A chromosome separation checkpoint: A midzone Aurora B gradient mediates a chromosome separation checkpoint that regulates the anaphase-telophase transition.

Helder Maiato, Olga Afonso, Irina Matos

BioEssays : news and reviews in molecular, cellular and developmental biology 2015 Mar

filter terms:

Here we discuss a "chromosome separation checkpoint" that might regulate the anaphase-telophase transition. The concept of cell cycle checkpoints was originally proposed to account for extrinsic control mechanisms that ensure the order of cell cycle events. Several checkpoints have been shown to regulate major cell cycle transitions, namely at G1-S and G2-M. At the onset of mitosis, the prophase-prometaphase transition is controlled by several potential checkpoints, including the antephase checkpoint, while the spindle assembly checkpoint guards the metaphase-anaphase transition. Our hypothesis is based on the recently uncovered feedback control mechanism that delays chromosome decondensation and nuclear envelope reassembly until effective separation of sister chromatids during anaphase is achieved. A central player in this potential checkpoint is the establishment of a constitutive, midzone-based Aurora B phosphorylation gradient that monitors the position of chromosomes along the spindle axis. We propose that this surveillance mechanism represents an additional step towards ensuring mitotic fidelity. © 2015 WILEY Periodicals, Inc.

Citation

Helder Maiato, Olga Afonso, Irina Matos. A chromosome separation checkpoint: A midzone Aurora B gradient mediates a chromosome separation checkpoint that regulates the anaphase-telophase transition. BioEssays : news and reviews in molecular, cellular and developmental biology. 2015 Mar;37(3):257-66