Asymmetric cell division produces daughter cells with different developmental fates. Unequal size can accompany it, but the defining distinction is the daughters' outcomes. An asymmetry may arise from unequal inheritance of intracellular components or from different access to a stem-cell niche after division. For example, one daughter of a germline stem cell can retain its niche contact while the other begins cell differentiation. This couples cell polarity, spindle apparatus orientation and local signalling. [ref]
In the male Drosophila germline, a localized Bazooka patch provides a centrosome docking platform. Reducing Bazooka disrupted centrosome orientation; ectopic patches could associate with misplaced centrosomes. Measurements of both interphase centrosomes and mitotic spindle apparatus helped separate orientation defects from failure of the checkpoint that normally delays division. [ref]

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