The Intrinsically Disorderly Story of Ki-67

Overview

Journal Open Biol

Specialties Biology
Cell Biology
Molecular Biology

Date 2021 Aug 10

PMID 34375547

Citations 36

Authors

Lucy Remnant

Natalia Y Kochanova

Caitlin Reid

Fernanda Cisneros-Soberanis

William C Earnshaw

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Ki-67 is one of the most famous marker proteins used by histologists to identify proliferating cells. Indeed, over 30 000 articles referring to Ki-67 are listed on PubMed. Here, we review some of the current literature regarding the protein. Despite its clinical importance, our knowledge of the molecular biology and biochemistry of Ki-67 is far from complete, and its exact molecular function(s) remain enigmatic. Furthermore, reports describing Ki-67 function are often contradictory, and it has only recently become clear that this proliferation marker is itself dispensable for cell proliferation. We discuss the unusual organization of the protein and its mRNA and how they relate to various models for its function. In particular, we focus on ways in which the intrinsically disordered structure of Ki-67 might aid in the assembly of the still-mysterious mitotic chromosome periphery compartment by controlling liquid-liquid phase separation of nucleolar proteins and RNAs.

Citing Articles

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