Architectural Organization of Dinoflagellate Liquid Crystalline Chromosomes
Division of Life Science, Hong Kong University of Life Science, Clearwater Bay, Kowloon, Hong Kong
Microorganisms 2019, 7(2), 27; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms7020027
Received: 21 December 2018 / Revised: 12 January 2019 / Accepted: 17 January 2019 / Published: 22 January 2019
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Dinoflagellate Biology in the Omics Era)
Dinoflagellates have some of the largest genome sizes, but lack architectural nucleosomes. Their liquid crystalline chromosomes (LCCs) are the only non-architectural protein-mediated chromosome packaging systems, having high degrees of DNA superhelicity, liquid crystalline condensation and high levels of chromosomal divalent cations. Recent observations on the reversible decompaction–recompaction of higher-order structures implicated that LCCs are composed of superhelical modules (SPMs) comprising highly supercoiled DNA. Orientated polarizing light photomicrography suggested the presence of three compartments with different packaging DNA density in LCCs. Recent and previous biophysical data suggest that LCCs are composed of: (a) the highly birefringent inner core compartment (i) with a high-density columnar-hexagonal mesophase (CH-m); (b) the lower-density core surface compartment (ii.1) consisting of a spiraling chromonema; (c) the birefringent-negative periphery compartment (ii.2) comprising peripheral chromosomal loops. C(ii.1) and C(ii.2) are in dynamic equilibrium, and can merge into a single compartment during dinomitosis, regulated through multiphasic reversible soft-matter phase transitions.
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Keywords:
dinoflagellate; liquid crystalline chromosomes; liquid crystalline DNA; phase transition; superhelical module; 5-hydroxymethyluracil; nucleosome; superhelical condensation; chromosome
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MDPI and ACS Style
Wong, J.T.Y. Architectural Organization of Dinoflagellate Liquid Crystalline Chromosomes. Microorganisms 2019, 7, 27. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms7020027
AMA Style
Wong JTY. Architectural Organization of Dinoflagellate Liquid Crystalline Chromosomes. Microorganisms. 2019; 7(2):27. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms7020027
Chicago/Turabian StyleWong, Joseph T.Y. 2019. "Architectural Organization of Dinoflagellate Liquid Crystalline Chromosomes" Microorganisms 7, no. 2: 27. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms7020027
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