CENP-T and CENP-C bridge adjacent CENP-A nucleosomes on young alpha-satellite dimers. Homo sapiens

We find that CENP-T acts as a bridge between two well-positioned CENP-A nucleosomes that are present on young alpha-satellite dimers that dominate functional human centromeres. CENP-T is centered over the CENP-B box, where it interacts with the CENP-B/CENP-C complex. Upon cross-linking, the entire CENP-A/CENP-C/CENP-T-containing complex is recovered as a nuclease-protected particle over an alpha-satellite dimer that comprises the fundamental unit of kinetochore chromatin. Our work reveals that CENP-A/CENP-C and CENP-T branches of kinetochore assembly are physically integrated. Overall design: We used chromatin immunoprecipitation with sequencing (ChIP-seq) in human cells to determine the relative positions of CENP-A and CENP-T particles at functional centromeres.