Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 11, 2026

Efficient and Rapid Isolation of Early-stage Embryos from Arabidopsis thaliana Seeds
Published on: June 7, 2013
SCEP3 initiates synapsis and implements crossover interference in Arabidopsis
Paul J Seear1, Henry J A Dowling1, Maja Szymańska-Lejman2,3
1Division of Genetics and Genome Biology, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.
None:
The synaptonemal complex (SC) is a meiosis-specific tripartite proteinaceous structure that regulates the number and positions of crossovers (COs). Here we characterize SCEP3, a new Arabidopsis SC component that is essential for CO assurance, promoting positive CO interference and preventing negative CO interference. SCEP3 localizes to the chromosome axes as numerous foci at leptotene, of which a small proportion cluster as large foci that initiate synapsis. SCEP3 then relocates to the central region of the SC as ZYP1 polymerizes. In the absence of SCEP3, homologues align but do not synapse. In the scep3 mutants, COs increase in number towards the chromosome ends and are more likely to cluster together. SCEP3 encodes an 801-amino-acid intrinsically disordered protein that is structurally similar to SIX6OS1 in mammals and SYP-4 in nematodes, containing phenylalanine repeats at the amino terminus and a carboxy-terminal coiled-coil, suggesting that it is a fundamentally conserved SC component across kingdoms.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Crossing Over
Crossing Over
The homologous pairs of sister chromosomes—one from the maternal and one from the paternal genome—then begin to align alongside each other lengthwise, matching corresponding DNA positions in a process...
Cis-regulatory Sequences
Dihybrid Crosses
Cell Signaling in Plants
Separation of Sister Chromatids
At the onset of anaphase, separase, a proteolytic enzyme, is...

