1. An evolutionary perspective on the relationship between kinetochore size and CENP-E dependence for chromosome alignment.
- Author
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Almeida AC, Rocha H, Raas MWD, Witte H, Sommer RJ, Snel B, Kops GJPL, Gassmann R, and Maiato H
- Subjects
- Animals, Humans, Phylogeny, Evolution, Molecular, Mitosis, Chromosome Segregation, Chromosomes metabolism, Chromosomes genetics, Biological Evolution, Centromere metabolism, Centromere genetics, Kinetochores metabolism, Chromosomal Proteins, Non-Histone metabolism, Chromosomal Proteins, Non-Histone genetics, Caenorhabditis elegans metabolism, Caenorhabditis elegans genetics
- Abstract
Chromosome alignment during mitosis can occur as a consequence of bi-orientation or is assisted by the CENP-E (kinesin-7) motor at kinetochores. We previously found that Indian muntjac chromosomes with larger kinetochores bi-orient more efficiently and are biased to align in a CENP-E-independent manner, suggesting that CENP-E dependence for chromosome alignment negatively correlates with kinetochore size. Here, we used targeted phylogenetic profiling of CENP-E in monocentric (localized centromeres) and holocentric (centromeres spanning the entire chromosome length) clades to test this hypothesis at an evolutionary scale. We found that, despite being present in common ancestors, CENP-E was lost more frequently in taxa with holocentric chromosomes, such as Hemiptera and Nematoda. Functional experiments in two nematodes with holocentric chromosomes in which a CENP-E ortholog is absent (Caenorhabditis elegans) or present (Pristionchus pacificus) revealed that targeted expression of human CENP-E to C. elegans kinetochores partially rescued chromosome alignment defects associated with attenuated polar-ejection forces, whereas CENP-E inactivation in P. pacificus had no detrimental effects on mitosis and viability. These data showcase the dispensability of CENP-E for mitotic chromosome alignment in species with larger kinetochores., Competing Interests: Competing interests The authors declare no competing or financial interests., (© 2024. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.) more...
- Published
- 2024
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