Flow cytometric analysis of nocodazole-induced cell-cycle arrest in the pennate diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum Bohlin

The microtubule inhibitor, nocodazole (2.5 mg L-1), can arrest the cell cycle of the pennate diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum Bohlin at G(2) + M phase. Flow cytometric analysis of cells treated with nocodazole suggest that the proportion of cells at G(2) + M phase can accumulate to over 95\%. Even after a 48-h treatment with nocodazole (2.5 mg L-1), the cells can still exit mitosis, suggesting that the cell-cycle arrest is reversible.