Multinucleate (also multinucleated) cells are eukaryotic cells that have more than one nucleus per cell, i.e. multiple nuclei share one common cytoplasm. Mitosis in multinucleate cells can occur either in a coordinated, synchronous manner where all nuclei divide simultaneously or asynchronously where individual nuclei divide independently in time and space.
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Multinucleate cells, depending on the mechanism they are formed, can be divided into:[1] [2]
Multinucleate cells can occur naturally under physiological conditions by the fusion of the plasma membranes of cells thus forming syncytia. Examples include the cells of the musculoskeletal systems of mammals, the tapetal cells of plants, and the storage cells of Douglas-fir seeds. [3]
Furthermore, multinucleate cells are produced from specialized cell cycles in which nuclear division occurs without cytokinesis, thus leading to large coenocytes or plasmodia. In filamentous fungi, multinucleate cells may extend over hundreds of meters so that different regions of a single cell experience dramatically different microenvironments. Other examples include, the plasmodia of slime molds and the schizont of the Plasmodium parasite which causes malaria.
Multinucleated cells can also occur under pathological conditions as the consequence of a disturbed cell cycle control (e.g. binucleated cells and in metastazing tumor cells).
Also in the blood systems of mammals, cells such as neutrophils and eosinophils are also referred to as polynuclear cells due to their appearance under the microscope.
The equivalent of multiple nuclei in procaryotes is multiple nucleoids in bacteria such as in Proteus mirabilis swarmer cells.