Our cells carry two copies of each chromosome, one inherited from each parent. Meiosis is a key biological process that reduces the number of the chromosomes to compensate for a doubling that occurs during fertilization, when the paternal (sperm) and maternal (egg) germ cells fuse. During meiosis, genetic information gets newly assorted and exchanged between paternal and maternal chromosomes, which is an important driver of genetic diversity. Meiosis is a key developmental program found in humans, plants, and animals alike. Errors in meiosis are linked to genetic disorders and infertility. “We still lack a comprehensive understanding of the mechanistic details of the many steps taking place during meiosis”, explains Verena Jantsch. “In our new special research programme, we will address basic mechanisms that support meiosis in numerous model organisms and humans, as well as investigate how parthenogenetic organisms, which reproduce asexually, repurpose meiosis”.
The programme includes the groups of Christopher Campbell, Verena Jantsch, Franz Klein, Joao Matos, Peter Schlögelhofer and Alexander Dammermann from the Max Perutz Labs, Anton Goloborodko (IMBA), Irene Tiemann-Boege (JKU), and Beatriz Vicoso (IST). The project leaders bring complementary expertise in cell biology, genetics, biochemistry, structural and computational biology and mathematical modelling to address fundamental questions in meiosis. “None of the projects could be done alone, requiring expertise that goes beyond what is covered by each group. By combining our different approaches, we will create a truly multidisciplinary programme to study this fascinating fundamental process, which is at the heart of genetics”, concludes Verena Jantsch.
About the special research programme by the Austrian Science Fund:
Funding: approximately 3,7 million € for 4 years
Involved Groups: 9 groups from 4 institutes/universities
Goal: establishing a highly productive, interdisciplinary research group to answer complex research questions
Voyage of the Starships: giant transposons as crucibles of evolution
Parthenogenesis, cryptobiosis, and the survival in extreme environmental conditions
Evading ageing: Mitochondrial and proteostatic adaptations in oocytes
Genomes in Rhodnius prolixus symbiotic system
Stem cells, immune evasion and metastasis in colorectal cancer
Ubiquitin & Friends Symposium 2024
The Ubiquitin & Friends Symposium is an annual international meeting taking place in the beautiful capital of Austria, aiming to bring together scholars from various fields studying ubiquitin/Ubl biology and protein degradation in a personal, family-like atmosphere, as suggested by the name.
The evolution and development of mollusc shells
Unraveling the Complexity of Crossover Regulation in C. elegans
Dynamics of 3D Genome Structure and Function
How superworms can help to solve our plastic waste crisis
Title to be announced
New players in an old pathway: biology of methanogens of the TACK superphylum
Shaping morphogen gradients: from molecules to tissues and back
Title to be announced
Studying stressed cells by in situ structural biology
Exploring Microbial Resilience: Unravelling Escherichia coliand#x27;s Stress Response at the Level of Protein Synthesis
Arbuscular mycorrhiza development and function
Deep homology and deep diversity: Evolving genetic toolkits for making and sensing light
The evolution of cell type identity and tissue microecology at the fetal-maternal interface
The unanticipated roles of PICIs and phages in bacterial evolution
Chemical targeting of subcellular protein localization
Origin and diversification of gut-derived organs in chordates
Job's Dilemma for the Genome: Why Bad Things Happen to Good Chromosomes
Connections between carbon and nitrogen cycling in the ocean
Understanding how the DNA-loop-extruding protein complex Condensin folds a chromatinized genome into mitotic chromosomes
DrugMap: A quantitative pan-cancer analysis of cysteine ligandability
From Roads to Rivers? Occurrence and environmental fate of tire and road wear particles and of tire-related chemicals
FENS 2024 Satellite event: Home cage behavior monitoring at the interface of animal welfare and neuroscience
Striking physiology and cell biology of (marine) environmental microorganisms
Mechanisms controlling maintenance of cohesin dependent loops
Title to be announced