title: Genetic definition and sequence analysis of Arabidopsis centromeres.
abstract: High-precision genetic mapping was used to define the regions that contain centromere functions on each natural chromosome in Arabidopsis thaliana. These regions exhibited dramatic recombinational repression and contained complex DNA surrounding large arrays of 180-base pair repeats. Unexpectedly, the DNA within the centromeres was not merely structural but also encoded several expressed genes. The regions flanking the centromeres were densely populated by repetitive elements yet experienced normal levels of recombination. The genetically defined centromeres were well conserved among Arabidopsis ecotypes but displayed limited sequence homology between different chromosomes, excluding repetitive DNA. This investigation provides a platform for dissecting the role of individual sequences in centromeres in higher eukaryotes.
authors.affiliation: University of Chicago, Department of Molecular Genetics and Cell Biology, 1103 East 57 Street, Chicago, IL 60637, USA.
authors.forename: G P
authors.initials: GP
authors.lastname: Copenhaver
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Nickel
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kuromori
authors.forename: M I
authors.initials: MI
authors.lastname: Benito
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kaul
authors.forename: X
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bevan
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Murphy
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Harris
authors.forename: L D
authors.initials: LD
authors.lastname: Parnell
authors.forename: W R
authors.initials: WR
authors.lastname: McCombie
authors.forename: R A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Martienssen
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Marra
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Preuss
mesh_terms: D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics*; D001482:Base Composition; D001483:Base Sequence; D002503:Centromere / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D017124:Conserved Sequence; D020451:Contig Mapping; D003433:Crosses, Genetic; D003434:Crossing Over, Genetic; D018744:DNA, Plant / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics*; D015870:Gene Expression; D017343:Genes, Plant; D008540:Meiosis; D008957:Models, Genetic; D011995:Recombination, Genetic; D012091:Repetitive Sequences, Nucleic Acid; D018626:Retroelements; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA
chemical_list: D018744:DNA, Plant; D018626:Retroelements