The role of Drosophila melanogaster condensin I subunits during male meiosis

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Stefan Heidmann
• Subject Area: Cell Biology
• Term: from 2012 to 2016
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 216907971

The heteropentameric condensin complex has been shown to be involved in establishing and main-taining the condensed structure of mitotic and meiotic chromosomes. While in vertebrates the role of two condensin complexes, condensin I and condensin II, has been well established during both mito-sis and meiosis, the diverged condensin II complex in Drosophila is not required for mitotic prolifera-tion. However, mutations in the condensin II-specific genes Cap-H2 and Cap-D3 result in defects dur-ing oogenesis, male meiosis and spermatogenesis. Possible roles for the condensin I-specific components in male meiosis and during spermatogenesis have not been investigated. However, the genes encoding condensin I-specific subunits are expressed in testes. Thus, experiments are proposed to specifically remove condensin I function in testes via RNAi or targeted proteolytic cleavage and to determine possible phenotypes during male meiosis and/or sperm chromatin maturation.

• DFG Programme: Priority Programmes
• Subproject of: SPP 1384: Mechanisms of Genome Haploidisation