Factors influencing meiotic recombination revealed by whole-genome sequencing of single sperm
Hinch AG., Zhang G., Becker PW., Moralli D., Hinch R., Davies B., Bowden R., Donnelly P.
Sequencing and the single sperm During meiosis, homologous chromosomes undergo doublestrand breaks in DNA that can cross over, shuffling genetic material. However, not every double-strand break resolves in a crossover event. Hinch et al. wanted to determine the rules governing DNA recombination. They developed a method to sequence individual mouse sperm and applied it to mice carrying two different alleles of a protein involved in mammalian crossovers. A high-resolution genetic map revealed the relationships between the distribution of crossovers, proteins involved in recombination, and specific factors determining whether a double-strand break becomes a crossover. Science , this issue p. eaau8861