Meiosis is a specialized cell division that gives rise to sperm and egg cells that bear half the amount of DNA as other cells in the body. Recombination occurs at the onset of meiosis and is particularly important to the partitioning of DNA into sperm and egg cells. During recombination, chromosomes with high sequence similarity become physically joined and swap pieces of their genetic material. The frequency of recombination and the placement of recombination events along paired chromosomes are highly variable among individuals. Using the house mouse as a model system, this research will combine molecular genetic methods with new techniques for imaging cells undergoing meiosis and the cellular proteins that mediate recombination to identify the genetic factors that control the amounts and chromosomal locations of recombination during meiosis.
This project will provide research opportunities for undergraduate students and will support the continued training of a female graduate student in quantitative and statistical methods, an area of genetics in which women are under-represented. Additionally, this project will promote multidisciplinary collaboration among statisticians, evolutionary biologists, and molecular biologists. Finally, understanding the genetic basis of variation in recombination has important applications for health. Aberrant recombination is linked to infertility and sterility, and identifying the genes that contribute to variation in recombination has potential application to these challenges.
