthogonal self-organization structural features of centrosome.•We provided multiple detailed evidences to support the electromagnetic model we built for centrosome function.