Cell division is the fundamental basis for growth and development of an organism. Millions of cell divisions have to occur before an organism reaches its final size, and throughout the life span of an organism blood, skin and intestinal cells have to be constantly replaced by further cell divisions. High fidelity of cell division is therefore critical to prevent chromosome mis-segregation. Indeed, aneuploidy, the consequence of incorrect chromosome segregation, is considered a hallmark as well as a driving force for tumorigenesis. The goal of my lab’s research is to elucidate the mechanisms that ensure accurate microtubule-kinetochore attachment and chromosome segregation during mammalian mitosis. In particular, we are interested in understanding how stable attachments of the chromosomes to the microtubules – a pre-requisite for accurate chromosome segregation – are achieved and how this is monitored within the cell.