Structural Analysis and Sequence Organization of Yeast Centromeres (original) (raw)

  1. K.S. Bloom,
  2. M. Fitzgerald-Hayes, and
  3. J. Carbon
  4. Department of Biological Sciences, University of California, Santa Barbara, California 93106

Excerpt

The centromere is a specific region of the eukaryotic chromosome that plays a fundamental role in chromosome movement throughout cell division. During the early stages of chromosome preparation for mitosis and meiosis, the centromere becomes visible as a distinct morphological entity along the chromatin fiber. The function of the centromere, at least in part, is to provide a chromatin attachment site for the spindle fibers of the mitotic apparatus and to direct the chromosomes through mitosis and meiosis. Possession of a centromere thereby ensures the stable maintenance and proper segregation of chromosomes during cell division. An understanding of the molecular mechanisms by which spindle fibers attach to the centromere and direct chromosome movement will require knowledge of the organization of centromeric DNA, centromeric proteins, and other chromatin components specifically associated with the centromere.

DNA segments that act as functional centromeres have been isolated from chromosomes III (CEN3) and XI (CEN11)...