Article
Genetics & Heredity
Daniela Tiaki Uehara, Hiroshi Mitsubuchi, Johji Inazawa
Summary: Mutations in proteins involved in cell division and chromosome segregation, such as microtubule-regulating, centrosomal and kinetochore proteins, are linked to microcephaly and/or short stature. Specifically, a rare de novo missense variant in NUF2, encoding a subunit of the NDC80 complex in the outer kinetochore, was found to be associated with microcephaly, short stature, and additional features like bilateral vocal cord paralysis and atrial septal defect. The variant affected the stability of NDC80-NUF2 complex, leading to aneuploidy, micronuclei formation, and spindle abnormality in patient-derived cell line.
Article
Cell Biology
Mary Ecke, Jana Prassler, Guenther Gerisch
Summary: Research demonstrates that aberrant centrosome activities in mutants of Dictyostelium discoideum lead to anomalies in mitotic spindles that impact chromosome segregation reliability. Genetic instabilities caused by these deficiencies are tolerated in multinucleate cells, which are produced by electric-pulse induced cell fusion and serve as a source for abnormalities in the mutant cells' mitotic apparatus. Dual-color fluorescence labeling in live cells reveals variability in spindle arrangements, centrosome-nuclear interactions, and chromosome segregation in the atypical mitoses observed.
Article
Cell Biology
Amanda Guerreiro, Filipe De Sousa, Nicolas Liaudet, Daria Ivanova, Anja Eskat, Patrick Meraldi
Summary: In cells, WDR62 localizes at spindle poles, promoting the recruitment of the microtubule-severing enzyme katanin. This protein helps in efficient poleward microtubule flux during chromosome segregation, ultimately preventing lagging chromosomes during anaphase.
JOURNAL OF CELL BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Dilara Sen, Zuzana Drobna, Albert J. Keung
Summary: This study evaluated the specificities of seven commercial UBE3A antibodies and found that three of them showed substantial nonspecific immunoreactivity. While four antibodies demonstrated specific localization patterns in both mouse brain sections and human cerebral organoids, they varied significantly in background signals and staining patterns in undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2021)
Article
Biology
Vasiliki I. Pantazopoulou, Anastasios D. Delis, Stella Georgiou, Stamatis N. Pagakis, Vicky Filippa, Eleni Dragona, Ismini Kloukina, Elias Chatzitheodoridis, Jonel Trebicka, Athanassios D. Velentzas, Maja Thiele, Sarantis Gagos, Dimitris Thanos, Sofia Tseleni-Balafouta, Dimitrios J. Stravopodis, Ema Anastasiadou
Summary: AGO2 is found in membrane protrusions and cytokinetic bridges, playing a crucial role in ensuring cell division fidelity, especially under stress conditions. It is part of a regulatory mechanism triggered by cytokinetic stress to maintain the homeostasis of local gene transcription.
COMMUNICATIONS BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Microbiology
Clement Gallay, Stefano Sanselicio, Mary E. Anderson, Young Min Soh, Xue Liu, Gro A. Stamsas, Simone Pelliciari, Renske van Raaphorst, Julien Denereaz, Morten Kjos, Heath Murray, Stephan Gruber, Alan D. Grossman, Jan-Willem Veening
Summary: CcrZ is a conserved and essential protein in bacteria that coordinates DNA replication and cell division by controlling the activity of DnaA, ensuring proper chromosome inheritance by daughter cells. This mechanism highlights the importance of CcrZ in regulating the bacterial cell cycle.
NATURE MICROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Sadam Hussain, Amjad Nawaz, Malaika Hamid, Waseem Ullah, Iqbal Nawaz Khan, Mehak Afshan, Adil Rehman, Hamid Nawaz, Julia Halswick, Shoaib-ur Rehman, Sohail Ahmad, Muhammad Muzammal, Noor Muhammad, Abid Jan, Saadullah Khan, Christian Windpassinger, Muzammil Ahmad Khan
Summary: Autosomal primary microcephaly (MCPH) is a heterogenetic disorder affecting brain size, with patients showing reduced head circumference and potential intellectual disability. A novel pathogenic DNA change in the ASPM gene and a recurrent nonsense mutation were identified in Pakistani families, highlighting the importance of premarital screening for MCPH susceptibility. Increased awareness of genetic mutations can aid in counseling and prevention of MCPH in related populations.
BIOTECHNOLOGY AND APPLIED BIOCHEMISTRY
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Kirill V. Sukhoverkov, Adam S. B. Jalal, James R. Ault, Frank Sobott, David M. Lawson, Tung B. K. Le
Summary: In Bacillus subtilis, a ParB-like protein called Noc binds specifically to Noc-binding sites (NBSs) on the chromosome to coordinate chromosome segregation and cell division. Noc forms large membrane-associated nucleoprotein complexes by binding to CTP, which physically inhibits the assembly of the cell division machinery. The structure of Noc bound to NBS DNA reveals important conformational changes that occur during the binding process.
JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL CHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Surgery
Yiguo Wu, Yujuan You, Ling Chen, Yue Liu, Yujuan Liu, Weiming Lou, Fen Fu
Summary: This study aimed to investigate the potential role and underlying mechanism of ASPM in epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC). The results showed that ASPM promoted proliferation and caused cell cycle arrest in EOC cells. ASPM may serve as a potential molecular marker for early screening and a valuable therapeutic target in EOC.
Article
Medicine, Research & Experimental
A. Mattijs Punt, Matthew C. Judson, Michael S. Sidorov, Brittany N. Williams, Naomi S. Johnson, Sabine Belder, Dion den Hertog, Courtney R. Davis, Maximillian S. Feygin, Patrick F. Lang, Mehrnoush Aghadavoud Jolfaei, Patrick J. Curran, Wilfred F. J. van Ijcken, Ype Elgersma, Benjamin D. Philpot
Summary: Chromosome 15q11.2-q13.1 duplication syndrome (Dup15q syndrome) is a severe neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by intellectual disability, impaired motor coordination, and autism spectrum disorder. While overexpression of the UBE3A gene is presumed to be the main cause of Dup15q pathology, studies on mouse models with UBE3A overexpression have yielded conflicting results. In this study, transgenic mouse models were used to investigate the neurodevelopmental impact of Ube3a gene overdosage and found limited effects on neurodevelopment, but increased mortality when faced with seizures.
Article
Cell Biology
Sugako Ogushi, Ahmed Rattani, Jonathan Godwin, Jean Metson, Lothar Schermelleh, Kim Nasmyth
Summary: Protection of near-centromeric REC8 cohesin and sister kinetochore co-orientation depend on spindle-chromosome complexes (SCCs) in meiosis I, while being lost in meiosis II, resulting in sister chromatid disjunction and production of haploid gametes. The catalytic activity of Separase is crucial for converting kinetochores to a bi-oriented state and deprotecting cohesin in meiosis I.Selective cleavage of REC8 near kinetochores is sufficient to disrupt co-orientation in univalent chromosomes, but may require resolution of chiasmata in bivalents.
DEVELOPMENTAL CELL
(2021)
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Takeshi V. Sugawara, Kunihiko Kaneko
Summary: Cell polarity regulates the orientation of the cytoskeleton members that directs intracellular transport for cargo-like organelles, using chemical gradients sustained by ATP or GTP hydrolysis. However, how cargo transports are directly mediated by chemical gradients remains unknown. We previously proposed a physical mechanism that enables directed movement of cargos, referred to as chemophoresis. According to the mechanism, a cargo with reaction sites is subjected to a chemophoresis force in the direction of the increased concentration. Based on this, we introduce an extended model, the chemophoresis engine, as a general mechanism of cargo motion, which transforms chemical free energy into directed motion through the catalytic ATP hydrolysis. We applied the engine to plasmid motion in a ParABS system to demonstrate the self-organization system for directed plasmid movement and pattern dynamics of ParA-ATP concentration, thereby explaining plasmid equi-positioning and pole-to-pole oscillation observed in bacterial cells and in vitro experiments. We mathematically show the existence and stability of the plasmid-surfing pattern, which allows the cargo-directed motion through the symmetry-breaking transition of the ParA-ATP spatiotemporal pattern. We also quantitatively demonstrate that the chemophoresis engine can work even under in vivo conditions. Finally, we discuss the chemophoresis engine as one of the general mechanisms of hydrolysis-driven intracellular transport.
PLOS COMPUTATIONAL BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Adam S. B. Jalal, Ngat T. Tran, Ling J. Wu, Karunakaran Ramakrishnan, Martin Rejzek, Giulia Gobbato, Clare E. M. Stevenson, David M. Lawson, Jeff Errington, Tung B. K. Le
Summary: This study reveals that the nucleoid occlusion protein Noc functions as a CTPase enzyme, with its membrane-binding activity regulated by a CTP switch. It forms large membrane-associated nucleoprotein complexes to physically block assembly of the cell division machinery, providing a new understanding of the mechanisms involved in nucleoid occlusion.
Article
Cell Biology
Florian P. Bock, Hon Wing Liu, Anna Anchimiuk, Marie-Laure Diebold-Durand, Stephan Gruber
Summary: Cells have the remarkable ability to organize and segregate chromosomes, which involves the cooperation between SMC complexes and ParB proteins. This study demonstrates that the bacterial Smc complex, along with ParB, can function together to organize and segregate foreign chromosomes, shedding light on the mechanisms of chromosome folding and segregation.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Lara Connolley, Lucas Schnabel, Martin Thanbichler, Sean M. Murray
Summary: In many bacteria, ParB associates with parS-containing centromeric region to form the partition complex, but its structure and formation remain unclear. Recent studies suggest that CTP binding enables ParB dimers to slide along DNA and condense the centromeric region through DNA bridges. Through simulations, researchers demonstrate that short-lived ParB bridges organize DNA into globular or helical structures, and ParB sliding reproduces the binding profile observed in Caulobacter crescentus. Combining sliding and bridging in a unified model, they find that short-lived ParB bridges do not impede sliding and can reproduce both the binding profile and condensation of the nucleoprotein complex.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
Article
Water Resources
Shushobhit Chaudhary, C. T. Dhanya, Arun Kumar
HYDROLOGY RESEARCH
(2018)
Review
Water Resources
Jyoti Chawla, Divya Singh, Baranidharan Sundaram, Arun Kumar
EXPOSURE AND HEALTH
(2018)
Article
Water Resources
Shushobhit Chaudhary, C. T. Dhanya, Arun Kumar
HYDROLOGY RESEARCH
(2018)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Nathan C. Frey, Hemant Kumar, Babak Anasori, Yury Gogotsi, Vivek B. Shenoy
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Hooman Yaghoobnejad Asl, Jintao Fu, Hemant Kumar, Samuel S. Welborn, Vivek B. Shenoy, Eric Detsi
CHEMISTRY OF MATERIALS
(2018)
Article
Engineering, Multidisciplinary
Arun Kumar, Kaushal Kumar, P. K. Ghosh, Ankit Rathi, K. L. Yadav, Raman
COMPOSITES PART B-ENGINEERING
(2018)
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Pooja Kapoor, Arun Kumar, Munish Sharma, Jagdish Kumar, Ashok Kumar, P. K. Ahluwalia
MATERIALS SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING B-ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL SOLID-STATE MATERIALS
(2018)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Dequan Er, Han Ye, Nathan C. Frey, Hemant Kumar, Jun Lou, Vivek B. Shenoy
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Nathan C. Frey, Bryan W. Byles, Hemant Kumar, Dequan Er, Ekaterina Pomerantseva, Vivek B. Shenoy
PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY CHEMICAL PHYSICS
(2018)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Kamalika Ghatak, Swastik Basu, Tridip Das, Vidushi Sharma, Hemant Kumar, Dibakar Datta
PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY CHEMICAL PHYSICS
(2018)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Hemant Kumar, Janet S. Finer-Moore, Xiaoxu Jiang, Irina Smirnova, Vladimir Kasho, Els Pardon, Jan Steyaert, H. Ronald Kaback, Robert M. Stroud
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2018)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Nathan C. Frey, Arkamita Bandyopadhyay, Hemant Kumar, Babak Anasori, Yury Gogotsi, Vivek B. Shenoy
Article
Optics
Qudsia Rubani, Sindhu Hak Gupta, Shuchismita Pani, Arun Kumar
Article
Energy & Fuels
Manish Kumar, Arun Kumar
IEEE JOURNAL OF PHOTOVOLTAICS
(2019)
Article
Ecology
Divya Singh, Arun Kumar