The gene KINETOCHORE NULL2 (KNL2) plays a major role in the incorporation of the histone CenH3 into the centromere of chromosomes and is thus important for cell division. This same gene is also important for the production of double haploids, with which the generation of homozygous lines for plant breeding can be accelerated quite considerably. An international research team led by the IPK Leibniz Institute has reconstructed the evolutionary history of the gene and classified it for the first time. The results have now been published in Molecular Biology and Evolution.