Meiosis - Control Of Meiosis

The events of meiosis are controlled by a protein enzyme complex known collectively as maturation promoting factor (MPF). These enzymes interact with one another and with cell organelles to cause the breakdown and reconstruction of the nuclear membrane, the formation of the spindle fibers, and the final division of the cell itself. MPF appears to work in a cycle, with the proteins slowly accumulating during interphase, and then rapidly degrading during the later stages of meiosis. In effect, the rate of synthesis of these proteins controls the frequency and rate of meiosis in all sexually reproducing organisms from the simplest to the most complex.