DNA-replication/DNA-damage-dependent centrosome inactivation in Drosophila embryos

During early embryogenesis of Drosophila melanogaster, mutations in the DNA-replication checkpoint lead to chromosome-segregation failures. Here we show that these segregation failures are associated with the assembly of an anastral microtubule spindle, a mitosis-specific loss of centrosome function, and dissociation of several components of the gamma-tubulin ring complex from a core centrosomal structure. The DNA-replication inhibitor aphidicolin and DNA-damaging agents trigger identical mitotic defects in wild-type embryos, indicating that centrosome inactivation is a checkpoint-independent and mitosis-specific response to damaged or incompletely replicated DNA. We propose that centrosome inactivation is part of a damage-control system that blocks chromosome segregation when replication/damage checkpoint control fails.