Regensburg 2022 – scientific programme

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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik

BP 7: Poster 1

BP 7.11: Poster

Monday, September 5, 2022, 18:00–20:00, P1

Coarsening of biomolecular condensates regulate crossover placement in Meiosis I — •Marcel Ernst and David Zwicker — Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization, Göttingen, Germany

During meiosis, genetic information from female and male chromosomes is exchanged in a process called crossover. The dynamics that determine the positioning of these crossovers is largely not understood. Experimental observations consistently reveal two key findings: First, the number of crossovers per chromosome is at least one and is usually small, between one and three. Second, there is crossover interference, which prevents nearby crossovers on a single chromosome. We hypothesize that crossovers are determined by biomolecular condensates, which coarsen by exchanging material along chromosomes. We present theoretical and numerical results suggesting scaling laws analogous to Lifshitz-Slyozov-Wagner theory that predict the final number of crossovers, and their spatial structure as a function of coarsening time, chromosome length, and the initial amount of material. These results are consistent with current experimental findings in Arabidopsis thaliana and suggest how cells use a fundamental coarsening process to regulate spatial patterns.