scholarly journals The Caenorhabditis elegans Kinetochore Reorganizes at Prometaphase and in Response to Checkpoint Stimuli

2004 ◽  
Vol 15 (11) ◽  
pp. 5187-5196 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey H. Stear ◽  
Mark B. Roth
Keyword(s):  
Rna Interference ◽  
Caenorhabditis Elegans ◽  
Spindle Checkpoint ◽  
Metaphase Plate ◽  
Gene Products ◽  
Checkpoint Activation ◽  
Checkpoint Response ◽  
Microtubule Attachment

Previous studies of the kinetochore in mammalian systems have demonstrated that this structure undergoes reorganizations after microtubule attachment or in response to activation of the spindle checkpoint. Here, we show that the Caenorhabditis elegans kinetochore displays analogous rearrangements at prometaphase, when microtubule/chromosome interactions are being established, and after exposure to checkpoint stimuli such as nocodazole or anoxia. These reorganizations are characterized by a dissociation of several kinetochore proteins, including HCP-1/CeCENP-F, HIM-10/CeNuf2, SAN-1/CeMad3, and CeBUB-1, from the centromere. We further demonstrate that at metaphase, despite having dissociated from the centromere, these reorganized kinetochore proteins maintain their associations with the metaphase plate. After checkpoint activation, these proteins are detectable as large “flares” that project out laterally from the metaphase plate. Disrupting these gene products via RNA interference results in sensitivity to checkpoint stimuli, as well as defects in the organization of chromosomes at metaphase. These phenotypes suggest that these proteins, and by extension their reorganization during mitosis, are important for mediating the checkpoint response as well as directing the assembly of the metaphase plate.

scholarly journals TRIP13PCH-2 promotes Mad2 localization to unattached kinetochores in the spindle checkpoint response

2015 ◽  
Vol 211 (3) ◽  
pp. 503-516 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian R. Nelson ◽  
Tom Hwang ◽  
Pin-Hsi Chen ◽  
Needhi Bhalla
Keyword(s):  
Cell Division ◽  
Caenorhabditis Elegans ◽  
Spindle Checkpoint ◽  
Checkpoint Activation ◽  
Checkpoint Signaling ◽  
Checkpoint Response ◽  
Aaa Atpase ◽  
C Elegans ◽  
Anaphase Onset ◽  
Data Support

The spindle checkpoint acts during cell division to prevent aneuploidy, a hallmark of cancer. During checkpoint activation, Mad1 recruits Mad2 to kinetochores to generate a signal that delays anaphase onset. Yet, whether additional factors contribute to Mad2’s kinetochore localization remains unclear. Here, we report that the conserved AAA+ ATPase TRIP13PCH-2 localizes to unattached kinetochores and is required for spindle checkpoint activation in Caenorhabditis elegans. pch-2 mutants effectively localized Mad1 to unattached kinetochores, but Mad2 recruitment was significantly reduced. Furthermore, we show that the C. elegans orthologue of the Mad2 inhibitor p31(comet)CMT-1 interacts with TRIP13PCH-2 and is required for its localization to unattached kinetochores. These factors also genetically interact, as loss of p31(comet)CMT-1 partially suppressed the requirement for TRIP13PCH-2 in Mad2 localization and spindle checkpoint signaling. These data support a model in which the ability of TRIP13PCH-2 to disassemble a p31(comet)/Mad2 complex, which has been well characterized in the context of checkpoint silencing, is also critical for spindle checkpoint activation.

scholarly journals A Spindle Checkpoint Functions during Mitosis in the Early Caenorhabditis elegans Embryo

2005 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 1056-1070 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandra E. Encalada ◽  
John Willis ◽  
Rebecca Lyczak ◽  
Bruce Bowerman
Keyword(s):  
Caenorhabditis Elegans ◽  
Chromosome Segregation ◽  
Spindle Checkpoint ◽  
Metaphase Plate ◽  
Time Lapse ◽  
Cell Types ◽  
Embryonic Cells ◽  
Mitotic Spindles ◽  
Animal Cells ◽  
Dividing Cells

During mitosis, chromosome segregation is regulated by a spindle checkpoint mechanism. This checkpoint delays anaphase until all kinetochores are captured by microtubules from both spindle poles, chromosomes congress to the metaphase plate, and the tension between kinetochores and their attached microtubules is properly sensed. Although the spindle checkpoint can be activated in many different cell types, the role of this regulatory mechanism in rapidly dividing embryonic animal cells has remained controversial. Here, using time-lapse imaging of live embryonic cells, we show that chemical or mutational disruption of the mitotic spindle in early Caenorhabditis elegans embryos delays progression through mitosis. By reducing the function of conserved checkpoint genes in mutant embryos with defective mitotic spindles, we show that these delays require the spindle checkpoint. In the absence of a functional checkpoint, more severe defects in chromosome segregation are observed in mutants with abnormal mitotic spindles. We also show that the conserved kinesin CeMCAK, the CENP-F-related proteins HCP-1 and HCP-2, and the core kinetochore protein CeCENP-C all are required for this checkpoint. Our analysis indicates that spindle checkpoint mechanisms are functional in the rapidly dividing cells of an early animal embryo and that this checkpoint can prevent chromosome segregation defects during mitosis.

scholarly journals Systematic Analysis in Caenorhabditis elegans Reveals that the Spindle Checkpoint Is Composed of Two Largely Independent Branches

2009 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 1252-1267 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anthony Essex ◽  
Alexander Dammermann ◽  
Lindsay Lewellyn ◽  
Karen Oegema ◽  
Arshad Desai
Keyword(s):  
Caenorhabditis Elegans ◽  
Spindle Checkpoint ◽  
Checkpoint Activation ◽  
Systematic Analysis ◽  
Checkpoint Signaling ◽  
Epistasis Analysis ◽  
Kinetochore Assembly ◽  
Anaphase Onset ◽  
Monopolar Spindle ◽  
Spindle Microtubules

Kinetochores use the spindle checkpoint to delay anaphase onset until all chromosomes have formed bipolar attachments to spindle microtubules. Here, we use controlled monopolar spindle formation to systematically define the requirements for spindle checkpoint signaling in the Caenorhabditis elegans embryo. The results, when interpreted in light of kinetochore assembly epistasis analysis, indicate that checkpoint activation is coordinately directed by the NDC-80 complex, the Rod/Zwilch/Zw10 complex, and BUB-1—three components independently targeted to the outer kinetochore by the scaffold protein KNL-1. These components orchestrate the integration of a core Mad1MDF-1/Mad2MDF-2-based signal, with a largely independent Mad3SAN-1/BUB-3 pathway. Evidence for independence comes from the fact that subtly elevating Mad2MDF-2 levels bypasses the requirement for BUB-3 and Mad3SAN-1 in kinetochore-dependent checkpoint activation. Mad3SAN-1 does not accumulate at unattached kinetochores and BUB-3 kinetochore localization is independent of Mad2MDF-2. We discuss the rationale for a bipartite checkpoint mechanism in which a core Mad1MDF-1/Mad2MDF-2 signal generated at kinetochores is integrated with a separate cytoplasmic Mad3SAN-1/BUB-3–based pathway.

scholarly journals Checkpoint silencing during the DNA damage response in Caenorhabditis elegans embryos

2006 ◽  
Vol 172 (7) ◽  
pp. 999-1008 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonia H. Holway ◽  
Seung-Hwan Kim ◽  
Adriana La Volpe ◽  
W. Matthew Michael
Keyword(s):  
Cell Cycle ◽  
Dna Damage ◽  
Cell Division ◽  
Caenorhabditis Elegans ◽  
Replication Fork ◽  
Germ Line ◽  
Checkpoint Activation ◽  
Checkpoint Response ◽  
Damage Response ◽  
Fork Stalling

In most cells, the DNA damage checkpoint delays cell division when replication is stalled by DNA damage. In early Caenorhabditis elegans embryos, however, the checkpoint responds to developmental signals that control the timing of cell division, and checkpoint activation by nondevelopmental inputs disrupts cell cycle timing and causes embryonic lethality. Given this sensitivity to inappropriate checkpoint activation, we were interested in how embryos respond to DNA damage. We demonstrate that the checkpoint response to DNA damage is actively silenced in embryos but not in the germ line. Silencing requires rad-2, gei-17, and the polh-1 translesion DNA polymerase, which suppress replication fork stalling and thereby eliminate the checkpoint-activating signal. These results explain how checkpoint activation is restricted to developmental signals during embryogenesis and insulated from DNA damage. They also show that checkpoint activation is not an obligatory response to DNA damage and that pathways exist to bypass the checkpoint when survival depends on uninterrupted progression through the cell cycle.

scholarly journals Kinetochore Targeting of Fission Yeast Mad and Bub Proteins Is Essential for Spindle Checkpoint Function but Not for All Chromosome Segregation Roles of Bub1p

2004 ◽  
Vol 24 (22) ◽  
pp. 9786-9801 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vincent Vanoosthuyse ◽  
Rebekka Valsdottir ◽  
Jean-Paul Javerzat ◽  
Kevin G. Hardwick
Keyword(s):  
Schizosaccharomyces Pombe ◽  
Fission Yeast ◽  
Chromosome Segregation ◽  
Chromatin Immunoprecipitation ◽  
Spindle Checkpoint ◽  
Central Domain ◽  
Checkpoint Response ◽  
Terminal Domain ◽  
Microtubule Attachment ◽  
Lines Of Evidence

ABSTRACT Several lines of evidence suggest that kinetochores are organizing centers for the spindle checkpoint response and the synthesis of a “wait anaphase” signal in cases of incomplete or improper kinetochore-microtubule attachment. Here we characterize Schizosaccharomyces pombe Bub3p and study the recruitment of spindle checkpoint components to kinetochores. We demonstrate by chromatin immunoprecipitation that they all interact with the central domain of centromeres, consistent with their role in monitoring kinetochore-microtubule interactions. Bub1p and Bub3p are dependent upon one another, but independent of the Mad proteins, for their kinetochore localization. We demonstrate a clear role for the highly conserved N-terminal domain of Bub1p in the robust targeting of Bub1p, Bub3p, and Mad3p to kinetochores and show that this is crucial for an efficient checkpoint response. Surprisingly, neither this domain nor kinetochore localization is required for other functions of Bub1p in chromosome segregation.

scholarly journals Microtubule binding by KNL-1 contributes to spindle checkpoint silencing at the kinetochore

2012 ◽  
Vol 196 (4) ◽  
pp. 469-482 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julien Espeut ◽  
Dhanya K. Cheerambathur ◽  
Lenno Krenning ◽  
Karen Oegema ◽  
Arshad Desai
Keyword(s):  
Spindle Checkpoint ◽  
Protein Phosphatase 1 ◽  
Checkpoint Activation ◽  
Load Bearing ◽  
Microtubule Binding ◽  
Checkpoint Signaling ◽  
Microtubule Attachment ◽  
N Terminus ◽  
Ndc80 Complex ◽  
Checkpoint Signal

Accurate chromosome segregation requires coordination between microtubule attachment and spindle checkpoint signaling at the kinetochore. The kinetochore-localized KMN (KNL-1/Mis12 complex/Ndc80 complex) network, which mediates microtubule attachment and scaffolds checkpoint signaling, harbors two distinct microtubule-binding activities: the load-bearing activity of the Ndc80 complex and a less well-understood activity in KNL-1. In this paper, we show that KNL-1 microtubule-binding and -bundling activity resides in its extreme N terminus. Selective perturbation of KNL-1 microtubule binding in Caenorhabditis elegans embryos revealed that this activity is dispensable for both load-bearing attachment formation and checkpoint activation but plays a role in checkpoint silencing at the kinetochore. Perturbation of both microtubule binding and protein phosphatase 1 docking at the KNL-1 N terminus additively affected checkpoint silencing, indicating that, despite their proximity in KNL-1, these two activities make independent contributions. We propose that microtubule binding by KNL-1 functions in checkpoint silencing by sensing microtubules attached to kinetochores and relaying their presence to eliminate generation of the checkpoint signal.

scholarly journals A sequential multi-target Mps1 phosphorylation cascade promotes spindle checkpoint signaling

eLife ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhejian Ji ◽  
Haishan Gao ◽  
Luying Jia ◽  
Bing Li ◽  
Hongtao Yu
Keyword(s):  
Spindle Checkpoint ◽  
Mitotic Checkpoint ◽  
Anaphase Promoting Complex ◽  
Checkpoint Activation ◽  
Checkpoint Signaling ◽  
Microtubule Attachment ◽  
Anaphase Onset ◽  
Phosphorylation Cascade ◽  
Mitotic Checkpoint Complex

The master spindle checkpoint kinase Mps1 senses kinetochore-microtubule attachment and promotes checkpoint signaling to ensure accurate chromosome segregation. The kinetochore scaffold Knl1, when phosphorylated by Mps1, recruits checkpoint complexes Bub1–Bub3 and BubR1–Bub3 to unattached kinetochores. Active checkpoint signaling ultimately enhances the assembly of the mitotic checkpoint complex (MCC) consisting of BubR1–Bub3, Mad2, and Cdc20, which inhibits the anaphase-promoting complex or cyclosome bound to Cdc20 (APC/CCdc20) to delay anaphase onset. Using in vitro reconstitution, we show that Mps1 promotes APC/C inhibition by MCC components through phosphorylating Bub1 and Mad1. Phosphorylated Bub1 binds to Mad1–Mad2. Phosphorylated Mad1 directly interacts with Cdc20. Mutations of Mps1 phosphorylation sites in Bub1 or Mad1 abrogate the spindle checkpoint in human cells. Therefore, Mps1 promotes checkpoint activation through sequentially phosphorylating Knl1, Bub1, and Mad1. This sequential multi-target phosphorylation cascade makes the checkpoint highly responsive to Mps1 and to kinetochore-microtubule attachment.

pWormgatePro enables promoter-driven knockdown by hairpin RNA interference of muscle and neuronal gene products in Caenorhabditis elegans

2006 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Briese ◽  
Behrooz Esmaeili ◽  
Nicholas M. Johnson ◽  
David B. Sattelle
Keyword(s):  
Rna Interference ◽  
Caenorhabditis Elegans ◽  
Gene Products ◽  
Hairpin Rna ◽  
Neuronal Gene

scholarly journals Multiple Subunits of the Caenorhabditis elegans Anaphase-Promoting Complex Are Required for Chromosome Segregation During Meiosis I

Genetics ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 160 (2) ◽  
pp. 805-813 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edward S Davis ◽  
Lucia Wille ◽  
Barry A Chestnut ◽  
Penny L Sadler ◽  
Diane C Shakes ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Rna Interference ◽  
Caenorhabditis Elegans ◽  
Chromosome Segregation ◽  
Sister Chromatid ◽  
Sister Chromatid Cohesion ◽  
Anaphase Promoting Complex ◽  
Genetic Screens ◽  
Chromatid Cohesion ◽  
Interference Studies ◽  
Meiosis I

Abstract Two genes, originally identified in genetic screens for Caenorhabditis elegans mutants that arrest in metaphase of meiosis I, prove to encode subunits of the anaphase-promoting complex or cyclosome (APC/C). RNA interference studies reveal that these and other APC/C subunits are essential for the segregation of chromosomal homologs during meiosis I. Further, chromosome segregation during meiosis I requires APC/C functions in addition to the release of sister chromatid cohesion.

scholarly journals The nucleoporin Nup205/NPP-3 is lost near centrosomes at mitotic onset and can modulate the timing of this process in Caenorhabditis elegans embryos

2012 ◽  
Vol 23 (16) ◽  
pp. 3111-3121 ◽  
Author(s):  
Virginie Hachet ◽  
Coralie Busso ◽  
Mika Toya ◽  
Asako Sugimoto ◽  
Peter Askjaer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cell Division ◽  
Rna Interference ◽  
Caenorhabditis Elegans ◽  
Nuclear Envelope ◽  
Aurora A Kinase ◽  
Aurora A ◽  
Time And Space ◽  
Local Loss ◽  
Necessary And Sufficient

Regulation of mitosis in time and space is critical for proper cell division. We conducted an RNA interference–based modifier screen to identify novel regulators of mitosis in Caenorhabditis elegans embryos. Of particular interest, this screen revealed that the Nup205 nucleoporin NPP-3 can negatively modulate the timing of mitotic onset. Furthermore, we discovered that NPP-3 and nucleoporins that are associated with it are lost from the nuclear envelope (NE) in the vicinity of centrosomes at the onset of mitosis. We demonstrate that centrosomes are both necessary and sufficient for NPP-3 local loss, which also requires the activity of the Aurora-A kinase AIR-1. Our findings taken together support a model in which centrosomes and AIR-1 promote timely onset of mitosis by locally removing NPP-3 and associated nucleoporins from the NE.

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