一种原始真核细胞——寇氏隐甲藻(Crypthecodinium cohnii)染色体骨架的证实

甲藻(dinoflagellate)的染色体是现存真核生物中最原始的,与原核生物的类核体最为近似。我们将染色体骨架制备方法与非树脂包埋去包埋剂超薄切片电子显微镜方法结合起来,首次直观地显示在寇氏隐甲藻(Crypthecodinium cohnii)的原始染色体中存在精细发达的水不溶性纤维蛋白骨架,分离的染色体骨架保持了与正常染色体对应的形状与大小,染色体骨架纤维直径约10nm,编织成网,蛋白骨架纤维的分布贯穿于整个染色体中,双向电泳显示染色体骨架的主要成分是酸性蛋白、实验结果说明,在原始染色体中已经出现了染色体骨架,并提示在真核生物进化过程中,染色体骨架的出现可能先于典型染色质的出现。本文对染色体骨架与染色体构建,及染色体骨架与核骨架的关系作了讨论。     

VISUALIZATION OF THE CHROMOSOME SCAFFOLD IN A PRIMITIVE EUKARYOTE DINOFLAGELLATE Crypthecoainium cohnii

The chromosome scaffolds in higher eukaryotic nuclei have been described elsewhere. Butit is unknown when they evolved. The dinoflagellates are the primitive organisms that maybe the intermediate between prokaryotes and eukaryotes. Combining chromosome scaffold prep-aration methods with embedment-free section microscopy,we demonstrate that the dino-flagellate Crypthecodinium cohnii chromosome retains a protein scaffold after the depletionof DNA and soluble proteins. This scaffold preserves the morphology characteristic of thechromosome. Two-dimensional electrophoreses show that the chromosome scaffolds are mainlycomposed of acidic proteins. Our results suggest that a framework similar to the chromosomescaffold in the mammalian cell appeared in the primitive eukaryote. We propose that thechromosome scaffold possibly originated from the early stages of eukaryote evolution.