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. 2006 Jun 2;2(6):e84. doi: 10.1371/journal.pgen.0020084

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This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Public Domain declaration which stipulates that, once placed in the public domain, this work may be freely reproduced, distributed, transmitted, modified, built upon, or otherwise used by anyone for any lawful purpose.

This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Public Domain declaration, which stipulates that, once placed in the public domain, this work may be freely reproduced, distributed, transmitted, modified, built upon, or otherwise used by anyone for any lawful purpose.

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MCAK is labelled in red and SYCP3 (A–I), Aurora-B (J,K), and kinetochores (L–N) are labelled in green. In merged images colocalisation regions appear in yellow. DNA appears in blue. Most images are z-projections of several focal planes throughout the spermatocytes shown.

(A and B) Early and late diplotene spermatocytes. At early diplotene SYCP3 labels desynapsing LEs (arrowheads in [A]), and the X and Y axial elements (XY). At this stage no MCAK labelling can be detected. Nevertheless, during late diplotene, when most LEs are desynapsed, MCAK can be detected as small dots at one of their ends (arrows in [A]).

(C–E) Single focal plane of a late diplotene chromocentre. MCAK occupies part of the heterochromatin and colocalises partially with the proximal ends of three desynapsed LEs detected with SYCP3.

(F and G) Single focal plane of the centromeric region of a late diplotene autosome. MCAK is detected as two dots at the end of a desynapsed LE.

(H and I) Projection of three focal planes of the sex bivalent (X,Y) in diakinesis. While the Y centromere appears scarcely stained for SYCP3, MCAK shows an intense T-like labelling. By contrast, the MCAK labelling at the X centromere is fainter. Note that there is one SYCP3 agglomerate in the nucleoplasm (arrow), and two SYCP3 accumulations on the axial elements (arrowheads).

(J and K) Early and late diplotene spermatocytes. At early diplotene, Aurora-B appears at chromocentres and the sex body (XY). MCAK becomes first detectable at centromeres in late diplotene mostly colocalising with Aurora-B. The arrow indicates the enlarged region shown in the inset.

(L–N) Late diplotene spermatocyte. The MCAK signals appear close to the kinetochore ones, that have been revealed with an anti-centromere autoantibody serum. The arrowed signal has been enlarged in the inset where it can be discerned that a single kinetochore is located in between two MCAK signals.

Bars, 5 μm (A,B,J,K,L–N), 1 μm (C–E), and 2 μm (F–I).