Functional analysis of centromeres and centromere associated histone H3 in two budding yeasts, candida albicans and saccharomyces castellii

Abstract

When cells divide, each chromosome must replicate and segregate to maintain the appropriate chromosome number in the descendant daughter cells. In eukaryotes, two main types of nuclear divisions are called mitosis and meiosis. Even though the molecular mechanism and cell fates in these two types of divisions are different, some of the common molecular features are - DNA replication, cohesion (adhesion of replicated chromosomes), and orderly movement of chromosomes into descendant cells. Mitosis is the nuclear division associated with the asexual division of cells. In multicellular organisms mitosis takes place during the division of somatic cells. In single-celled eukaryotes such as yeasts, mitosis occurs in the cell divisions that cause population growth. Since asexual cell division is required for clonal propagation, it is necessary for the set of chromosomes to be maintained constant through the generations by mitotic cell division.