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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2016 Feb 18.
Published in final edited form as: Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol. 2005 Nov;6(11):862–871. doi: 10.1038/nrm1745

Figure 6. FtsZ and the evolution of cell and organelle fission.

Figure 6

Different types of cells or organelles and their use of FtsZ or alternative proteins for fission are shown. In euryarchaea and many bacteria, FtsZ (green) localizes to the inner side of the inner membrane as the Z ring. Crenarchaea and some bacteria lack FtsZ, so some other protein must localize as a ring at the site of division (yellow). In plastids and mitochondria, dynamin or dynamin-like protein rings (red) localize to the cytoplasmic face. These organelles also contain a dividing ring (blue) and, in the case of chloroplasts and some primitive mitochondria, an innermost ring of FtsZ (green). Most mitochondria, including those of fungi and animals, lack FtsZ and a detectable dividing ring, but still rely on dynamin on the cytosolic face for fission (red).