Centromere-specifying nucleosomes persist in aging mouse oocytes in the absence of nascent assembly.

ABSTRACT: Centromeres direct genetic inheritance but are not themselves genetically encoded. Instead, centromeres are defined epigenetically by the presence of a histone H3 variant, CENP-A ¹ . In cultured somatic cells, an established paradigm of cell cycle-coupled propagation maintains centromere identity: CENP-A is partitioned between sisters during replication and replenished by new assembly, which is restricted to G1. The mammalian female germline challenges this model because of the cell cycle arrest between pre-meiotic S-phase and the subsequent G1, which can last for the entire reproductive lifespan (months to decades). New CENP-A chromatin assembly maintains centromeres during prophase I in worm and starfish oocyte ^2,3 , suggesting that a similar process may be required

SUBMITTER: Das A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10245701 | biostudies-literature | 2023 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature