scholarly journals In situ hybridization analysis of gibbon chromosomes suggests that amplification of alpha satellite DNA in the telomere region is confined to two of the four genera

Genome ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 55 (11) ◽  
pp. 809-812 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sudarath Baicharoen ◽  
Visit Arsaithamkul ◽  
Yuriko Hirai ◽  
Toru Hara ◽  
Akihiko Koga ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Satellite Dna ◽  
Simple Explanation ◽  
Alpha Satellite ◽  
Alpha Satellite Dna ◽  
Symphalangus Syndactylus ◽  
Repeat Units ◽  
Tandem Repeat Sequences ◽  
Nomascus Leucogenys ◽  
Telomere Region ◽  
Main Component

The siamang (Symphalangus syndactylus), a species of the family Hylobatidae (gibbons), carries large blocks of constitutive heterochromatin in the telomere region of chromosomes. We recently found that alpha satellite DNA constitutes these heterochromatin blocks as a main component. Alpha satellite DNA, tandem repeat sequences of 171-bp repeat units, is a major component of centromeres in primates. In addition to the siamang, the white-cheeked gibbon (Nomascus leucogenys) was previously found to carry the alpha satellite DNA in the telomere region, although not as large a scale as the siamang. Gibbons comprise four genera: Hoolock, Hylobates, Nomascus, and Symphalangus. Here, we report that the amplification of alpha satellite DNA in the telomere region is probably confined to two genera: Nomascus and Symphalangus. We examined one species of Hoolock and four species of Hylobates and obtained evidence against such an amplification event in these species. The phylogenetic relationship of the four gibbon genera remains unclear. One simple explanation for the current distribution of the telomere region alpha satellite DNA would be that Nomascus and Symphalangus are relatively closely related and the amplification occurred in their common ancestor.

On the mode of evolution of alpha satellite DNA in human populations

1991 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 42-48 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. Marçais ◽  
J. P. Charlieu ◽  
B. Allain ◽  
E. Brun ◽  
M. Bellis ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Satellite Dna ◽  
Human Populations ◽  
Alpha Satellite ◽  
Alpha Satellite Dna

scholarly journals Partial deletion of alpha satellite DNA associated with reduced amounts of the centromere protein CENP-B in a mitotically stable human chromosome rearrangement.

1990 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 6374-6380 ◽  
Author(s):  
R Wevrick ◽  
W C Earnshaw ◽  
P N Howard-Peebles ◽  
H F Willard
Keyword(s):  
Human Chromosome ◽  
Satellite Dna ◽  
Centromeric Region ◽  
Chromosome Rearrangement ◽  
Specific Antigen ◽  
Chromosome 17 ◽  
Alpha Satellite ◽  
Protein Antigens ◽  
Alpha Satellite Dna ◽  
Human Chromosome 17

A familial, constitutionally rearranged human chromosome 17 is deleted for much of the DNA in its centromeric region but retains full mitotic centromere activity. Fluorescence in situ hybridization, pulsed-field gel electrophoresis, and Southern blot analysis of the residual centromeric region revealed a approximately 700-kb centromeric array of tandemly repeated alpha satellite DNA that was only approximately 20 to 30% as large as a normal array. This deletion was associated with a reduction in the amount of the centromere-specific antigen CENP-B detected by indirect immunofluorescence. The coincidence of the primary constriction, the small residual array of alpha satellite DNA, and the reduced amount of detectable CENP-B support the hypothesis that CENP-B is associated with alpha satellite DNA. Furthermore, the finding that both the deleted chromosome 17 and its derivative supernumerary fragment retained mitotic function and possess centromeric protein antigens suggests that human centromeres are structurally and functionally repetitive.

scholarly journals Dynamic elastic behavior of alpha-satellite DNA domains visualized in situ in living human cells.

1996 ◽  
Vol 135 (3) ◽  
pp. 545-557 ◽  
Author(s):  
R D Shelby ◽  
K M Hahn ◽  
K F Sullivan
Keyword(s):  
Satellite Dna ◽  
Fluorescent Protein ◽  
Time Lapse ◽  
Fluorescent Labeling ◽  
Human Cells ◽  
Elastic Behavior ◽  
Alpha Satellite ◽  
Alpha Satellite Dna ◽  
Green Fluorescent

We have constructed a fluorescent alpha-satellite DNA-binding protein to explore the motile and mechanical properties of human centromeres. A fusion protein consisting of human CENP-B coupled to the green fluorescent protein (GFP) of A. victoria specifically targets to centromeres when expressed in human cells. Morphometric analysis revealed that the alpha-satellite DNA domain bound by CENPB-GFP becomes elongated in mitosis in a microtubule-dependent fashion. Time lapse confocal microscopy in live mitotic cells revealed apparent elastic deformations of the central domain of the centromere that occurred during metaphase chromosome oscillations. These observations demonstrate that the interior region of the centromere behaves as an elastic element that could play a role in the mechanoregulatory mechanisms recently identified at centromeres. Fluorescent labeling of centromeres revealed that they disperse throughout the nucleus in a nearly isometric expansion during chromosome decondensation in telophase and early G1. During interphase, centromeres were primarily stationary, although motility of individual or small groups of centromeres was occasionally observed at very slow rates of 7-10 microns/h.

scholarly journals Higher-order repeat structure in alpha satellite DNA is an attribute of hominoids rather than hominids

2013 ◽  
Vol 58 (11) ◽  
pp. 752-754 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shoko Terada ◽  
Yuriko Hirai ◽  
Hirohisa Hirai ◽  
Akihiko Koga
Keyword(s):  
Satellite Dna ◽  
Higher Order ◽  
Alpha Satellite ◽  
Alpha Satellite Dna ◽  
Repeat Structure
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