title: Tension-dependent regulation of microtubule dynamics at kinetochores can explain metaphase congression in yeast.
abstract: During metaphase in budding yeast mitosis, sister kinetochores are tethered to opposite poles and separated, stretching their intervening chromatin, by singly attached kinetochore microtubules (kMTs). Kinetochore movements are coupled to single microtubule plus-end polymerization/depolymerization at kinetochore attachment sites. Here, we use computer modeling to test possible mechanisms controlling chromosome alignment during yeast metaphase by simulating experiments that determine the 1) mean positions of kinetochore Cse4-GFP, 2) extent of oscillation of kinetochores during metaphase as measured by fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP) of kinetochore Cse4-GFP, 3) dynamics of kMTs as measured by FRAP of GFP-tubulin, and 4) mean positions of unreplicated chromosome kinetochores that lack pulling forces from a sister kinetochore. We rule out a number of possible models and find the best fit between theory and experiment when it is assumed that kinetochores sense both a spatial gradient that suppresses kMT catastrophe near the poles and attachment site tension that promotes kMT rescue at higher amounts of chromatin stretch.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA.
authors.forename: Melissa K
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Gardner
authors.forename: Chad G
authors.initials: CG
authors.lastname: Pearson
authors.forename: Brian L
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Sprague
authors.forename: Ted R
authors.initials: TR
authors.lastname: Zarzar
authors.forename: Kerry
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bloom
authors.forename: E D
authors.initials: ED
authors.lastname: Salmon
authors.forename: David J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Odde
mesh_terms: D018797:Cell Cycle Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D002843:Chromatin / Q000378:metabolism; D002868:Chromosomal Proteins, Non-Histone; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D018386:Kinetochores / Q000378:metabolism*; D008677:Metaphase; D008870:Microtubules / Q000378:metabolism*; D008954:Models, Biological; D009154:Mutation / Q000235:genetics; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D012441:Saccharomyces cerevisiae / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism*; D029701:Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D013050:Spectrometry, Fluorescence
chemical_list: C066503:CDC6 protein, S cerevisiae; C092746:CSE4 protein, S cerevisiae; D018797:Cell Cycle Proteins; D002843:Chromatin; D002868:Chromosomal Proteins, Non-Histone; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D029701:Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins