Abstract
Successful meiotic recombination is driven by a series of programmed chromosome dynamics that include changes in the protein composition of meiotic chromosomes and the juxtaposition of homologous chromosomes. The simultaneous visualization of both chromosome-bound proteins and the status of homologous association is an important experimental approach to analyze the mechanisms supporting proper meiotic chromosome association. One of a number of model organisms used for meiosis research, the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans offers an excellent environment to study meiotic chromosome dynamics. Here I will describe how to visualize both chromosome structure and specific chromosomal loci simultaneously, in a whole-mount C. elegans germ line. It combines immunofluorescent (IF) staining for a meiotic chromosome structural component with fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH).
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Acknowledgments
The author would like to thank Dr. Anne M. Villeneuve for extensive support and helpful suggestions during part of the development of this method as well as for providing anti-SYP-1 antibody and Dr. Raymond Chan for critical reading of the manuscript and insightful comments. This work was supported by March of Dimes, Basil O’Conner Starter Scholar Award (#5-FY07-666).
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Nabeshima, K. (2011). Chromosome Structure and Homologous Chromosome Association During Meiotic Prophase in Caenorhabditis elegans . In: Tsubouchi, H. (eds) DNA Recombination. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 745. Humana Press. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-61779-129-1_32
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-61779-129-1_32
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