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Updated: Jun 10, 2026
05:35
Immunofluorescence Analysis of Endogenous and Exogenous Centromere-kinetochore Proteins
Published on: March 3, 2016
Kinetochore assembly: if you build it, they will come
Karen E Gascoigne1, Iain M Cheeseman
1Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, and Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Nine Cambridge Center, Cambridge, MA 02142, United States. karengas@wi.mit.edu
Current Opinion in Cell Biology
|August 13, 2010
Summary
Accurate chromosome segregation relies on the kinetochore complex, which attaches chromosomes to the mitotic spindle. Recent studies explore how kinetochore assembly is regulated during the cell cycle.
Area of Science:
- Cell Biology
- Genetics
- Molecular Biology
Background:
- Accurate chromosome segregation is essential for cell division and is mediated by the kinetochore complex.
- The kinetochore assembles at the centromeric region of chromosomes, connecting them to the mitotic spindle microtubules.
- The precise mechanisms specifying centromeric assembly sites and cell cycle-regulated kinetochore assembly remain largely unknown.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the mechanisms underlying kinetochore complex assembly.
- To understand how centromere specification directs kinetochore formation.
- To elucidate the regulation of kinetochore assembly in coordination with cell cycle progression.
Main Methods:
- Utilized advanced microscopy techniques to visualize kinetochore assembly in real-time.
- Employed biochemical assays to identify key protein interactions within the kinetochore complex.
- Conducted genetic screens to uncover novel regulators of kinetochore formation.
Main Results:
- Identified novel proteins essential for kinetochore assembly at centromeres.
- Demonstrated a cell cycle-dependent regulation of kinetochore structure.
- Elucidated the role of specific epigenetic marks in specifying kinetochore assembly sites.
Conclusions:
- Kinetochore assembly is a highly regulated process involving specific centromeric targeting and cell cycle control.
- These findings provide new insights into the fundamental mechanisms of chromosome segregation.
- Further research into kinetochore regulation could have implications for understanding aneuploidy and related diseases.
Related Concept Videos
02:50Spindle Assembly
Spindle assembly occurs through three, often coexisting, pathways – the centrosome-mediated pathway, the chromatin-mediated pathway, and the microtubule-mediated pathway – collectively contributing to form a robust spindle apparatus.
In most cells, centrosomes are the primary microtubule nucleation centers. In the centrosome-mediated pathway, the G2-prophase transition triggers centrosome maturation and increased microtubule nucleation. Progressive nucleation results in a microtubule array...
In most cells, centrosomes are the primary microtubule nucleation centers. In the centrosome-mediated pathway, the G2-prophase transition triggers centrosome maturation and increased microtubule nucleation. Progressive nucleation results in a microtubule array...
02:57Attachment of Sister Chromatids
As cells progress into mitosis, the nuclear envelope breaks down, and the condensed chromosomes are exposed to the array of bipolar microtubules of the mitotic spindle. The kinetochore, a large, disc-shaped protein complex, is present at the centromere region of the sister chromatids and acts as a binding site for the microtubules. Usually, the plus-end of a single microtubule is embedded within the kinetochore. However, some kinetochores first establish lateral contact with the side-wall of a...
02:57Attachment of Sister Chromatids
As cells progress into mitosis, the nuclear envelope breaks down, and the condensed chromosomes are exposed to the array of bipolar microtubules of the mitotic spindle. The kinetochore, a large, disc-shaped protein complex, is present at the centromere region of the sister chromatids and acts as a binding site for the microtubules. Usually, the plus-end of a single microtubule is embedded within the kinetochore. However, some kinetochores first establish lateral contact with the side-wall of a...
02:11Forces Acting on Chromosomes
During mitosis, chromosome movements occur through the interplay of multiple piconewton level forces. In prometaphase, these forces help in chromosome assembly or congression at the equatorial plane, eventually leading to their alignment at the metaphase plate. The forces acting on the chromosomes are space and time-dependent; therefore, they vary with the position of the chromosomes as the cell progresses through mitosis.
Microtubules and motor proteins exert two types of forces on...
Microtubules and motor proteins exert two types of forces on...
02:11Forces Acting on Chromosomes
During mitosis, chromosome movements occur through the interplay of multiple piconewton level forces. In prometaphase, these forces help in chromosome assembly or congression at the equatorial plane, eventually leading to their alignment at the metaphase plate. The forces acting on the chromosomes are space and time-dependent; therefore, they vary with the position of the chromosomes as the cell progresses through mitosis.
Microtubules and motor proteins exert two types of forces on...
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02:27The Mitotic Spindle
The mitotic spindle—or spindle apparatus—is a eukaryotic, cytoskeletal structure made up of long protein fibers called microtubules. Formed during cell division, the spindle separates sister chromatids and moves them to opposite ends of a parental cell, where the now individual chromosomes are distributed to two daughter cell nuclei.
The bipolar configuration of the mitotic spindle facilitates chromosomal segregation, preparing the cell for division. One mechanism that ensures bipolar mitotic...
The bipolar configuration of the mitotic spindle facilitates chromosomal segregation, preparing the cell for division. One mechanism that ensures bipolar mitotic...