Centromere

Centromere
The cinched "waist" of the chromosome essential for the division and the retention of the chromosome in the cell. The centromere is a uniquely specialized region of the chromosome to which spindle fibers attach during cell division. The human centromere contains a 3-million-base stretch of DNA embedded in what has been called the centromere and that is all it takes to make a functional centromere. The nature of this core DNA indicates that, rather than being highly conserved, the centromere has changed significantly during primate evolution.
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1. The nonstaining primary constriction of a chromosome which is the point of attachment of the spindle fiber; provides the mechanism of chromosome movement during cell division; the c. divides the chromosome into two arms, and its position is constant for a specific chromosome : near one end (acrocentric), near the center (metacentric), or between (submetacentric). [centro- + G. meros, part]

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cen·tro·mere 'sen-trə-.mi(ə)r n the point or region on a chromosome to which the spindle attaches during mitosis and meiosis called also kinetochore
cen·tro·mer·ic .sen-trə-'mi(ə)r-ik, -'mer- adj

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n.
the part of a chromosome that joins the two chromatid to each other and becomes attached to the spindle during mitosis and meiosis. When chromosome division takes place the centromeres split longitudinally.

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cen·tro·mere (senґtro-mēr) [centro- + -mere] the region of the chromosome at which the sister chromatids are joined and by which the chromosome is attached to the spindle during cell division; it is required for normal segregation in mitosis and meiosis. According to its location, a centromere is said to be metacentric (central), submetacentric (off center), acrocentric (near one end), or telocentric (at one end). The last type does not occur in human chromosomes. centromeric adj

Position of the centromere in (A) metacentric; (B) submetacentric; (C) acrocentric; and (D) telocentric chromosomes.


Medical dictionary. 2011.

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Centromere — Centromère Chromosome. (1) Chromatide. Chacune formée d un brin d ADN parental et d un brin d ADN néoformé obtenu après réplication durant la phase S ; (2) Centromère. Le point de contact des deux chromatides, et le point de séparation lors… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • centromère — [ sɑ̃trɔmɛr ] n. m. • 1973; de centro et mère ♦ Biol. Petit granule ne fixant pas les colorants, situé en général au centre du chromosome, auquel le fuseau se fixe lors de la division cellulaire. ● centromère nom masculin Constriction présente… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • centromere — n. (Biol.) a specialized condensed region of a chromosomes that appears during mitosis where the chromatids are held together to form an X shape. [WordNet 1.5] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • centromere — centromere. См. центромера. (Источник: «Англо русский толковый словарь генетических терминов». Арефьев В.А., Лисовенко Л.А., Москва: Изд во ВНИРО, 1995 г.) …   Молекулярная биология и генетика. Толковый словарь.

  • centromere — [sen′trō mir΄] n. [ CENTRO + MERE] a small, nonstaining structure, usually near the center of a chromosome to which the spindle fiber attaches during mitosis centromeric [sen′trōmer′ik, sen′trōmir′ik] adj …   English World dictionary

  • Centromere — Chromosomal components: (1) Chromatid (2) Centromere (3) Short arm (4) Long arm A centromere is a region of DNA typically found near the middle of a chromosome where two identical sister chromatids come closest in contact. It is involved in cell… …   Wikipedia

  • Centromère — Chromosome. (1) Chromatide. Chacune formée d un brin d ADN parental et d un brin d ADN néoformé obtenu après réplication durant la phase S ; (2) Centromère. Le point de contact des deux chromatides, et le point de séparation lors de la… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • centromere — The region in eukaryote chromosomes where daughter chromatids are joined together. The kinetochore, to which the spindle chromosomes are attached, lies adjacent to the centromere. The centromeric DNA codes for the kinetochore …   Dictionary of molecular biology

  • centromere — centromeric /sen treuh mer ik, mear /, adj. /sen treuh mear /, n. Cell Biol. a specialized structure on the chromosome, appearing during cell division as the constricted central region where the two chromatids are held together and form an X… …   Universalium

  • centromere — centromera statusas T sritis augalininkystė apibrėžtis Pirminė chromosomos persmauga, prie kurios prisitvirtina achromatinės verpstės siūlai. atitikmenys: angl. centromere; kinetochore rus. кинетохор; центромера …   Žemės ūkio augalų selekcijos ir sėklininkystės terminų žodynas

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