Nature 477 7364, 354–358 (2011); published online August 07 2011. doi: ; DOI: 10.1038/nature10379
Centromeres are epigenetically defined by the presence of the histone H3 variant, CENP-A. Up until now, the question of how CENP-A nucleosomes mediate kinetochore nucleation was poorly understood. In a study just published in Nature, a unique cell-free system was used to demonstrate that in vitro assembled CENP-A chromatin arrays recapitulate the assembly of bona fide kinetochores through the essential C-terminal tail of CENP-A.