Download MendeleyStructural mechanisms of centromeric nucleosome recognition by the kinetochore protein CENP-N.
Chittori, S., Hong, J., Saunders, H., Feng, H., Ghirlando, R., Kelly, A.E., Bai, Y., Subramaniam, S.(2018) Science 359: 339-343
- PubMed: 29269420
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aar2781
- Primary Citation of Related Structures:
6BUZ - PubMed Abstract:
Accurate chromosome segregation requires the proper assembly of kinetochore proteins. A key step in this process is the recognition of the histone H3 variant CENP-A in the centromeric nucleosome by the kinetochore protein CENP-N. We report cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM), biophysical, biochemical, and cell biological studies of the interaction between the CENP-A nucleosome and CENP-N. We show that human CENP-N confers binding specificity through interactions with the L1 loop of CENP-A, stabilized by electrostatic interactions with the nucleosomal DNA. Mutational analyses demonstrate analogous interactions in Xenopus , which are further supported by residue-swapping experiments involving the L1 loop of CENP-A. Our results are consistent with the coevolution of CENP-N and CENP-A and establish the structural basis for recognition of the CENP-A nucleosome to enable kinetochore assembly and centromeric chromatin organization.
Organizational Affiliation:
Laboratory of Cell Biology, Center for Cancer Research (CCR), National Cancer Institute (NCI), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD 20892, USA.
