Sex-Specific Crossover Distributions and Variations in Interference Level along Arabidopsis thaliana Chromosome 4

Jan Drouaud (1) , Raphaël Mercier (1) , Liudmila Chelysheva (1) , Aurélie Bérard (2) , Matthieu Falque (3) , Olivier Martin (3) , Vanessa Zanni (4) , Dominique Brunel (2) , Christine Mezard (1)

1 IJPB - Institut Jean-Pierre Bourgin
2 UR Etude du Polymorphisme des Génomes végétaux
3 GQE-Le Moulon - Génétique Quantitative et Evolution - Le Moulon (Génétique Végétale)
4 UR254 - Unité de Recherche en Génétique et Amélioration des Plantes

In many species, sex-related differences in crossover (CO) rates have been described at chromosomal and regional levels. In this study, we determined the CO distribution along the entire Arabidopsis thaliana Chromosome 4 (18 Mb) in male and female meiosis, using high density genetic maps built on large backcross populations (44 markers, .1,300 plants). We observed dramatic differences between male and female map lengths that were calculated as 88 cM and 52 cM, respectively. This difference is remarkably parallel to that between the total synaptonemal complex lengths measured in male and female meiocytes by immunolabeling of ZYP1 (a component of the synaptonemal complex). Moreover, CO landscapes were clearly different: in particular, at both ends of the map, male CO rates were higher (up to 4-fold the mean value), whereas female CO rates were equal or even below the chromosomal average. This unique material gave us the opportunity to perform a detailed analysis of CO interference on Chromosome 4 in male and female meiosis. The number of COs per chromosome and the distances between them clearly departs from randomness. Strikingly, the interference level (measured by coincidence) varied significantly along the chromosome in male meiosis and was correlated to the physical distance between COs. The significance of this finding on the relevance of current CO interference models is discussed.

Mots clés: synaptonemal complex length; meiotic recombination; crossing-over; chiasma interference; human genome; individual chromosomes; female meiosis; hot-spots; rates; frequency; génétique; crossover; sex specific crossover

Domaines: Génétique

Jan Drouaud, Raphaël Mercier, Liudmila Chelysheva, Aurélie Bérard, Matthieu Falque, et al.. Sex-Specific Crossover Distributions and Variations in Interference Level along Arabidopsis thaliana Chromosome 4. PLoS Genetics, 2007, 3 (6), pp.1096-1107. ⟨10.1371/journal.pgen.0030106.eor⟩. ⟨hal-01203942⟩