See Also: centromere(medicine)
Centromere(health)
centromere(encyclopedia)
centromere banding stain(medicine)

centromere (sh)




Structure in a chromosome that holds together the two chromatids.

It is the point of attachment to the structure that pulls the chromatids to opposite ends of the cell during cell division (see mitosis). During the middle stage of mitosis, the centromere duplicates and the chromatid pair separates, each chromatid becoming a separate chromosome. Thus, when the cell divides, both daughter cells have complete sets of chromosomes.