Association of nuclear membrane fragments with metaphase and anaphase chromosomes as observed by whole mount electron microscopy

Abstract

Whole mount preparations of metaphase and anaphase chromosomes from a wide variety of mammalian tissues, prepared with and without hypotonic, with and without colchicine, and with and without critical point drying, all showed that fragments of the nuclear membrane may remain attached at multiple points along the chromosomes. No consistent patterns were observed, indicating that the attachment of these fragments was random and fortuitous. Preparations of purified nuclear membrane showed morphological features identical to that of the fragments attached to the chromosomes. The major significance of these observations is that they indicate that the metaphase chromosomes were attached at multiple sites to the nuclear membrane during interphase.