Transgenerational Propagation and Quantitative Maintenance of Paternal Centromeres Depends on Cid/Cenp-A Presence in Drosophila Sperm

In Drosophila melanogaster, as in many animal and plant species, centromere identity is specified epigenetically. In proliferating cells, a centromere-specific histone H3 variant (CenH3), named Cid in Drosophila and Cenp-A in humans, is a crucial component of the epigenetic centromere mark. Hence, maintenance of the amount and chromosomal location of CenH3 during mitotic proliferation is important. Interestingly, CenH3 may have different roles during meiosis and the onset of embryogenesis. In gametes of Caenorhabditis elegans, and possibly in plants, centromere marking is independent of CenH3. Moreover, male gamete differentiation in animals often includes global nucleosome for protamine exchange that potentially could remove CenH3 nucleosomes. Here we demonstrate that the control of Cid loading during male meiosis is distinct from the regulation observed during the mitotic cycles of early embryogenesis. But Cid is present in mature sperm. After strong Cid depletion in sperm, paternal centromeres fail to integrate into the gonomeric spindle of the first mitosis, resulting in gynogenetic haploid embryos. Furthermore, after moderate depletion, paternal centromeres are unable to re-acquire normal Cid levels in the next generation. We conclude that Cid in sperm is an essential component of the epigenetic centromere mark on paternal chromosomes and it exerts quantitative control over centromeric Cid levels throughout development. Hence, the amount of Cid that is loaded during each cell cycle appears to be determined primarily by the preexisting centromeric Cid, with little flexibility for compensation of accidental losses.     

Arsenic interactions with a fullerene-like BN cage in the vacuum and aqueous phase

Adsorption of arsenic ions, As (III and V), on the surface of fullerene-like B₁₂N₁₂ cage has been explored in vacuum and aqueous phase using density functional theory in terms of Gibbs free energies, enthalpies, geometry, and density of state analysis. It was found that these ions can be strongly chemisorbed on the surface of the cluster in both vacuum and aqueous phase, resulting in significant changes in its electronic properties so that the cluster transforms from a semi-insulator to a semiconductor. The solvent significantly affects the geometry parameters and electronic properties of the As/B₁₂N₁₂ complexes and the interaction between components is considerably weaker in the aqueous phase than that in the vacuum.