How Histone Levels Affect Chromatin at Fission Yeast Centromeres
Author Information
Author(s): Araceli G. Castillo, Barbara G. Mellone, Janet F. Partridge, William Richardson, Georgina L. Hamilton, Robin C. Allshire, Alison L. Pidoux
Primary Institution: Wellcome Trust Centre for Cell Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Hypothesis
Can fission yeast CENP-ACnp1 chromatin assemble on noncentromeric sequences and how do histone levels influence this process?
Conclusion
Fission yeast CENP-ACnp1 can associate with noncentromeric DNA when placed in the central kinetochore domain, and the assembly is influenced by the relative levels of histones H3 and H4.
Supporting Evidence
- CENP-ACnp1 can associate with noncentromeric DNA when inserted within the central kinetochore domain.
- Silencing of genes in the central domain is correlated with the amount of CENP-ACnp1 present.
- Excess histone H3 competes with CENP-ACnp1 for assembly into central domain chromatin.
Takeaway
This study shows that the special protein CENP-A can attach to any DNA in a certain area of yeast cells, and how much of another protein, H3, is present can change how well this happens.
Methodology
The study used chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) to assess the association of CENP-ACnp1 with various DNA sequences in fission yeast.
Limitations
The study primarily focuses on fission yeast and may not directly apply to other organisms.
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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