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Related Concept Videos

Histone Variants at the Centromere02:30

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Histone variants are the histone proteins with structural and sequence variations. These variants may be regarded as “mutant” forms that replace their canonical histone counterparts in the nucleosomes. Specific post-translational modifications on the histone variants enable further chromatin complexity and regulate tissue-specific gene expression. The most common histone variants are from histone H2A, H2B, and linker histone H1 families. However, several variants of histone H3...
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Most animal cells comprise a pair of centrioles together called a centrosome. The cell duplicates its centrosome and contains two centrosomes side-by-side, which begin to move apart during the prophase. As the centrosomes migrate to two different sides of the cell, microtubules start extending from each centrosome toward the other end. The mitotic spindle is composed of the centrosomes and their emerging microtubules.
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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.
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A functional eukaryotic chromosome must contain three elements: a centromere, telomeres, and numerous origins of replication.
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Related Experiment Video

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Immunofluorescence Analysis of Endogenous and Exogenous Centromere-kinetochore Proteins
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Immunofluorescence Analysis of Endogenous and Exogenous Centromere-kinetochore Proteins

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Centromere Structure and Function.

Kerry Bloom1, Vincenzo Costanzo2

  • 1Department of Biology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 623 Fordham Hall CB#3280, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599-3280, USA. Kerry_bloom@unc.edu.

Progress in Molecular and Subcellular Biology
|August 26, 2017
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Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Centromeres specify kinetochore assembly for chromosome attachment. Despite differences in size, conserved centromere chromatin functions may exist across species, impacting DNA organization and stress response.

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Area of Science:

  • Cell Biology
  • Genetics
  • Molecular Biology

Background:

  • The centromere is a genetic locus crucial for kinetochore assembly and microtubule attachment.
  • The pericentromere, a flanking region, influences sister kinetochore geometry during metaphase.
  • Budding yeast utilize a small 125 bp point centromere, while mammals have larger 5-10 Mb regions for kinetochore formation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review conserved features of centromere chromatin across different organisms.
  • To highlight recent in vitro reconstitution studies of centromeric chromatin.

Main Methods:

  • Comparative analysis of centromere structure and function in yeast and mammals.
  • Review of in vitro reconstitution experiments using alpha satellite DNA.

Main Results:

  • Yeast centromeres are small (125 bp) but sufficient for kinetochore assembly, with flanking regions enriched in cohesin and condensin.
  • Mammalian centromeres involve larger regions (5-10 Mb) with complex chromatin structures.
  • A conserved amount of DNA exists between sister kinetochores in both yeast and mammals, despite differing centromere sizes.

Conclusions:

  • Centromere specification of kinetochore assembly varies significantly between species.
  • Conserved functions of centromere chromatin may exist, particularly in DNA organization, replication, and stress response.
  • In vitro reconstitution of centromeric chromatin reveals novel insights into its properties.