Fig. 7. Astral microtubules are most abundant in prophase and anaphase/telophase. (A) Example frames from a time-lapse movie showing a cell expressing EB1-GFP. Movies were generated from projections of z-stacks with an imaging depth of about 15 µm to visualise quantitative changes in cortical astral microtubules. Cortical EB1 signal disappears around metaphase. Seven cells were analysed throughout mitosis in three different embryos. (B) Quantification of EB1 signals throughout the cell cycle of one cell. I/P, interphase/prophase; PM, prometaphase; M, metaphase; A, anaphase; T/CK, telophase/cytokinesis; y-axis, number of EB1 signals; x-axis, time (15.3 seconds between frames). (C) Astral microtubules shown in fixed cells by antibody staining against -tubulin. During prometaphase and metaphase, astral microtubules are strongly reduced; mb, midbody. Centrosomes are separated in late anaphase (arrow). Scale bars: 20 µm.