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Meiosis is the generation of germ cells (eggs and sperm). In meiosis, DNA replication is followed by two division cycles: meiosis I, which segregates homologous chromosomes and meiosis II, which segregates sister chromatids. Thus, four daughter cells are generated that each contains one homologue of each chromosome.
The regulation of meiotic prophase progression varies between males and females. This study reveals the involvement of an atypical heat shock transcription factor HSF5 in gene expression during male meiotic prophase and highlights the involved gene regulatory mechanism.
Meiotic cells deliberately break their DNA to allow chromosomes to swap genetic material. Here, authors reveal genetically separable pathways controlling the seeding and growth of chromosome-bound protein condensates responsible for DNA breaks.
Meiosis is a specialized cell division for generating germ cells. The authors show that the lipid composition in the cellular membrane influences meiosis-specific chromosomal dynamics in mouse testis.
Gene expression dynamics are tightly regulated during spermatogenesis, with disruptions resulting in infertility. Here they identify a critical role for RNA PolII pausing in spermatogenesis and show that loss of the RNA PolII pausing factor NELF causes meiotic arrest.
A study in Science reports that corn snakes use both PRDM9 and promoter-like features to direct meiotic recombination, indicating that these are not mutually exclusive.
Suppressing ovulation protects against chromosomal abnormalities in ageing mouse oocytes, which can be partly explained by increasing REC8–cohesin retention on chromosomes.
Facultative heterochromatin occurs at regions that contain developmentally regulated genes. A study now reveals that the nutrient-sensitive TORC1 signalling pathway affects the RNA elimination machinery, thereby regulating the timely expression of meiotic genes embedded in facultative heterochromatic loci.
Independent efforts shine light on the 3D genome structure by looking at multiple contacts along an allele or equalizing the distance between restriction sites for higher-resolution Hi-C maps.