Abstract
The relationship of late recombination nodules (RNs) to chiasmata and crossing-over was examined in a short defined chromosome region of Allium fistulosum. The nucleolus organising region (NOR) occupies a subterminal position on the short arm of the most acrocentric bivalent of this species and is easily recognised in surface spread pachytene synaptonemal complexes (SCs) and at metaphase I and anaphase I. Some of the plants examined had heteromorphic nucleolus organising short arms, involving deletion of the NOR from one homologue. This system allowed comparison of late RN frequency in pachytene SCs with metaphase-I chiasma frequency, and also with crossover frequency based on first division segregation of the NOR deletion. Despite general and localised deficits of late RNs compared to chiasmata and crossovers in A. fistulosum, the frequency of late RNs in this defined short region did not differ significantly from the other estimates of recombination frequency.
Similar content being viewed by others
Article PDF
References
Albini, S M, and Jones, G H. 1984. Synaptonemal complex associated centromeres and recombination nodules in plant meiocytes prepared by an improved surface-spreading technique. Exp Cell Res, 155, 558–592.
Albini, S M, and Jones, G H. 1987. Synaptonemal complex spreading in Allium cepa and A. fistulosum I. The initiationand sequence of pairing. Chromosoma, 95, 324–338.
Albini, S M, and Jones, G H. 1988. Synaptonemal complex spreading in Allium cepa and A. fistulosum II. Pachytene observations. The SC karyotype and the correspondence of late recombination nodules and chiasmata. Genome, in press.
Brown, S W, and Zohary, D. 1955. The relationship of chiasmata and crossing-over in Lilium formosanum. Genetics, 40, 850–873.
Burgoyne, R S, and Baker, T G. 1984. Meiotic pairing and gametogenic failure. In Evans C. W. and Dickinson, H. G. (eds), Society forExperimental Biology Symposium 38, Company of Biologists, Cambridge.
Carpenter, A T C. 1979. Synaptonemal complex and recombination nodules in wild-type Drosophila melanogaster females. Genetics, 92, 511–541.
Carpenter, A T C. 1984. Recombination nodules and the mechanism of crossing-over in Drosophila. In Evans, C. W. and Dickinson, H. G. (eds), Society for Experimental Biology Symposium 38, Company of Biologists, Cambridge.
Carpenter, A T C. 1987. Gene conversion, recombination nodules, and the initiation of meioticsynapsis. Bioessays, 6, 232–236.
Evans, E P, Burtenshaw, M D, and Cattanach, B M. 1982. Meiotic crossing-over between the X and Y chromosomes of males carrying the sex reversing (Sxr) factor. Nature, 300, 443–445.
Glamann, J. 1986. Crossing over in the male mouse as analysed by recombination nodules andbars. Carlsberg Res Commun, 51, 143–162.
Holm, P B, and Rasmussen, S W. 1983. Human meiosis VI. Crossing over in human spermatocytes. CarlsbergRes Commun, 48, 385–413.
Hultén, M. 1974. Chiasma distribution at diakinesis in the normal human male. Hereditas, 76, 55–78.
Jones, G H, and Albini, S M. (In press). Meiotic roles of nodule structures in zygotene and pachytene nuclei of Angiosperms. In Brandham P.E. and Bennet M. D. (eds). Kew Chromosome Conference III
Keitges, E, Rivest, M, Siniscalco, M, and Gartler, S M. 1985. X-linkage of steroid sulphatase in the mouse is evidence for a functional-Y-linked allele. Nature 315, 226–227.
Loidl, J, and Greilhuber, J. 1983. Structural changes of Ag-NORs andnucleoli during meiosis in Allium flavum. Canad J Genet Cytol, 25, 524–529.
Loidl, J, and Jones, G H. 1986. Synaptonemal complex spreading in Allium I. Triploid A. sphaerocephalon. Chromosoma, 93, 420–428.
Mather, K. 1935. Reductional and equational separation of the chromosomes in bivalents and multivalents. J Genet, 30, 53–78.
Orellana, J, and Giraldez, R. 1981. Metaphase I bound arms and crossing-over frequency in rye. Chromosoma, 84, 439–449.
Rahn, M I, and Solari, A J. 1986. Recombination nodules in the oocytes of the domestic chicken Gallus domesticus. Cytogenet Cell Genet, 43, 187–198.
Rouyer, F, Simmler, M C, Johnsson, C, Vergnaud, G, Cooke, H J, and Weissenbach, J. 1986. A gradient of sex linkage in the pseudoautosomal region of the human sex chromosomes. Nature, 319, 291–295.
Vosa, C G. 1976. Heterochromatic patterns in Allium. I. The relationship between the species of the cepa group and its allies. Heredity, 36, 383–392.
Von Wettstein, D, Rasmussen, S W, and Holm, P B. 1984. The synaptonemal complex in genetic segregation. Ann Rev Genet, 18, 331–413.
Zen, S. 1961. Chiasma studies in structural hybrids. VI. Heteromorphic bivalent and reciprocal translocation in Allium fistulosum. Cytologia, 26, 67–73.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Jones, G., Albini, S. Recombination nodules, chiasmata and crossing-over in the nucleolus organizing short arm of Allium fistulosum. Heredity 61, 217–224 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1038/hdy.1988.108
Received:
Issue date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/hdy.1988.108
