Rumors of Its Disassembly Have Been Greatly Exaggerated: The Secret Life of the Synaptonemal Complex at the Centromeres

Satomi Takeo,R Scott Hawley,Gregory P Copenhaver

doi:10.1371/journal.pgen.1002807

Abstract

Rumors of Its Disassembly Have Been Greatly Exaggerated: The Secret Life of the Synaptonemal Complex at the Centromeres

Highlights

Several recent studies have suggested much earlier functions for centromeres and detailed post-pachytene functions of the synaptonemal complex (SC)
In this issue of PLoS Genetics, two studies of mammalian spermatocytes [10,11] demonstrate that while the centromeres are not involved in synaptic initiation in mammals, stretches of the SC at paired centromeres and at sites of crossing over do persist beyond the breakdown of synapsis along the chromosome arms at the end of pachytene
The SC is structurally complex, it may be thought of as consisting primarily of three components: lateral elements that run along the entire length of each homolog; transverse filaments that, like the teeth of a zipper, serve to connect the two lateral elements of the SC; and a set of proteins located at the center of the SC

Summary

Introduction

Several recent studies have suggested much earlier functions for centromeres (at least in some organisms) and detailed post-pachytene functions of the SC. Studies in budding yeast, Drosophila, and higher plants provide evidence that centromeres play an important role in the initiation of synapsis in these systems [1,2,3,4,5]. Building on earlier work [6,7], recent studies have clearly demonstrated that in both yeast and flies the SC persists at the centromeres long after the end of pachytene— at least until late prophase [1,8,9]—and that these regions of centromeric pairing and synapsis play important roles in mediating segregation at anaphase I (see below).

Results

Conclusion