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The Behavior of the Maize B Chromosome and Centromere
Handong Su1,2, Yalin Liu3, Yang Liu4,5
1State Key Laboratory of Plant Cell and Chromosome Engineering, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China. shdong@genetics.ac.cn.
Abstract:
The maize B chromosome is a non-essential chromosome with an accumulation mechanism. The dispensable nature of the B chromosome facilitates many types of genetic studies in maize. Maize lines with B chromosomes have been widely used in studies of centromere functions. Here, we discuss the maize B chromosome alongside the latest progress of B centromere activities, including centromere misdivision, inactivation, reactivation, and de novo centromere formation. The meiotic features of the B centromere, related to mini-chromosomes and the control of the size of the maize centromere, are also discussed.
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