title: Molecular structures and interactions in the yeast kinetochore.
abstract: Kinetochores are the elaborate protein assemblies that attach chromosomes to spindle microtubules in mitosis and meiosis. The kinetochores of point-centromere yeast appear to represent an elementary module, which repeats a number of times in kinetochores assembled on regional centromeres. Structural analyses of the discrete protein subcomplexes that make up the budding-yeast kinetochore have begun to reveal principles of kinetochore architecture and to uncover molecular mechanisms underlying functions such as transmission of tension and establishment and maintenance of bipolar attachment. The centromeric DNA is probably wrapped into a compact organization, not only by a conserved, centromeric nucleosome, but also by interactions among various other DNA-bound kinetochore components. The rod-like, heterotetrameric Ndc80 complex, roughly 600 Å long, appears to extend from the DNA-proximal assembly to the plus end of a microtubule, to which one end of the complex is known to bind. Ongoing structural studies will clarify the roles of a number of other well-defined complexes.
authors.affiliation: Jack and Eileen Connors Structural Biology Laboratory, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA.
authors.forename: U-S
authors.initials: US
authors.lastname: Cho
authors.forename: K D
authors.initials: KD
authors.lastname: Corbett
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Al-Bassam
authors.forename: J J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Bellizzi
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: De Wulf
authors.forename: C W
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Espelin
authors.forename: J J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Miranda
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Simons
authors.forename: R R
authors.initials: RR
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.forename: P K
authors.initials: PK
authors.lastname: Sorger
authors.forename: S C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Harrison
mesh_terms: D018386:Kinetochores / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D008870:Microtubules / Q000378:metabolism; D008954:Models, Biological; D046912:Multiprotein Complexes / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure; D011485:Protein Binding; D012441:Saccharomyces cerevisiae / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D029701:Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure
chemical_list: D046912:Multiprotein Complexes; D029701:Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins