Do "spindle fibers" really exist in living cells?
(chosen for Sept 7 discussion)

Before 1953, the cell biology field was deeply divided in debate over the existence of apparent "fibers" in the mitotic and meiotic spindles of organisms. The only evidence for these fibers, which we know today as microtubules, came from images of fixed and stained cells. Many biologists claimed these fibers were simply artifacts of fixation, since no one had been able to see any fibrous spindle structure in any living organism with any microscope available at the time. Undeterred by the limitations of currently available technology, Shinya Inoué combined high-resolution microscopy with polarized light illumination (thus innovating polarized light microscopy) to make the invisible visible for the first time in vivo: Inoué showed spindle fibers moving with chromosomes in dividing Chaetopterus (annelid) oocytes and Lilium (lily) pollen cells. For this and his subsequent studies into these fibers, Shinya Inoué has come to be known as the father of cytoskeletal dynamics.
Related information:
1. Tribute to Shinya Inoué
2. Shinya speaking about his discovery
3. Edward Salmon (student of Shinya) on the evolution of light microscopy in the biological sciences
(image credit: iBiology)

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