DNA binding and meiotic chromosomal localization of the Drosophila nod kinesin-like protein

The Drosophila no distributive disjunction (nod) gene encodes a kinesin-like protein that has been proposed to push chromosomes toward the metaphase plate during female meiosis. We report that the nonmotor domain of the nod protein can mediate direct binding to DNA. Using an antiserum prepared against bacterially expressed nod protein, we show that during prometaphase nod protein is localized on oocyte chromosomes and is not restricted to either specific chromosomal regions or to the kinetochore. Thus, motor-based chromosome-microtubule interactions are not limited to the centromere, but extend along the chromosome arms, providing a molecular explanation for the polar ejection force.