Keeping Survivin Nimble at Centromeres in Mitosis

Abstract

Ubiquitin is well known as a grim reaper that marks proteins for destruction. In his Perspective, Earnshaw discusses a study by Vong et al. that reports a new aspect of ubiquitin function--regulation of the dynamic behavior of the chromosomal passenger protein survivin during mitosis. If survivin carries either too little or too much polyubiquitin, survivin dynamics at centromeres are perturbed, and chromosome segregation is disrupted.