title: A minimal CENP-A core is required for nucleation and maintenance of a functional human centromere.
abstract: Chromatin clusters containing CENP-A, a histone H3 variant, are found in centromeres of multicellular eukaryotes. This study examines the ability of alpha-satellite (alphoid) DNA arrays in different lengths to nucleate CENP-A chromatin and form functional kinetochores de novo. Kinetochore assembly was followed by measuring human artificial chromosome formation in cultured human cells and by chromatin immunoprecipitation analysis. The results showed that both the length of alphoid DNA arrays and the density of CENP-B boxes had a strong impact on nucleation, spreading and/or maintenance of CENP-A chromatin, and formation of functional kinetochores. These effects are attributed to a change in the dynamic balance between assembly of chromatin containing trimethyl histone H3-K9 and chromatin containing CENP-A/C. The data presented here suggest that a functional minimum core stably maintained on 30-70 kb alphoid DNA arrays represents an epigenetic memory of centromeric chromatin.
authors.affiliation: Division of Biological Science, Graduate School of Science, Nagoya University, Chikusa-ku, Nagoya, Japan.
authors.forename: Yasuhide
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Okamoto
authors.forename: Megumi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nakano
authors.forename: Jun-ichirou
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ohzeki
authors.forename: Vladimir
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Larionov
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Masumoto
mesh_terms: D001324:Autoantigens / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D002503:Centromere / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000502:physiology; D000076247:Centromere Protein A; D051936:Centromere Protein B / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D002843:Chromatin / Q000378:metabolism; D002868:Chromosomal Proteins, Non-Histone / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D004276:DNA, Satellite / Q000235:genetics*; D006570:Heterochromatin / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D017404:In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence; D018386:Kinetochores / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology; D008954:Models, Biological; D008957:Models, Genetic; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction
chemical_list: D001324:Autoantigens; C000619700:CENPA protein, human; C497926:CENPB protein, human; D000076247:Centromere Protein A; D051936:Centromere Protein B; D002843:Chromatin; D002868:Chromosomal Proteins, Non-Histone; D004276:DNA, Satellite; D006570:Heterochromatin