High-resolution mapping of crossovers reveals extensive variation in fine-scale recombination patterns among humans

Recombination plays a crucial role in meiosis, ensuring the proper segregation of chromosomes. Recent linkage disequilibrium (LD) and sperm-typing studies suggest that recombination rates vary tremendously across the human genome, with most events occurring in narrow "hotspots." To examine variation in fine-scale recombination patterns among individuals, we used dense, genome-wide single-nucleotide polymorphism data collected in nuclear families to localize crossovers with high spatial resolution. This analysis revealed that overall recombination hotspot usage is similar in males and females, with individual hotspots often active in both sexes. Across the genome, roughly 60% of crossovers occurred in hotspots inferred from LD studies. Notably, however, we found extensive and heritable variation among both males and females in the proportion of crossovers occurring in these hotspots.     

A fine-scale map of recombination rates and hotspots across the human genome

Genetic maps, which document the way in which recombination rates vary over a genome, are an essential tool for many genetic analyses. We present a high-resolution genetic map of the human genome, based on statistical analyses of genetic variation data, and identify more than 25,000 recombination hotspots, together with motifs and sequence contexts that play a role in hotspot activity. Differences between the behavior of recombination rates over large (megabase) and small (kilobase) scales lead us to suggest a two-stage model for recombination in which hotspots are stochastic features, within a framework in which large-scale rates are constrained.     

Genetics. Motivating hotspots

Only recently have we begun to characterize fine-scale recombination rates in mammals. In her Perspective, Przeworski discusses the work by Myers et al. in which linkage disequilibrium data have been used to produce a high-resolution recombination map for most of the human genome. More than 25,000 putative hotspots have been identified, as well as the first motifs that appear to influence their intensity.     

A fine-scale chimpanzee genetic map from population sequencing

To study the evolution of recombination rates in apes, we developed methodology to construct a fine-scale genetic map from high-throughput sequence data from 10 Western chimpanzees, Pan troglodytes verus. Compared to the human genetic map, broad-scale recombination rates tend to be conserved, but with exceptions, particularly in regions of chromosomal rearrangements and around the site of ancestral fusion in human chromosome 2. At fine scales, chimpanzee recombination is dominated by hotspots, which show no overlap with those of humans even though rates are similarly elevated around CpG islands and decreased within genes. The hotspot-specifying protein PRDM9 shows extensive variation among Western chimpanzees, and there is little evidence that any sequence motifs are enriched in hotspots. The contrasting locations of hotspots provide a natural experiment, which demonstrates the impact of recombination on base composition.     

Comparison of fine-scale recombination rates in humans and chimpanzees

We compared fine-scale recombination rates at orthologous loci in humans and chimpanzees by analyzing polymorphism data in both species. Strong statistical evidence for hotspots of recombination was obtained in both species. Despite approximately 99% identity at the level of DNA sequence, however, recombination hotspots were found rarely (if at all) at the same positions in the two species, and no correlation was observed in estimates of fine-scale recombination rates. Thus, local patterns of recombination rate have evolved rapidly, in a manner disproportionate to the change in DNA sequence.     

High direct estimate of the mutation rate in the mitochondrial genome of Caenorhabditis elegans

Mutations in the mitochondrial genome have been implicated in numerous human genetic disorders and offer important data for phylogenetic, forensic, and population genetic studies. Using a long-term series of Caenorhabditis elegans mutation accumulation lines, we performed a wide-scale screen for mutations in the mitochondrial genome that revealed a mutation rate that is two orders of magnitude higher than previous indirect estimates, a highly biased mutational spectrum, multiple mutations affecting coding function, as well as mutational hotspots at homopolymeric nucleotide stretches.     

甘薯羽状斑驳病毒O株系和RC株系中国分离物全基因组序列分析及其遗传特征

【目的】对甘薯羽状斑驳病毒(Sweet potato feathery mottle virus,SPFMV)O株系中国分离物(SPFMV-O-Ch1)和RC株系中国分离物(SPFMV-RC-Ch1)的基因组全序列进行克隆,明确SPFMV-O-Ch1和SPFMV-RC-Ch1的基因组结构特征及其遗传变异情况,为研究甘薯羽状斑驳病毒的致病机制打下基础。【方法】根据GenBank中登录的SPFMV基因组全序列设计2对简并引物和3对特异性引物,利用RT-PCR方法,从感染SPFMV的甘薯叶片中扩增SPFMV O株系和RC株系中国分离物的基因组全长序列,将目的片段分别克隆到pMD19-T载体上,经序列测定、分析和拼接,获得SPFMV-O-Ch1和SPFMV-RC-Ch1的全序列,利用DNAMAN和MEGA7对SPFMV基因组全序列及不同编码区序列进行遗传变异和系统进化树分析,利用RDP软件分析SPFMV基因组重组情况。【结果】经序列测定和拼接,结果表明SPFMV-O-Ch1和SPFMV-RC-Ch1基因组分别包含10 922和10 851 nt,均包含一个开放阅读框,分别由10 557和10 ...     

The structure of haplotype blocks in the human genome

Haplotype-based methods offer a powerful approach to disease gene mapping, based on the association between causal mutations and the ancestral haplotypes on which they arose. As part of The SNP Consortium Allele Frequency Projects, we characterized haplotype patterns across 51 autosomal regions (spanning 13 megabases of the human genome) in samples from Africa, Europe, and Asia. We show that the human genome can be parsed objectively into haplotype blocks: sizable regions over which there is little evidence for historical recombination and within which only a few common haplotypes are observed. The boundaries of blocks and specific haplotypes they contain are highly correlated across populations. We demonstrate that such haplotype frameworks provide substantial statistical power in association studies of common genetic variation across each region. Our results provide a foundation for the construction of a haplotype map of the human genome, facilitating comprehensive genetic association studies of human disease.     

Phylogeny and Homologous Recombination in Japanese Encephalitis Viruses

Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) is a significant causative agent of arthropod-borne encephalitis and what is less clear that the factors cause the virus wide spread. The objective was to confirm whet...     

Prokaryotic chromosomes and disease

Recent insights into bacterial genome organization and function have improved our understanding of the nature of pathogenic bacteria and their ability to cause disease. It is becoming increasingly clear that the bacterial chromosome constantly undergoes structural changes due to gene acquisition and loss, recombination, and mutational events that have an impact on the pathogenic potential of the bacterium. Even though the bacterial genome includes additional genetic elements, the chromosome represents the most important entity in this context. Here, we will show that various processes of genomic instability have an influence on the many manifestations of infectious disease.     

Maintenance of genome stability in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Most human cancer cells show signs of genome instability, ranging from elevated mutation rates to gross chromosomal rearrangements and alterations in chromosome number. Little is known about the molecular mechanisms that generate this instability or how it is suppressed in normal cells. Recent studies of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae have begun to uncover the extensive and redundant pathways that keep the rate of genome rearrangements at very low levels. These studies, which we review here, have implicated more than 50 genes in the suppression of genome instability, including genes that function in S-phase checkpoints, recombination pathways, and telomere maintenance. Human homologs of several of these genes have well-established roles as tumor suppressors, consistent with the hypothesis that the mechanisms preserving genome stability in yeast are the same mechanisms that go awry in cancer.     

ACLSV山东苹果分离物基因重组及CP序列多样性分析

【目的】明确苹果褪绿叶斑病毒（Apple chlorotic leaf spot virus,ACLSV）山东苹果分离物全基因组的分子特征、潜在重组事件及CP基因的多样性。【方法】采用RT-PCR分段扩增、克隆、拼接获得ACLSV全基因组序列,对其进行分子特征描述,并与已报道的16条全长基因组或近全长基因组序列进行比较和系统发育分析,同时扩增其CP进行多样性分析。【结果】扩增得到ACLSV山东苹果分离物QD-13全基因组序列（GenBank登录号KJ522693）,QD-13全长7 557 nt,包含3个ORF。构建进化树分析表明,QD-13与日本苹果分离物B6聚为一簇,二者相似性最高,为85.9%。17条ACLSV分离物基因组分段比较表明,5′端和3′端差异较大;ORF3保守性相对较高,除分离物Ta Tao 5和MS外,其推导的氨基酸序列相似性均在91.2%以上。ORF1编码区527-665 aa区域保守性差,所比较的17条序列在该区域的相似性为15.4%-59.7%。基因组重组分析以P≤0.05为标准,3种以上算法同时检测到则为有意义重组事件,结果显示,QD-13存在3个重组事件,它们分别发生在6 507-6 247、6 397-6 497和3 851-4 760 nt。扩增QD-15、QD-20和YT-24分离物ACLSV的CP,共获得22条序列,可分为3种类型。对CP氨基酸序列进行比对分析表明,3种类型为不同氨基酸保守位点的组合,分别是Met⁶⁰-Ser⁷³-Ser⁷⁹-Asp⁸²-Asn⁹⁷-Gly⁹⁸、Leu⁵⁹-Met⁸³-Ile¹⁹³和Ala⁴⁰- Leu⁶⁰-Ala⁷²-Phe⁷⁵-Ile⁸⁶-Arg⁸⁸-Ser¹³⁰-Gly¹³⁷-Met¹⁸⁴。【结论】报道了中国ACLSV苹果分离物的完整基因组序列;明确了其基因组分子特点并发现了3个主要的潜在重组事件;ACLSV山东苹果分离物CP存在3种序列类型,具有丰富的多样性。     

Hopping hotspots: global shifts in marine biodiversity

Hotspots of high species diversity are a prominent feature of modern global biodiversity patterns. Fossil and molecular evidence is starting to reveal the history of these hotspots. There have been at least three marine biodiversity hotspots during the past 50 million years. They have moved across almost half the globe, with their timing and locations coinciding with major tectonic events. The birth and death of successive hotspots highlights the link between environmental change and biodiversity patterns. The antiquity of the taxa in the modern Indo-Australian Archipelago hotspot emphasizes the role of pre-Pleistocene events in shaping modern diversity patterns.     

蒿属植物叶绿体基因组特征及进化

蒿属植物具有重要的药用和经济价值,开展蒿属物种叶绿体基因组研究,为我国蒿属植物的分类鉴定和资源利用提供借鉴。基于29个蒿属物种叶绿体基因组序列,采用REPuter、MISA、DNASP和IQ-TREE等生物信息学软件,比较叶绿体基因组特征、序列重复和结构变异,并对蒿属物种系统发育进行分析。结果表明,蒿属叶绿体基因组均由大单拷贝(LSC)区、小单拷贝(SSC)区和1对反向重复(IRs)区构成,基因组序列长度150 858～151 318 bp, GC含量相近。所有蒿属叶绿体基因组均注释到114个unique基因,包含80个蛋白编码基因、30个tRNA基因和4个rRNA基因。蒿属叶绿体基因组长重复序列主要由正向重复和回文重复构成,长度30～49 bp。简单重复序列(SSR)主要由A/T碱基构成,其中单碱基重复最多,其次为四碱基重复。RSCU(相对同义密码子使用度)值大于1的30个高频密码子中,13个以A结尾,16个以T结尾。蒿属植物叶绿体基因组结构高度相似,未检测到基因重排或倒置事件。检测到11个核苷酸变异值P_i>0.007的高变区,其中8个位于LSC区,3个位...     

鳞翅目昆虫线粒体DNA的研究进展*

 线粒体DNA（mtDNA）具有母性遗传,缺乏重组和进化速度快等特点,是研究鳞翅目昆虫系统学常用的分子标记。分析了鳞翅目昆虫线粒体DNA的结构特点,并就近年来对鳞翅目昆虫中进行过mtDNA研究的基因片段进行了简要综述,旨在为今后鳞翅目昆虫学研究提供参考。     

Complete chemical synthesis, assembly, and cloning of a Mycoplasma genitalium genome

We have synthesized a 582,970-base pair Mycoplasma genitalium genome. This synthetic genome, named M. genitalium JCVI-1.0, contains all the genes of wild-type M. genitalium G37 except MG408, which was disrupted by an antibiotic marker to block pathogenicity and to allow for selection. To identify the genome as synthetic, we inserted "watermarks" at intergenic sites known to tolerate transposon insertions. Overlapping "cassettes" of 5 to 7 kilobases (kb), assembled from chemically synthesized oligonucleotides, were joined by in vitro recombination to produce intermediate assemblies of approximately 24 kb, 72 kb ("1/8 genome"), and 144 kb ("1/4 genome"), which were all cloned as bacterial artificial chromosomes in Escherichia coli. Most of these intermediate clones were sequenced, and clones of all four 1/4 genomes with the correct sequence were identified. The complete synthetic genome was assembled by transformation-associated recombination cloning in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, then isolated and sequenced. A clone with the correct sequence was identified. The methods described here will be generally useful for constructing large DNA molecules from chemically synthesized pieces and also from combinations of natural and synthetic DNA segments.     

Construction of Marker-Free GFP Transgenic Tobacco by Cre/Iox Site-Specific Recombination System

Marker-free GFP transgenic tobacco plants were constructed based on Cre/lox site-specific recombination system. A GFP gene was introduced into the tobacco genome using the Bar gene as a linked selectable marker flanked by recombination sites in a directed orientation. The Bar gene expression box was subsequently excised from the plant genome by a strategy of Cre gene retransformation. After removal of the Cre-NPT Ⅱ locus by genetic segregation through self-cross, plants that incorporated only the GFP transgene were obtained. Transgenic tobacco plants mediated by Agrobacterium tumefaciens were obtained, which resisted herbicide Basta and GFP expressed well, then the Cre gene was subsequently introduced into 5 plants of them, respectively, by retransformation. The leaf disks from Cre transgenic plants were used to test the resistance to Basta on the medium with 8 mg L-1 of PPT. The results showed that few discs were able to regenerate normally, and the excision at 76-100% efficiency depended on individual retransformation events. Evidence for a precise recombination event was confirmed by cloning the nucleotides sequence surrounding the lox sites of the Basta sensitive plants. The result indicated that the excision event in the recombination sites was precise and conservative, without loss or alteration of any submarginal nucleotides of the recombination sites. Bar gene excised plants were selfpollinated to allow segregation of the GFP gene from the Cre-NPT Ⅱ locus. The progenies from self-pollinated plants were scored for Kan senstivity, then the segregation of GFP gene from Cre-NPT Ⅱ locus in the Kan senstive plants were confirmed by PCR analysis subsequently. Hence, constructing marker-free transgenic tobacco plants by Cre/lox sitespecific recombination system was reliable, and the strategy presented here should be applicable to other plants for the construction of marker-free transgenic plants as well.     

Sequence variants in the RNF212 gene associate with genome-wide recombination rate

The genome-wide recombination rate varies between individuals, but the mechanism controlling this variation in humans has remained elusive. A genome-wide search identified sequence variants in the 4p16.3 region correlated with recombination rate in both males and females. These variants are located in the RNF212 gene, a putative ortholog of the ZHP-3 gene that is essential for recombinations and chiasma formation in Caenorhabditis elegans. It is noteworthy that the haplotype formed by two single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with the highest recombination rate in males is associated with a low recombination rate in females. Consequently, if the frequency of the haplotype changes, the average recombination rate will increase for one sex and decrease for the other, but the sex-averaged recombination rate of the population can stay relatively constant.     

Covariation of synaptonemal complex length and mammalian meiotic exchange rates

Analysis of recombination between loci (linkage analysis) has been a cornerstone of human genetic research, enabling investigators to localize and, ultimately, identify genetic loci. However, despite these efforts little is known about patterns of meiotic exchange in human germ cells or the mechanisms that control these patterns. Using recently developed immunofluorescence methodology to examine exchanges in human spermatocytes, we have identified remarkable variation in the rate of recombination within and among individuals. Subsequent analyses indicate that, in humans and mice, this variation is linked to differences in the length of the synaptonemal complex. Thus, at least in mammals, a physical structure, the synaptonemal complex, reflects genetic rather than physical distance.