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Comment
. 2007 Mar 12;176(6):735-6.
doi: 10.1083/jcb.200702020. Epub 2007 Mar 5.

Centromeric chromatin gets loaded

Christopher W Carroll  1 , Aaron F Straight
Affiliations
Comment

Centromeric chromatin gets loaded

Christopher W Carroll et al. J Cell Biol. .

Abstract

Centromeric nucleosomes contain a histone H3 variant called centromere protein A (CENP-A) that is required for kinetochore assembly and chromosome segregation. Two new studies, Jansen et al. (see p. 795 of this issue) and Maddox et al. (see p. 757 of this issue), address when CENP-A is deposited at centromeres during the cell division cycle and identify an evolutionally conserved protein required for CENP-A deposition. Together, these studies advance our understanding of centromeric chromatin assembly and provide a framework for investigating the molecular mechanisms that underlie the centromere-specific loading of CENP-A.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
A model for the centromere replication cycle for a single human chromosome. During DNA replication (1), CENP-A–containing nucleosomes (blue dots) are randomly distributed to each sister chromatid, resulting in a twofold reduction in the amount of CENP-A at each centromere. Upon exit from mitosis (2), a change in the state of KNL-2 or within the chromatin itself targets KNL-2 to the centromere, which, in turn, recruits newly synthesized CENP-A for deposition (3). After centromere replication, KNL-2 dissociates from centromeres (4). The mechanisms that control KNL-2 centromere binding and dissociation are unknown.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment on

References

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