Review
Cell Biology
Katja Wassmann
Summary: The key to gametogenesis is the proper execution of meiosis, a specialized form of cell division. Recombination of maternal and paternal chromosomes before meiotic divisions creates new genetic combinations necessary for adaptation to the environment. Two rounds of chromosome segregation without intermediate S-phase are required to produce haploid gametes. The control of separase and Rec8 cleavage is crucial for generating gametes of the correct ploidy.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Elvira Nikalayevich, Safia El Jailani, Aude Dupre, Damien Cladiere, Yulia Gryaznova, Celia Fosse, Eulalie Buffin, Sandra A. Touati, Katja Wassmann
Summary: To separate chromosomes and sister chromatids in meiosis, cohesin needs to be removed from chromosome arms and centromere region. While phosphorylation of Rec8 is known to be necessary for its cleavage in yeast and C. elegans, it remains unclear whether this holds true in mammals. This study used live imaging and phosphomutant analysis to show that phosphorylation of Rec8 by Aurora B/C kinases is required for its cleavage in mammalian meiosis.
Article
Agriculture, Dairy & Animal Science
Yuto Taniuchi, Kazutaka Hiraide, Rilige Su, Kazune Ijuin, XingQiang Wei, Takuro Horii, Izuho Hatada, Jibak Lee
Summary: This study investigated the expression and localization patterns of RAD21L and REC8 proteins in mouse germ cells using a CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing system. It was found that the expression levels and localization patterns of RAD21L-3xFLAG and REC8-3xFLAG in the knock-in mice were similar to those in wild-type mice. Furthermore, the study revealed that there were approximately 413,000 RAD21L and 453,000 REC8 molecules per spermatocyte in the early stages of prophase I.
JOURNAL OF REPRODUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT
(2023)
Review
Plant Sciences
Pablo Bolanos-Villegas
Summary: Cohesin, a crucial protein complex for cell division, plays a significant role in plant chromosome cohesion and genetic transmission. Understanding chromatid cohesion in plants can enhance the selection of desirable traits in commercial breeding. Research on chromatid cohesion offers opportunities for improving crop breeding outcomes.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Developmental Biology
Oleksandr Kirsanov, Taylor Johnson, Taylor Malachowski, Bryan A. Niedenberger, Emma A. Gilbert, Debajit Bhowmick, P. Hande Ozdinler, Douglas A. Gray, Kelsey Fisher-Wellman, Brian P. Hermann, Christopher B. Geyer
Summary: We have developed a facile in vitro differentiation and meiotic initiation system that can be manipulated using chemical agents that cannot be administered to live animals. Additionally, we introduced a transgenic mouse model enabling the isolation of specific developmental stages of spermatogonia and meiotic spermatocytes.
Article
Cell Biology
Rui Wu, Junfeng Zhan, Bo Zheng, Zhen Chen, Jianbo Li, Changrong Li, Rong Liu, Xinhua Zhang, Xiaoyan Huang, Mengcheng Luo
Summary: The study reveals that SYMPK plays a critical role in male germ cells development, and its knockout leads to male infertility in mice. Deletion of SYMPK affects spermatogenesis and meiotic progression by influencing alternative splicing and gene expression.
FRONTIERS IN CELL AND DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Cell Biology
Haixia Xu, Jiahua Guo, Wei Wu, Qiu Han, Yueru Huang, Yaling Wang, Cencen Li, Xiaofang Cheng, Pengpeng Zhang, Yongjie Xu
Summary: This study reveals that hnRNPK plays a crucial role in spermatogenesis and male fertility. HnRNPK is strongly expressed in the mouse testis and is mainly localized in the nucleus of germ cells. Depletion of hnRNPK in male germ cells leads to developmental abnormalities in the testis and infertility in males. The absence of hnRNPK in spermatocytes causes meiotic arrest and impairs the production of mature sperm.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Yulia Gryaznova, Leonor Keating, Sandra A. Touati, Damien Cladiere, Warif El Yakoubi, Eulalie Buffin, Katja Wassmann
Summary: This research explores the separation of sister kinetochores and removal of cohesin during meiosis, revealing that the initial separation of sister kinetochores actually occurs during meiosis I, not meiosis II as previously thought. This indicates that whether centromeric cohesin is removed or not is determined by the kinetochore structure prior to meiosis II.
Article
Plant Sciences
Marie Kratka, Jakub Smerda, Katerina Lojdova, Petr Bures, Frantisek Zedek
Summary: The centromere drive model explains an evolutionary process caused by centromeric repeats expansion, resulting in preferential segregation of an expanded centromere. The histone protein CenH3 plays a key role in adaptive evolution to counter the detrimental effects of centromere drive. Holocentric chromosomes may prevent centromere drive through their unique kinetochore structure.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Paul Batty, Christoph C. H. Langer, Zsuzsanna Takacs, Wen Tang, Claudia Blaukopf, Jan-Michael Peters, Daniel W. Gerlich
Summary: Genetic information is stored in folded linear DNA molecules inside cells. During cell division, sister chromatids need to be disentangled and condensed into separate bodies for proper separation. In human cells, sister chromatids are extensively resolved during interphase, depending on the loop-extruding activity of cohesin. Increasing cohesin's looping capability can further enhance sister DNA resolution, even in the absence of mitosis-specific activities.
Article
Cell Biology
Wei Ma, Jingwen Zhou, Jian Chen, Antony M. Carr, Yoshinori Watanabe
Summary: The study elucidates the molecular mechanisms of Moa1 in regulating centromeric cohesion protection by associating with Plo1 kinase to control Rec8 phosphorylation, enhancing the activity of PP2A associated with Sgo1, and preventing the cleavage of Rec8 by separase through dephosphorylation at another site.
GENES & DEVELOPMENT
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Christopher Thomas, Benjamin Wetherall, Mark D. Levasseur, Rebecca J. Harris, Scott T. Kerridge, Jonathan M. G. Higgins, Owen R. Davies, Suzanne Madgwick
Summary: The study reveals an excess of securin over separase in mouse oocytes during meiosis I, with a mechanism promoting securin destruction in prometaphase I. This destruction mechanism relies on specific residues within securin that are exposed when not bound to separase. The authors suggest that this mechanism is crucial for successful meiotic progression in mouse oocytes by ensuring the removal of non-separase-bound securin before metaphase.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Cell Biology
Kazi Nazrul Islam, Maitri Mitesh Modi, Kellee Renee Siegfried
Summary: The SMC1β protein plays a crucial role in meiosis in vertebrates, primarily involved in meiosis in both fish and mammals. In zebrafish, Smc1b is essential for the leptotene to zygotene transition in spermatogenesis, with key differences in Smc1b requirement for meiosis observed among vertebrates.
FRONTIERS IN CELL AND DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Plant Sciences
Chiara Di Dio, Heidi Serra, Pierre Sourdille, James D. Higgins
Summary: During meiosis, ASYNAPSIS 1 (ASY1) promotes inter-homolog recombination, synapsis, and crossover formation. Decreased chiasmata and delayed meiotic prophase I progression were observed in asy1 hypomorphic mutants, while asy1 null mutants showed arrested development. On the other hand, the ectopic recombination between non-homologous chromosomes increased in these mutants. Therefore, asy1 mutants can be used to enhance recombination between wheat wild relatives and elite varieties for accelerating the introgression of important agronomic traits.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2023)
Review
Cell Biology
Rachel Beverley, Meredith L. Snook, Miguel Angel Brieno-Enriquez
Summary: Successful human reproduction relies on the well-orchestrated development of competent gametes through the process of meiosis. Cohesin proteins play a crucial role in establishing sister chromatid cohesion, essential for proper DNA repair and chromosome segregation. Failure to replenish cohesin proteins loaded during female fetal life may contribute to age-related aneuploidy in oocytes.
FRONTIERS IN CELL AND DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2021)