Lecture: 4

Chromosome structure, chemical composition, nucleosome, centromere, telomere,

euchromatin, heterochromatin, NOR, satellite chromosome, karyotype, ideogram
– chromosome banding
Chromosome structure
Chromosome structure -Prokaryotes
Chromosomal DNA exists in the form of very long
molecules, which must be tightly packed to fit into
the small confines of a cell.

A typical bacterial chromosome consists of a large,

circular molecule of DNA that is a series of twisted
loops. Bacterial DNA appears as a distinct clump,
the nucleoid, within the bacterial cell.
Chromosome structure – Eukaryotes
 Chromosome structure – Eukaryotes

• Chromatin, which consists of

DNA complexed to proteins, is the
material that makes up eukaryotic
chromosomes.
• The most abundant of these
proteins are the five types of
positively charged histone
proteins: H1, H2A, H2B, H3, & H4.

• Various stages in the condensation

of DNA (A) and chromatin (B
through E) in forming a metaphase
chromosome (F).
•The dimensions indicate known
sixes of intermediates, but the
detailed structures are hypothetical.
The nucleosome consists of a core particle of
eight histone proteins and DNA, about 145
bp in length, that wraps around the core.

(A) Organisation of nucleosomes. The DNA

molecule is wound one and three fourths turns
around a histone octamer called core particle.
(B) Effect of treatment with nuclease.
Brief treatment cleaves the DNA between the
nucleosomes and results in core particles
associated with histone H1 and approximately
200 base pairs of DNA.
Most extensive treatment results in loss of H1
and digestion of all but 145 base pairs of
DNA in intimate contact with each core
particle.
Centromere Structure

It is a constricted region of the chromosome to

which spindle fibers attach.
It is essential forchromosome movement in
mitosis and meiosis.

A chromosome break produces two fragments,

one with a centromere and
one without.

In mitosis, the chromosome fragment

containing the centromere attaches to spindle
fibers and moves to the spindle pole, whereas
the fragment lacking a centromere never
connects to a spindle fiber and is usually lost
because it fails to move into the nucleus of a
daughter cell
 Centromeres consist of particular sequences repeated
many times.
Each copy of the sequence has approximately 110 bp and
possesses three regions. Region I (9 bp) and region III (11
bp) are located at the ends of the sequence.
Region II, consisting of about 80 to 90 mostly A–T base
pairs, is in the middle.
No part of the centromeric sequence codes for a protein;
specific centromere proteins bind to centromeric
sequences and provide anchor sites for spindle fibers.

In addition to their role in chromosome

movement, centromeres also help
control the cell cycle by inhibiting
anaphase until chromosomes are
attached to spindle fibers from both
poles.
Telomere Structure

A telomere is the stabilizing end of a chromosome.

At the end of each telomere are many short telomeric
sequences. Longer, more complex telomere-
associated sequences are found adjacent to the
telomeric sequences
Euchromatin /heterochromatin

Types of chromatin are:

Euchromatin, which undergoes the normal (decondensed) process of condensation and decondensation in
the cell cycle, and
Heterochromatin, which remains in a highly condensed state throughout the cell cycle, even during
interphase.
Euchromatin constitutes the majority of the chromosomal material and is where most transcription takes
place.
Heterochromatin is found at the centromeres and telomeres of all chromosomes, at other specific places on
some chromosomes. Most, but not all, heterochromatin appears to be largely devoid of transcription.
Chromosome banding
Chromosome banding is a technique by which the
different regions of the chromosomes are stained
using various dyes and producing characteristic
banding patterns.

In other words a band is defined as a part of a

chromosome that is clearly distinguishable from its
adjacent segments by appearing darker or lighter .

After from traditional cyto-morphological features

used for chromosome study ch. banding techniques
are now-a-days used.

Mitotic metaphase is the best stage for the study of

chromosome morphology because it is at this stage
chromosomes are highly condensed state and
therefore, darkly stained.
Different types of chromosome banding

1.C Banding
2.G Banding
3.Q Banding
4.R Banding
5.N Banding
Karyotype
Chromosome spread during cell division in rice
A karyotype is the number and appearance
of chromosomes in the nucleus of a
eukaryotic cell.
The term is also used for the complete set
of chromosomes in a species, or an
individual organism.
Karyotypes describe the number of
chromosomes, and what they look like
under a light microscope. Attention is paid
to their length, the position of the
centromeres banding pattern, any
differences between the sex chromosmes,
and any other physical characteristics.

Rice karyotype:
Arrangement of photographs of mitotic
metaphase chromosomes in pairs
according to size.
Human karyotype:
Three terms, namely, karyotype,
karyogram, and idiogram, are often
referred to in the identification of
chromosomes.
Karyotype is the number, size, and
morphology of a chromosome set
of a cell in an individual or species
(Battaglia, 1994).
Karyogram is the physical
measurement of the chromosomes
from a photomicrograph, where
chromosomes are arranged in
descending order (longest to
shortest).
An idiogram represents a
diagrammatic sketch (interpretive
drawing) of the karyogram (Figure
6.1).

Human idiogram