Regulation of centrioles in mammalian male meiosis

The aim of this project is to understand the regulation of the chromosome segregation apparatus, including centrioles and spindles, in male mouse meiosis.

Centrioles, which form centrosomes by recruiting pericentriolar material (PCM) proteins, function as a major microtubule organization center and are important for spindle assembly during chromosome segregation. The biology of male meiotic centrioles deviates from the canonical centriolar biology established in mitotic cells.

For example, centrioles duplicate once per cell cycle in mitotic cells, while there are two successive rounds of centriole duplication specifically in male meiosis. However, the underlying molecular regulation in male meiosis has remained largely unknown.

This project aims to understand the male meiosis-specific regulation of centrioles as well as the resultant structures (centrosomes and spindles) in order to gain insights into how chromosomes and centrioles are faithfully transmitted to an organism’s progeny through meiosis.

I have already identified key testis-specific proteins that ensure the duplication of centrioles and the spindle assembly in male meiosis (unpublished).

Defects in meiotic cell division result in human aneuploidy and congenital birth defects, thus the success of this project will have both a scientific and clinical impact.