Accurate phosphoregulation of kinetochore-microtubule affinity requires unconstrained molecular interactions.

ABSTRACT: Accurate chromosome segregation relies on dynamic interactions between microtubules (MTs) and the NDC80 complex, a major kinetochore MT-binding component. Phosphorylation at multiple residues of its Hec1 subunit may tune kinetochore-MT binding affinity for diverse mitotic functions, but molecular details of such phosphoregulation remain elusive. Using quantitative analyses of mitotic progression in mammalian cells, we show that Hec1 phosphorylation provides graded control of kinetochore-MT affinity. In contrast, modeling the kinetochore interface with repetitive MT binding sites predicts a switchlike response. To reconcile these findings, we hypothesize that interactions between NDC80 complexes and MTs are not constrained, i.e., the NDC80 complexes can alternate their binding between adjac

SUBMITTER: Zaytsev AV 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4085703 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature