The 48 bp centromeric repeat is a functionally conserved motif in great apes and man showing protein-binding properties.

The centromere-kinetochore complex is a chromosomal assembly site including repeat motifs and protein binding properties thus mediating chromosome motility and mitotic regulation. Next to the alpha-satellite DNA family as well as human satellite III DNA, contribution of other repetitive sequences has to be strongly considered in centromere function. Here, we report the identification of centromeric 48 bp motifs, isolated from chimpanzee and orang-utan using an orthologous human DNA probe. Applying Southern hybridization we show that these sequences are restricted to hominoid species. Diminishing hybrid formation in gibbons suggested that the 48 bp repeat originated approximately 25-20 million years ago. Consistently, both chimpanzee as well as human repeat probes failed to generate any hybridization signal with the monkey species Cercopithecus aethiops and Aotes trivirgatus. Sequence deviations from the consensus of human repeat monomers of 6% and 10.4% in chimpanzee and orang-utan, respectively, were found within a 16 bp region of the 48 bp repeat units. Gel mobility shift assays using chimpanzee repeat dimers as probes revealed peptide-binding properties with human and chimpanzee nuclear extracts. Species-specific DNA-protein complexes remained unaffected by competition studies and indicated the presence of at least one novel interacting protein consisting of two subunits with 90 and 95 kDa. Our data suggest that the 48 bp repeat, next to alpha-satellite DNA, provides essential sequence information for specific DNA-protein interaction and they imply phylogenetic conservation of these binding properties in primates. The complex is likely involved in the proper formation and/or function of mammalian centromeres.

Molecular Screening for RET Proto-Oncogene Mutations in a German MEN2A Pedigree.

Multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2A (MEN2A), a dominantly inherited cancer syndrome, is defined by the presence of medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC), pheochromocytoma (pheo), and primary hyperparathyroidism (p-HPT). Along with multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2B (MEN2B) and familial medullary thyroid carcinoma (FMTC), it is associated with germline mutations of the RETproto-oncogene localized in 10q11.2. In FMTC and MEN2A, point mutations result in the substitution of one of five Cys residues in the extracellular domain of RET. In a larger pedigree from Saarland, several individuals were observed with C-cell thyroid carcinoma. We screened 16 members of this extended family by single-strand conformation polymorphism analysis (SSCP), polymerase chain reaction (PCR), followed by restriction enzyme analysis, and by sequencing the mutated regions. In 7 family members, all of whom had been earlier operated on because of MTC, a DNA transition from T to C was observed, causing an amino acid substitution Cys(634)Arg. Nine members of the kindred did not carry the mutation and may be excluded from yearly biochemical testing. One of these persons seems to have been unnecessarily operated on owing to a borderline pentagastrin test.