A discrete class of intergenic DNA dictates meiotic DNA break hotspots in fission yeast

Meiotic recombination is initiated by DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) made by Spo11 (Rec12 in fission yeast), which becomes covalently linked to the DSB ends. Like recombination events, DSBs occur at hotspots in the genome, but the genetic factors responsible for most hotspots have remained elusive....

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:PLoS genetics 2007-08, Vol.3 (8), p.e141-e141
Main Authors: Cromie, Gareth A, Hyppa, Randy W, Cam, Hugh P, Farah, Joseph A, Grewal, Shiv I S, Smith, Gerald R
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Binding sites
Blotting, Southern
Chromosome Mapping
Chromosomes
Chromosomes, Fungal
Deoxyribonucleic acid
DNA
DNA Breaks, Double-Stranded
DNA repair
DNA, Intergenic - physiology
Eukaryotes
Experiments
Fungi
Genetic aspects
Genetic diversity
Genetic recombination
Genetics and Genomics
Genomes
Hybridization
Meiosis
Meiosis - genetics
Proteins
Ratios
S. Pombe
Schizosaccharomyces - genetics
Schizosaccharomyces pombe Proteins - genetics
Schizosaccharomyces pombe Proteins - physiology
Yeast
Yeast fungi
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Summary:Meiotic recombination is initiated by DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) made by Spo11 (Rec12 in fission yeast), which becomes covalently linked to the DSB ends. Like recombination events, DSBs occur at hotspots in the genome, but the genetic factors responsible for most hotspots have remained elusive. Here we describe in fission yeast the genome-wide distribution of meiosis-specific Rec12-DNA linkages, which closely parallel DSBs measured by conventional Southern blot hybridization. Prominent DSB hotspots are located approximately 65 kb apart, separated by intervals with little or no detectable breakage. Most hotspots lie within exceptionally large intergenic regions. Thus, the chromosomal architecture responsible for hotspots in fission yeast is markedly different from that of budding yeast, in which DSB hotspots are much more closely spaced and, in many regions of the genome, occur at each promoter. Our analysis in fission yeast reveals a clearly identifiable chromosomal feature that can predict the majority of recombination hotspots across a whole genome and provides a basis for searching for the chromosomal features that dictate hotspots of meiotic recombination in other organisms, including humans.
ISSN:1553-7404
1553-7390
1553-7404
DOI:10.1371/journal.pgen.0030141