Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
1979244 | Current Opinion in Structural Biology | 2011 | 9 Pages |
Kinetochores are large macromolecular assemblies that link chromosomes to spindle microtubules (MTs) during mitosis. Here we review recent advances in the study of core MT-binding kinetochore complexes using electron microcopy methods in vitro and nanometer-accuracy fluorescence microscopy in vivo. We synthesize these findings in novel three-dimensional models of both the budding yeast and vertebrate kinetochore in different stages of mitosis. There is a growing consensus that kinetochores are highly dynamic, supra-molecular machines that undergo dramatic structural rearrangements in response to MT capture and spindle forces during mitosis.
► We review microtubule-binding kinetochore complexes. ► We highlight studies using electron microscopy in vitro and nanometer-accuracy fluorescence microscopy in vivo. ► We have also generated novel three-dimensional models of both the vertebrate and budding yeast kinetochores.