The molecular control of meiotic double-strand break (DSB) formation and its significance in human infertility / 亚洲男科学杂志(英文版)

Meiosis is an essential step in gametogenesis which is the key process in sexually reproducing organisms as meiotic aberrations may result in infertility. In meiosis, programmed DNA double-strand break (DSB) formation is one of the fundamental processes that are essential for maintaining homolog interactions and correcting segregation of chromosomes. Although the number and distribution of meiotic DSBs are tightly regulated, still abnormalities in DSB formation are known to cause meiotic arrest and infertility. This review is a detailed account of molecular bases of meiotic DSB formation, its evolutionary conservation, and variations in different species. We further reviewed the mutations of DSB formation genes in association with human infertility and also proposed the future directions and strategies about the study of meiotic DSB formation.

Synaptonemal complex: the fundamental structure of meiosis / 生理学报

Meiosis is a special type of cell division to produce haploid gametes with intact genome. The behavior of homologous chromosomes during the first division (meiosis prophase I) is the most prominent feature of meiosis. During meiosis prophase I, synaptonemal complex (SC) formed between homologous chromosomes to promote the initiation and repair of programmed DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs), which is necessary for the correct recognition, pairing, recombination and separation of homologous chromosomes. In this paper, we reviewed the recent research progress on the composition and function of SC, discussed how the assembly of SC affected the repair of DSBs, and also summarized the known mutations on SC genes which were responsible for human reproductive disorders. On this basis, we also explored the future research direction of this field.