Seeing meiotic chromosomes without seeing them

2000 ◽  
pp. 107-122
Author(s):  
Nancy Kleckner
Keyword(s):  
Meiotic Chromosomes

The Budding Yeast Msh4 Protein Functions in Chromosome Synapsis and the Regulation of Crossover Distribution

Genetics ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 158 (3) ◽  
pp. 1013-1025 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janet E Novak ◽  
Petra B Ross-Macdonald ◽  
G Shirleen Roeder
Keyword(s):  
Mismatch Repair ◽  
Budding Yeast ◽  
Null Mutation ◽  
Crossing Over ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Crossover Interference ◽  
Meiotic Chromosomes ◽  
Chromosome Synapsis ◽  
Protein Functions ◽  
Or Gene

AbstractThe budding yeast MSH4 gene encodes a MutS homolog produced specifically in meiotic cells. Msh4 is not required for meiotic mismatch repair or gene conversion, but it is required for wild-type levels of crossing over. Here, we show that a msh4 null mutation substantially decreases crossover interference. With respect to the defect in interference and the level of crossing over, msh4 is similar to the zip1 mutant, which lacks a structural component of the synaptonemal complex (SC). Furthermore, epistasis tests indicate that msh4 and zip1 affect the same subset of meiotic crossovers. In the msh4 mutant, SC formation is delayed compared to wild type, and full synapsis is achieved in only about half of all nuclei. The simultaneous defects in synapsis and interference observed in msh4 (and also zip1 and ndj1/tam1) suggest a role for the SC in mediating interference. The Msh4 protein localizes to discrete foci on meiotic chromosomes and colocalizes with Zip2, a protein involved in the initiation of chromosome synapsis. Both Zip2 and Zip1 are required for the normal localization of Msh4 to chromosomes, raising the possibility that the zip1 and zip2 defects in crossing over are indirect, resulting from the failure to localize Msh4 properly.

scholarly journals Interplay between Pds5 and Rec8 in regulating chromosome axis length and crossover frequency

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (11) ◽  
pp. eabe7920
Author(s):  
Meihui Song ◽  
Binyuan Zhai ◽  
Xiao Yang ◽  
Taicong Tan ◽  
Ying Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Recombination Frequency ◽  
Crossover Frequency ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Protein Levels ◽  
Homolog Pairing ◽  
Meiotic Chromosomes ◽  
Homologous Chromosome Pairing ◽  
Axis Length ◽  
Chromosome Axis

Meiotic chromosomes have a loop/axis architecture, with axis length determining crossover frequency. Meiosis-specific Pds5 depletion mutants have shorter chromosome axes and lower homologous chromosome pairing and recombination frequency. However, it is poorly understood how Pds5 coordinately regulates these processes. In this study, we show that only ~20% of wild-type level of Pds5 is required for homolog pairing and that higher levels of Pds5 dosage-dependently regulate axis length and crossover frequency. Moderate changes in Pds5 protein levels do not explicitly impair the basic recombination process. Further investigations show that Pds5 does not regulate chromosome axes by altering Rec8 abundance. Conversely, Rec8 regulates chromosome axis length by modulating Pds5. These findings highlight the important role of Pds5 in regulating meiosis and its relationship with Rec8 to regulate chromosome axis length and crossover frequency with implications for evolutionary adaptation.

scholarly journals Molecular organization of mammalian meiotic chromosome axis revealed by expansion STORM microscopy

2019 ◽  
Vol 116 (37) ◽  
pp. 18423-18428 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huizhong Xu ◽  
Zhisong Tong ◽  
Qing Ye ◽  
Tengqian Sun ◽  
Zhenmin Hong ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Meiotic Chromosome ◽  
Molecular Organization ◽  
Homologous Chromosomes ◽  
Meiotic Chromosomes ◽  
C Terminus ◽  
Stochastic Optical Reconstruction Microscopy ◽  
Optical Reconstruction ◽  
20 Nm ◽  
Chromosome Axis

During prophase I of meiosis, chromosomes become organized as loop arrays around the proteinaceous chromosome axis. As homologous chromosomes physically pair and recombine, the chromosome axis is integrated into the tripartite synaptonemal complex (SC) as this structure’s lateral elements (LEs). While the components of the mammalian chromosome axis/LE—including meiosis-specific cohesin complexes, the axial element proteins SYCP3 and SYCP2, and the HORMA domain proteins HORMAD1 and HORMAD2—are known, the molecular organization of these components within the axis is poorly understood. Here, using expansion microscopy coupled with 2-color stochastic optical reconstruction microscopy (STORM) imaging (ExSTORM), we address these issues in mouse spermatocytes at a resolution of 10 to 20 nm. Our data show that SYCP3 and the SYCP2 C terminus, which are known to form filaments in vitro, form a compact core around which cohesin complexes, HORMADs, and the N terminus of SYCP2 are arrayed. Overall, our study provides a detailed structural view of the meiotic chromosome axis, a key organizational and regulatory component of meiotic chromosomes.

A simple and rapid method for visualization of male meiotic chromosomes inArabidopsis thaliana

2014 ◽  
Vol 78 (6) ◽  
pp. 1026-1028 ◽  
Author(s):  
Junhua Li ◽  
Jinhong Yuan ◽  
Xiting Zhao ◽  
Xiaoli Zhang ◽  
Mingjun Li
Keyword(s):  
Rapid Method ◽  
Meiotic Chromosomes

scholarly journals On meiotic chromosomes in the genus Crocus

1944 ◽  
Vol 20 (4-6) ◽  
pp. 128-130 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kotaro KARASAWA
Keyword(s):  
Meiotic Chromosomes

scholarly journals MEIG1 Localizes to the Nucleus and Binds to Meiotic Chromosomes of Spermatocytes as They Initiate Meiosis

1999 ◽  
Vol 216 (2) ◽  
pp. 635-645 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel Steiner ◽  
Leah Ever ◽  
Jeremy Don
Keyword(s):  
Meiotic Chromosomes

scholarly journals Linear elements are stable structures along the chromosome axis in fission yeast meiosis

Chromosoma ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Da-Qiao Ding ◽  
Atsushi Matsuda ◽  
Kasumi Okamasa ◽  
Yasushi Hiraoka
Keyword(s):  
Fission Yeast ◽  
Strand Break ◽  
Wide Field ◽  
Structured Illumination ◽  
Structured Illumination Microscopy ◽  
Meiotic Chromosomes ◽  
Linear Elements ◽  
Yeast Meiosis ◽  
Chromosome Axis ◽  
Stable Structures

AbstractThe structure of chromosomes dramatically changes upon entering meiosis to ensure the successful progression of meiosis-specific events. During this process, a multilayer proteinaceous structure called a synaptonemal complex (SC) is formed in many eukaryotes. However, in the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe, linear elements (LinEs), which are structures related to axial elements of the SC, form on the meiotic cohesin-based chromosome axis. The structure of LinEs has been observed using silver-stained electron micrographs or in immunofluorescence-stained spread nuclei. However, the fine structure of LinEs and their dynamics in intact living cells remain to be elucidated. In this study, we performed live cell imaging with wide-field fluorescence microscopy as well as 3D structured illumination microscopy (3D-SIM) of the core components of LinEs (Rec10, Rec25, Rec27, Mug20) and a linE-binding protein Hop1. We found that LinEs form along the chromosome axis and elongate during meiotic prophase. 3D-SIM microscopy revealed that Rec10 localized to meiotic chromosomes in the absence of other LinE proteins, but shaped into LinEs only in the presence of all three other components, the Rec25, Rec27, and Mug20. Elongation of LinEs was impaired in double-strand break-defective rec12− cells. The structure of LinEs persisted after treatment with 1,6-hexanediol and showed slow fluorescence recovery from photobleaching. These results indicate that LinEs are stable structures resembling axial elements of the SC.

scholarly journals Kinase CDK2 in Mammalian Meiotic Prophase I: Screening for Hetero- and Homomorphic Sex Chromosomes

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 1969
Author(s):  
Sergey Matveevsky ◽  
Tsenka Chassovnikarova ◽  
Tatiana Grishaeva ◽  
Maret Atsaeva ◽  
Vasilii Malygin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sex Chromosomes ◽  
Mammalian Species ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Eukaryotic Cell ◽  
Repair System ◽  
Prophase I ◽  
Meiotic Chromosomes ◽  
Y Chromosomes ◽  
Dna Mismatch Repair System ◽  
Male Sex

Cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs) are crucial regulators of the eukaryotic cell cycle. The critical role of CDK2 in the progression of meiosis was demonstrated in a single mammalian species, the mouse. We used immunocytochemistry to study the localization of CDK2 during meiosis in seven rodent species that possess hetero- and homomorphic male sex chromosomes. To compare the distribution of CDK2 in XY and XX male sex chromosomes, we performed multi-round immunostaining of a number of marker proteins in meiotic chromosomes of the rat and subterranean mole voles. Antibodies to the following proteins were used: RAD51, a member of the double-stranded DNA break repair machinery; MLH1, a component of the DNA mismatch repair system; and SUN1, which is involved in the connection between the meiotic telomeres and nuclear envelope, alongside the synaptic protein SYCP3 and kinetochore marker CREST. Using an enhanced protocol, we were able to assess the distribution of as many as four separate proteins in the same meiotic cell. We showed that during prophase I, CDK2 localizes to telomeric and interstitial regions of autosomes in all species investigated (rat, vole, hamster, subterranean mole voles, and mole rats). In sex bivalents following synaptic specificity, the CDK2 signals were distributed in three different modes. In the XY bivalent in the rat and mole rat, we detected numerous CDK2 signals in asynaptic regions and a single CDK2 focus on synaptic segments, similar to the mouse sex chromosomes. In the mole voles, which have unique XX sex chromosomes in males, CDK2 signals were nevertheless distributed similarly to the rat XY sex chromosomes. In the vole, sex chromosomes did not synapse, but demonstrated CDK2 signals of varying intensity, similar to the rat X and Y chromosomes. In female mole voles, the XX bivalent had CDK2 pattern similar to autosomes of all species. In the hamster, CDK2 signals were revealed in telomeric regions in the short synaptic segment of the sex bivalent. We found that CDK2 signals colocalize with SUN1 and MLH1 signals in meiotic chromosomes in rats and mole voles, similar to the mouse. The difference in CDK2 manifestation at the prophase I sex chromosomes can be considered an example of the rapid chromosome evolution in mammals.

scholarly journals Sex and death: from cell fate specification to dynamic control of X-chromosome structure and gene expression

2018 ◽  
Vol 29 (22) ◽  
pp. 2616-2621 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara J. Meyer
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Cell Fate ◽  
X Chromosome ◽  
Chromosome Structure ◽  
Dynamic Control ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
X Chromosomes ◽  
Meiotic Chromosomes ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Developmental Decision

Determining sex is a binary developmental decision that most metazoans must make. Like many organisms, Caenorhabditis elegans specifies sex (XO male or XX hermaphrodite) by tallying X-chromosome number. We dissected this precise counting mechanism to determine how tiny differences in concentrations of signals are translated into dramatically different developmental fates. Determining sex by counting chromosomes solved one problem but created another—an imbalance in X gene products. We found that nematodes compensate for the difference in X-chromosome dose between sexes by reducing transcription from both hermaphrodite X chromosomes. In a surprising feat of evolution, X-chromosome regulation is functionally related to a structural problem of all mitotic and meiotic chromosomes: achieving ordered compaction of chromosomes before segregation. We showed the dosage compensation complex is a condensin complex that imposes a specific three-­dimensional architecture onto hermaphrodite X chromosomes. It also triggers enrichment of histone modification H4K20me1. We discovered the machinery and mechanism underlying H4K20me1 enrichment and demonstrated its pivotal role in regulating higher-order X-chromosome structure and gene expression.

Meiotic chromosomes of man

1968 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 351-354 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arthur Falek ◽  
Brunetto Chiarelli
Keyword(s):  
Meiotic Chromosomes
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