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Transcription and ncRNAs: at the cent(rome)re of kinetochore assembly and maintenance

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Abstract

Centromeres are sites of chromosomal spindle attachment during mitosis and meiosis. Centromeres are defined, in part, by a distinct chromatin landscape in which histone H3 is replaced by the conserved histone H3 variant, CENP-A. Sequences competent for centromere formation and function vary among organisms and are typically composed of repetitive DNA. It is unclear how such diverse genomic signals are integrated with the epigenetic mechanisms that govern CENP-A incorporation at a single locus on each chromosome. Recent work highlights the intriguing possibility that the transcriptional properties of centromeric core DNA contribute to centromere identity and maintenance through cell division. Moreover, core-derived noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs) have emerged as active participants in the regulation and control of centromere activity in plants and mammals. This paper reviews the transcriptional properties of eukaryotic centromeres and discusses the known roles of core-derived ncRNAs in chromatin integrity, kinetochore assembly, and centromere activity.

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Abbreviations

CCAN:

Constitutive centromere-associated network

CENP:

Centromere protein

CHD:

Chromodomain-helicase-DNA-binding protein

CPC:

Chromosomal passenger complex

HAC:

Human artificial chromosome

HJURP:

Holliday junction recognition protein

FACT:

Facilitates in chromatin transcription

ncRNA:

Noncoding RNA

RNAPII:

RNA polymerase II

RNAPIII:

RNA polymerase III

tDNA:

tRNA gene

TFIIIC:

Transcription factor III C

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Acknowledgments

The author apologizes to all her colleagues whose work on centromeres and transcription could not be acknowledged due to space constraints. In addition, Karen Hayden Miga and Rachel O’Neill are thanked for editorial comments and critical reading of the manuscript. The Scott lab is supported by the Duke Institute for Genome Sciences and Policy.

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  1. Duke Institute for Genome Science and Policy, Duke University, DUMC, Durham, NC, 27708, USA

    Kristin C. Scott

  2. Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, 27710, USA

    Kristin C. Scott

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Correspondence to Kristin C. Scott.

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Responsible Editors: Brian P. Chadwick, Kristin C. Scott, and Beth A. Sullivan

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Scott, K.C. Transcription and ncRNAs: at the cent(rome)re of kinetochore assembly and maintenance. Chromosome Res 21, 643–651 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10577-013-9387-3

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