Chromosome mobility during meiotic prophase in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.
In many organisms, a synaptonemal complex (SC) intimately connects each pair of homologous chromosomes during much of the first meiotic prophase and is thought to play a role in regulating recombination. In the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the central element of each SC contains Zip1, a protein orthologous to mammalian SYCP1. To study the dynamics of SCs in living meiotic cells, a functional ZIP1::GFP fusion was introduced into yeast and analyzed by fluorescence video microscopy. During pachytene, SCs exhibited dramatic and continuous movement throughout the nucleus, traversing relatively large distances while twisting, folding, and unfolding. Chromosomal movements were accompanied by changes in the shape of the nucleus, and all movements were reversibly inhibited by the actin antagonist Latrunculin B. Normal movement required the NDJ1 gene, which encodes a meiosis-specific telomere protein needed for the attachment of telomeres to the nuclear periphery and for normal kinetics of recombination and meiosis. These results show that SC movements involve telomere attachment to the nuclear periphery and are actin-dependent and suggest these movements could facilitate completion of meiotic recombination.
Scherthan
Harry
H
Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics, D-14195 Berlin, Germany.
Wang
Hailin
H
Adelfalk
Caroline
C
White
Eric J
EJ
Cowan
Carrie
C
Cande
W Zacheus
WZ
Kaback
David B
DB
D000199:Actins / Q000378:metabolism; D018797:Cell Cycle Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D002467:Cell Nucleus / Q000378:metabolism; D015825:Chromosomes, Fungal / Q000378:metabolism*; D007700:Kinetics; D049469:Meiotic Prophase I; D050296:Microbial Viability; D008870:Microtubules / Q000378:metabolism; D009687:Nuclear Proteins; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D011995:Recombination, Genetic; D012441:Saccharomyces cerevisiae / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism*; D029701:Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D013573:Synaptonemal Complex / Q000378:metabolism
D000199:Actins; D018797:Cell Cycle Proteins; C433703:Ndj1 protein, S cerevisiae; D009687:Nuclear Proteins; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins; D029701:Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins; C090118:Zip1 protein, S cerevisiae