FIGURE 3.

Formation and behavior of de novo centromeres. (A) Following chromosome breakage, an acentric fragment can form a neocentromere allowing its proper transmission. (B) Chromosome breakage close to the endogenous centromere may lead to neocentromere formation due to presence or spreading of centromeric marks (e.g., cenH3) to pericentromeric regions. (C) Neocentromere formation in an intact chromosome leads to a dicentric chromosome structure. If this results in chromosome breakage, a centromere- and a neocentromere-containing fragment will result.