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

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.

eLife ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhejian Ji ◽  
Haishan Gao ◽  
Luying Jia ◽  
Bing Li ◽  
Hongtao Yu

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.


2019 ◽  
Vol 218 (4) ◽  
pp. 1108-1117 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tatiana Alfonso-Pérez ◽  
Daniel Hayward ◽  
James Holder ◽  
Ulrike Gruneberg ◽  
Francis A. Barr

Cyclin B–dependent kinase (CDK1-CCNB1) promotes entry into mitosis. Additionally, it inhibits mitotic exit by activating the spindle checkpoint. This latter role is mediated through phosphorylation of the checkpoint kinase MPS1 and other spindle checkpoint proteins. We find that CDK1-CCNB1 localizes to unattached kinetochores and like MPS1 is lost from these structures upon microtubule attachment. This suggests that CDK1-CCNB1 is an integral component and not only an upstream regulator of the spindle checkpoint pathway. Complementary proteomic and cell biological analysis demonstrate that the spindle checkpoint protein MAD1 is one of the major components of CCNB1 complexes, and that CCNB1 is recruited to unattached kinetochores in an MPS1-dependent fashion through interaction with the first 100 amino acids of MAD1. This MPS1 and MAD1-dependent pool of CDK1-CCNB1 creates a positive feedback loop necessary for timely recruitment of MPS1 to kinetochores during mitotic entry and for sustained spindle checkpoint arrest. CDK1-CCNB1 is therefore an integral component of the spindle checkpoint, ensuring the fidelity of mitosis.


2015 ◽  
Vol 211 (6) ◽  
pp. 1141-1156 ◽  
Author(s):  
Itaru Samejima ◽  
Christos Spanos ◽  
Flavia de Lima Alves ◽  
Tetsuya Hori ◽  
Marinela Perpelescu ◽  
...  

Kinetochores orchestrate mitotic chromosome segregation. Here, we use quantitative mass spectrometry of mitotic chromosomes isolated from a comprehensive set of chicken DT40 mutants to examine the dependencies of 93 confirmed and putative kinetochore proteins for stable association with chromosomes. Clustering and network analysis reveal both known and unexpected aspects of coordinated behavior for members of kinetochore protein complexes. Surprisingly, CENP-T depends on CENP-N for chromosome localization. The Ndc80 complex exhibits robust correlations with all other complexes in a “core” kinetochore network. Ndc80 associated with CENP-T interacts with a cohort of Rod, zw10, and zwilch (RZZ)–interacting proteins that includes Spindly, Mad1, and CENP-E. This complex may coordinate microtubule binding with checkpoint signaling. Ndc80 associated with CENP-C forms the KMN (Knl1, Mis12, Ndc80) network and may be the microtubule-binding “workhorse” of the kinetochore. Our data also suggest that CENP-O and CENP-R may regulate the size of the inner kinetochore without influencing the assembly of the outer kinetochore.


2009 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 1252-1267 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anthony Essex ◽  
Alexander Dammermann ◽  
Lindsay Lewellyn ◽  
Karen Oegema ◽  
Arshad Desai

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.


2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sushama Sivakumar ◽  
Gary J. Gorbsky

ABSTRACTKinetochores move chromosomes on dynamic spindle microtubules and regulate cell cycle progression by signaling the spindle checkpoint. The Spindle and Kinetochore-Associated (Ska) Complex, a hexamer composed of two copies of Ska1, Ska2 and Ska3, participates in both roles. The mitotic kinases, Cdk1, Aurora B, Plk1, Mps1 and Bub1 play key, overlapping tasks in regulating chromosome movement and checkpoint signaling. However, roles for the phosphatases that oppose these kinases are more poorly defined. Recently, we showed that Ska1 is important for recruiting protein phosphatase 1 (PP1) to kinetochores. Here we show that PP1 and protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A) both promote accumulation of Ska at kinetochores. Depletion of PP1 or PP2A by siRNA reduces Ska binding at kinetochores, impairs alignment of chromosomes to the spindle midplane, and causes metaphase delay or arrest, phenotypes also seen after depletion of Ska. Tethering of PP1 to the kinetochore protein Nuf2 promotes Ska recruitment to kinetochores, and reduces mitotic defects seen after Ska depletion. We propose that kinetochore-associated phosphatases generate a positive feedback cycle to reinforce Ska complex accumulation and function at kinetochores.SUMMARY STATEMENTPhosphatases reinforce recruitment of the Ska complex at kinetochores to stabilize microtubule attachment and oppose spindle checkpoint signaling.


2005 ◽  
Vol 4 (5) ◽  
pp. 867-878 ◽  
Author(s):  
Atasi Poddar ◽  
P. Todd Stukenberg ◽  
Daniel J. Burke

ABSTRACT Favored models of spindle checkpoint signaling propose that two inhibitory complexes (Mad2-Cdc20 and Mad2-Mad3-Bub3-Cdc20) must be assembled at kinetochores in order to inhibit mitosis. We have directly tested this model in the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The proteins Mad2, Mad3, Bub3, Cdc20, and Cdc27 in yeast were quantified, and there are sufficient amounts to form stoichiometric inhibitors of Cdc20 and the anaphase-promoting complex. Mad2 is present in two separate complexes in cells arrested in mitosis with nocodazole. There is a small amount of Mad2-Mad3-Bub3-Cdc20 and a much larger amount of a complex that contains Mad2-Cdc20. We use conditional mutants to show that both Mad2 and Mad3 are essential for establishment and maintenance of the spindle checkpoint. Both spindle checkpoint complexes containing Mad2 form in mitosis, not in response to checkpoint activation. The kinetochore is not required to form either complex. We propose that the conversion of Mad1-Mad2 to Cdc20-Mad2, a key step in generating inhibitory checkpoint complexes, is limited to mitosis by the availability of Cdc20 and is kinetochore independent.


2019 ◽  
Vol 218 (12) ◽  
pp. 3926-3942 ◽  
Author(s):  
Babhrubahan Roy ◽  
Vikash Verma ◽  
Janice Sim ◽  
Adrienne Fontan ◽  
Ajit P. Joglekar

Accurate chromosome segregation during cell division requires the spindle assembly checkpoint (SAC), which detects unattached kinetochores, and an error correction mechanism that destabilizes incorrect kinetochore–microtubule attachments. While the SAC and error correction are both regulated by protein phosphatase 1 (PP1), which silences the SAC and stabilizes kinetochore–microtubule attachments, how these distinct PP1 functions are coordinated remains unclear. Here, we investigate the contribution of PP1, docked on its conserved kinetochore receptor Spc105/Knl1, to SAC silencing and attachment regulation. We find that Spc105-bound PP1 is critical for SAC silencing but dispensable for error correction; in fact, reduced PP1 docking on Spc105 improved chromosome segregation and viability of mutant/stressed states. We additionally show that artificially recruiting PP1 to Spc105/Knl1 before, but not after, chromosome biorientation interfered with error correction. These observations lead us to propose that recruitment of PP1 to Spc105/Knl1 is carefully regulated to ensure that chromosome biorientation precedes SAC silencing, thereby ensuring accurate chromosome segregation.


2012 ◽  
Vol 198 (4) ◽  
pp. 491-499 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dan Liu ◽  
Olga Davydenko ◽  
Michael A. Lampson

Polo-like kinase-1 (Plk1) is a highly conserved kinase with multiple mitotic functions. Plk1 localizes to prometaphase kinetochores and is reduced at metaphase kinetochores, similar to many checkpoint signaling proteins, but Plk1 is not required for spindle checkpoint function. Plk1 is also implicated in stabilizing kinetochore–microtubule attachments, but these attachments are most stable when kinetochore Plk1 levels are low at metaphase. Therefore, it is unclear how Plk1 function at kinetochores can be understood in the context of its dynamic localization. In this paper, we show that Plk1 activity suppresses kinetochore–microtubule dynamics to stabilize initial attachments in prometaphase, and Plk1 removal from kinetochores is necessary to maintain dynamic microtubules in metaphase. Constitutively targeting Plk1 to kinetochores maintained high activity at metaphase, leading to reduced interkinetochore tension and intrakinetochore stretch, a checkpoint-dependent mitotic arrest, and accumulation of microtubule attachment errors. Together, our data show that Plk1 dynamics at kinetochores control two critical mitotic processes: initially establishing correct kinetochore–microtubule attachments and subsequently silencing the spindle checkpoint.


2015 ◽  
Vol 208 (2) ◽  
pp. 181-196 ◽  
Author(s):  
Soonjoung Kim ◽  
Hongtao Yu

During mitosis, the spindle checkpoint senses kinetochores not properly attached to spindle microtubules and prevents precocious sister-chromatid separation and aneuploidy. The constitutive centromere-associated network (CCAN) at inner kinetochores anchors the KMN network consisting of Knl1, the Mis12 complex (Mis12C), and the Ndc80 complex (Ndc80C) at outer kinetochores. KMN is a critical kinetochore receptor for both microtubules and checkpoint proteins. Here, we show that nearly complete inactivation of KMN in human cells through multiple strategies produced strong checkpoint defects even when all kinetochores lacked microtubule attachment. These KMN-inactivating strategies reveal multiple KMN assembly mechanisms at human mitotic kinetochores. In one mechanism, the centromeric kinase Aurora B phosphorylates Mis12C and strengthens its binding to the CCAN subunit CENP-C. In another, CENP-T contributes to KMN attachment in a CENP-H-I-K–dependent manner. Our study provides insights into the mechanisms of mitosis-specific assembly of the checkpoint platform KMN at human kinetochores.


2004 ◽  
Vol 15 (11) ◽  
pp. 5187-5196 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey H. Stear ◽  
Mark B. Roth

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.


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