Crossover recombination mediated by HIM-18/SLX4-associated nucleases

Meiosis is a specialized cell division program that results in the formation of haploid gametes (i.e., sperm and eggs) from diploid parental cells, and is essential for all sexually reproducing organisms. Crossover formation, the reciprocal exchange of genetic information during recombination, is critical for accurate meiotic chromosome segregation. Misregulation of crossover formation leads to genomic instability and aneuploidy (cells with the incorrect number of chromosomes), resulting in tumorigenesis, birth defects, miscarriages, and infertility in humans. Recently, a shuriken/Swiss army knife-like multi-nuclease complex has been implicated in processing various types of DNA repair intermediates. However, how these nucleases coordinate their functions during repair remained unclear. Our studies in C. elegans revealed genetic redundancies between these nucleases for meiotic crossover formation and that they promote distinct crossover control at different chromosome regions. Specifically, XPF-1 acts redundantly with both MUS-81 and SLX-1 to resolve Holliday junction recombination intermediates into crossover products at designated future crossover sites on chromosome arms. In contrast, SLX-1 is required for suppression of crossovers at the center region of chromosomes. Altogether, our studies have shed light on the interplay between structure-specific endonucleases and uncovered their ability to exert either positive or negative meiotic crossover control on a chromosome region-specific basis.