Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Marco Colnaghi, Nick Lane, Andrew Pomiankowski
Summary: The transition from prokaryotic lateral gene transfer to eukaryotic meiotic sex is closely related to the origin of eukaryotes. This transition has a significant impact on the increase in genome size and genetic repeat density. Increasing recombination length and lateral gene transfer rate can solve the problem, but the presence of genetic repeats leads to ectopic recombination and limits the effectiveness of lateral gene transfer.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2022)
Article
Cell Biology
Danni Wang, Hongzheng Sun, Jiaqi Zhang, Zhenyue Huang, Congyang Li, Longsen Han, Yongan Xin, Shoubin Tang, Juan Ge, Qiang Wang
Summary: FKBP25 plays a crucial role in oocyte maturation by affecting spindle assembly, chromosome alignment, and kinetochore-microtubule attachment. Depletion of FKBP25 results in elevated aneuploidy incidence in oocytes. Reduced levels of FKBP25 protein in old oocytes can be partly rescued by ectopic expression of FKBP25, which is also found to have phosphorylation at serine 163 affecting its action on meiotic maturation.
FRONTIERS IN CELL AND DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Guangyi Cao
Summary: The correct assembly and regulation of the spindle apparatus are crucial for the precise separation of chromosomes in mouse oocytes. NUSAP1 is a spindle-associated protein that plays an important role in oocyte meiosis maturation. Its depletion leads to chromosome misalignment, aneuploidy, and abnormal spindle assembly.
JOURNAL OF CELLULAR BIOCHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Jessica A. Ferrarezi, Alistair R. McTaggart, Peri A. Tobias, Carolina A. A. Hayashibara, Rebecca M. Degnan, Louise S. Shuey, Livia M. Franceschini, Mariana S. Lopes, Maria C. Quecine
Summary: The study revealed the potential of a fungal pathogen, Austropuccinia psidii, to undergo sexual reproduction on different hosts. Additionally, comparative genomics showed the conservation of meiotic genes in rust fungi.
FUNGAL GENETICS AND BIOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Cell Biology
Wen-Long Lei, Wei-Ping Qian, Qing-Yuan Sun
Summary: Meiosis is crucial for the continuation of life in sexually-reproducing organisms by producing haploid gametes. Errors in meiotic progression can lead to infertility and birth defects. Post-translational modifications, such as phosphorylation, play an important regulatory role in meiosis.
FRONTIERS IN CELL AND DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Ryuki Shimada, Yuzuru Kato, Naoki Takeda, Sayoko Fujimura, Kei-ichiro Yasunaga, Shingo Usuki, Hitoshi Niwa, Kimi Araki, Kei-ichiro Ishiguro
Summary: In mice, female germ cells initiate meiosis within a limited period of time in the fetal ovary, and the interaction between STRA8 and RB ensures precise timing of meiosis initiation, highlighting the regulatory mechanisms underlying female-specific meiotic initiation in mice.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
Article
Cell Biology
Julia A. Loose, Francis R. G. Amrit, Thayjas Patil, Judith L. Yanowitz, Arjumand Ghazi
Summary: Reproductive health impacts organismal aging, but the effect of germline integrity on somatic aging is poorly understood. This study shows that disruption of meiosis, a germline restricted process, accelerates somatic aging in Caenorhabditis elegans. Mutants with meiosis dysfunction exhibit transcriptional profiles similar to old worms and aging human tissues. The study also reveals that inactivation of longevity determinants increased the lifespan of normal animals.
Review
Genetics & Heredity
Lea Lingg, Sven Rottenberg, Paola Francica
Summary: Tumor cells often have genetic alterations that affect tumor progression and DNA repair. Reactivation of germ cell-specific genes in tumors influences DNA repair and response to treatment. Targeting aberrantly expressed meiotic genes may provide a unique opportunity to kill cancer cells specifically.
FRONTIERS IN GENETICS
(2022)
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Yuxing Zhang, Lingling Yang, Kailun Fang, Qidan Li, Hongkai Xu, Yan Ren, Jin Zi, Charlie Degui Chen, Siqi Liu
Summary: This study examined the quantitative proteomics of chromosome-binding proteins (CBPs) in meiotic prophase I (MPI) in mice. The results showed that CBPs exhibited dynamic changes and formed different complexes during MPI. These complexes functioned in different categories and provided evidence for the importance of CBP complexes in MPI.
JOURNAL OF PROTEOME RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Albert Cairo, Anna Vargova, Neha Shukla, Claudio Capitao, Pavlina Mikulkova, Sona Valuchova, Jana Pecinkova, Petra Bulankova, Karel Riha
Summary: In Arabidopsis, the transition from meiosis to mitosis is driven by translation inhibition involving processing bodies. The meiosis-specific protein TDM1 is incorporated into processing bodies through interaction with SMG7, sequestering the main translation initiation complex and inhibiting translation. Chemical inhibition of translation can overcome the failure to terminate meiosis in tdm1 mutants. TDM1-containing processing bodies down-regulate meiotic transcripts to facilitate the transition of cell fates.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Ryuki Shimada, Hiroko Koike, Takamasa Hirano, Yuzuru Kato, Yumiko Saga
Summary: During murine germ cell development, NANOS2 plays a key role in suppressing the cell cycle and initiating sexually dimorphic differentiation. Using single-cell RNA sequencing, it was revealed that NANOS2 inhibits mTORC1 activity to suppress the cell cycle, potentially through target proteins like Ptma.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Masaru Ito, Asako Furukohri, Kenichiro Matsuzaki, Yurika Fujita, Atsushi Toyoda, Akira Shinohara
Summary: This study demonstrates that FIGNL1 plays a positive role in homologous recombination by controlling the non-productive assembly of RAD51/DMC1 on single-stranded and double-stranded DNAs, and promoting chromosome synapsis and meiotic DSB repair.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Cong Wang, Jiyue Huang, Jun Zhang, Yue Yu, Gregory P. Copenhaver, Chenjiang You, Yingxiang Wang
Summary: This study demonstrates that the DNA polymerase epsilon subunit POL2A interacts with SUVH2 and SUVH9 to jointly repress the expression of 865 genes in male meiocytes. The repression is not dependent on CHH methylation or 24-nt siRNA accumulation. Additionally, the pol2a suvh2 suvh9 triple mutants exhibit more severe defects in meiotic recombination and fertility.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Manuel F. G. Weinkauf, Michael Siccha, Agnes K. M. Weiner
Summary: Understanding the reproductive biology of planktonic Foraminifera is important for tracing evolutionary processes. The study suggests that sexual reproduction is beneficial for adaptation to new environments, while asexual reproduction ensures population sustenance in stable environments.
JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY INTERFACE
(2022)
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Panqin Wang, Qingfeng Zhang, Shihua Li, Ben Cheng, Han Xue, Zhen Wei, Tian Shao, Ze-Xian Liu, Han Cheng, Zhenlong Wang
Summary: The iCysMod database was developed to provide an integrative resource for protein cysteine modifications in eukaryotes, curating over 108,000 PCM events. The database offers browse and search options for accessing the dataset, along with detailed information organized for visualization. The dataset includes information on 8 types of PCMs and analysis of sequence features around cysteine modification sites for each type, showing distinct preferences for sequence recognition.
BRIEFINGS IN BIOINFORMATICS
(2021)
Article
Plant Sciences
Lin-Bo Wang, Hong Ma, Juan Lin
Summary: The study found that genes retained after two rounds of whole-genome duplication are more likely to be slowly evolving genes, indicating that their potential for both functional conservation and divergence affects their retention after WGD in angiosperms. Genes retained in the crown group of genomes were more constrained before the younger duplication event and showed broader and higher expression levels compared to singleton genes.
JOURNAL OF SYSTEMATICS AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Diego F. Morales-Briones, Berit Gehrke, Chien-Hsun Huang, Aaron Liston, Hong Ma, Hannah E. Marx, David C. Tank, Ya Yang
Summary: Target enrichment is increasingly used in phylogenomic studies. Paralogs are often recovered in data sets, and processing them can be prone to errors. Automated tree-based orthology inference methods can help study complex scenarios of polyploidy and reticulate evolution.
SYSTEMATIC BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Lin Zhang, Xinxin Zhu, Yiyong Zhao, Jing Guo, Taikui Zhang, Weichen Huang, Jie Huang, Yi Hu, Chien-Hsun Huang, Hong Ma
Summary: The adaptation of Pooideae to cool climates has been influenced by gene duplications and regulatory mechanisms. Pooideae originated in the late Cretaceous and underwent divergences under cooling conditions. During the Eocene-Oligocene transition, Pooideae species experienced significant gene duplications and regulatory changes, promoting their adaptation to cold habitats.
MOLECULAR BIOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Weichen Huang, Lin Zhang, J. Travis Columbus, Yi Hu, Yiyong Zhao, Lin Tang, Zhenhua Guo, Wenli Chen, Michael McKain, Madelaine Bartlett, Chien-Hsun Huang, De-Zhu Li, Song Ge, Hong Ma
Summary: Poaceae (the grasses) is a economically important angiosperm family, with a wide global distribution and diverse ecosystems. A comprehensive analysis of genomic and transcriptomic data was conducted to reconstruct the phylogeny of Poaceae, providing strong support for the monophyly of 11 subfamilies and suggesting multiple independent origins of C4 photosynthesis. This study offers valuable resources and insights for evolutionary analyses of the grass family.
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Chengpeng He, Zhiyu Chen, Yiyong Zhao, Yue Yu, Hongkuan Wang, Cong Wang, Gregory P. Copenhaver, Ji Qi, Yingxiang Wang
Summary: The IBM1 gene in Arabidopsis is found to be crucial for normal meiotic progression. Mutations in IBM1 lead to various meiotic defects and reduced fertility. IBM1 also affects gene expression levels in meiocytes through the regulation of gene body CHG methylation.
Article
Plant Sciences
Juli Jing, Nan Wu, Wanyue Xu, Yingxiang Wang, Wojciech P. Pawlowski, Yan He
Summary: This study reveals the role of ACOZ1 in regulating chromosome organization and crossover formation during plant meiosis.
Article
Plant Sciences
Lei Zhao, Ying-Ying Yang, Xiao-Jian Qu, Hong Ma, Yi Hu, Hong-Tao Li, Ting-Shuang Yi, De-Zhu Li
Summary: This study improves our understanding of aroid phylogeny by using a large number of nuclear genes. In contrast to the Proto-Araceae group and the lemnoid clade's adaptation to aquatic environments, the results suggest that whole-genome duplication may play a more important role in the evolution of adaptations to tropical, terrestrial environments in the True-Araceae clade.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Cong Wang, Jiyue Huang, Jun Zhang, Yue Yu, Gregory P. Copenhaver, Chenjiang You, Yingxiang Wang
Summary: This study demonstrates that the DNA polymerase epsilon subunit POL2A interacts with SUVH2 and SUVH9 to jointly repress the expression of 865 genes in male meiocytes. The repression is not dependent on CHH methylation or 24-nt siRNA accumulation. Additionally, the pol2a suvh2 suvh9 triple mutants exhibit more severe defects in meiotic recombination and fertility.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Anzhen Fu, Yanyan Zheng, Jing Guo, Donald Grierson, Xiaoyan Zhao, Changlong Wen, Ye Liu, Jian Li, Xuewen Zhang, Ying Yu, Hong Ma, Qing Wang, Jinhua Zuo
Summary: This study successfully assembled a high-quality genome of Momordica charantia L. var. abbreviata Ser. (Mca), providing insights into the genetic variations involved in bitter gourd fruit quality and the evolutionary process of bitter gourd. It also contributes to the genetic research of bitter gourd by providing a new genetic resource.
HORTICULTURE RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Guojin Zhang, Yi Hu, Ming-Zhong Huang, Wei-Chang Huang, Ding-Kun Liu, Diyang Zhang, Haihua Hu, Jason L. Downing, Zhong-Jian Liu, Hong Ma
Summary: Orchidaceae, one of the largest plant families, plays important roles in both economy and ecology. This study reconstructed robust phylogenetic trees of Orchidaceae using 1450 low-copy nuclear genes from 610 orchid species, providing new insights into the evolution of epiphytism in vascular plants.
JOURNAL OF INTEGRATIVE PLANT BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Li-Qin Hu, Shi-Xia Yu, Wan-Yue Xu, Song-Hao Zu, Yu-Tong Jiang, Hao-Tian Shi, Yan-Jie Zhang, Hong-Wei Xue, Ying-Xiang Wang, Wen-Hui Lin
Summary: In Arabidopsis thaliana, the development of female gametophyte (FG) involves the formation and expansion of large vacuoles. The VACUOLELESS GAMETOPHYTES (VLG) gene is responsible for facilitating the fusion of vesicles to form these vacuoles, but its regulation is still not well understood. This study found that mutations in the BRASSINOSTEROID INSENSITIVE2 (BIN2) gene increased the abundance of VLG, leading to excessive vacuole formation and FG abortion. On the other hand, mutations in BIN2 and its homologs reduced VLG abundance and caused phenotypes similar to vlg/VLG mutants. It was also discovered that BIN2 interacts with and phosphorylates VLG, enhancing its stability and abundance to promote vacuole formation.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Ting Zan, Yi-Tao He, Min Zhang, Takahiro Yonezawa, Hong Ma, Qiang-Min Zhao, Wen-Ju Zhang, Chien-Hsun Huang, Wen-Yu Kuo
Summary: In this study, a detailed analysis of the phylogeny of the Camellia genus was conducted using 95 transcriptomes and 1481 low-copy genes. The results showed that the 87 species were grouped into 8 main clades and two independent species, which was different from existing classification systems. The relationships among these clades were weakly supported and did not agree with the phylogeny from chloroplast genomes. The study also revealed reticulate evolution and a rapid evolutionary history of Camellia.
MOLECULAR PHYLOGENETICS AND EVOLUTION
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
TianDuo Wang, Yuanxin Chen, Nivin N. Nystrom, Shirley Liu, Yanghao Fu, Francisco M. Martinez, Timothy J. Scholl, John A. Ronald
Summary: Cell-cell communication is crucial in multicellular organisms, especially in cell-based cancer immunotherapies where engineered immune cells interact with cancer cells through specific antigens. By using the synthetic Notch system, T cells engineered in this study were able to induce the expression of reporter genes in response to interaction with a chosen antigen on neighboring cancer cells. The high spatial resolution and tomographic nature of MRI allowed for clear visualization and mapping of the engineered cells within tumors, showing promise for monitoring cell therapies in patients and understanding interactions between cell populations in the body.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Jie Huang, Weibin Xu, Junwen Zhai, Yi Hu, Jing Guo, Caifei Zhang, Yiyong Zhao, Lin Zhang, Christopher Martine, Hong Ma, Chien-Hsun Huang
Summary: This study generated transcriptomes/genomes for 180 Solanaceae species and constructed a highly resolved phylogenetic tree. The study revealed a specific whole-genome triplication event in the evolutionary history of Solanaceae, which may have contributed to the development of fleshy fruits.
PLANT COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Wanyue Xu, Yue Yu, Juli Jing, Zhen Wu, Xumin Zhang, Chenjiang You, Hong Ma, Gregory P. Copenhaver, Yan He, Yingxiang Wang
Summary: In this study, a SCF complex is found to regulate the stability of DMC1 through ubiquitination and proteasomal degradation. The interaction between RMF1/2, ASK1 and DMC1 in the same pathway is demonstrated, and the proper removal of DMC1 is crucial for meiotic crossover formation.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
