L. E. Kursel

Unconventional conservation reveals structure-function relationships in the synaptonemal complex

The paper identifies unconventional conservation patterns in SC proteins across species, revealing that coiled-coil structure and length are conserved despite sequence divergence.

Synaptonemal Complex dimerization regulates chromosome alignment and crossover patterning in meiosis

This study identifies mutations in the Synaptonemal Complex dimerization interface in C. elegans that disrupt chromosome alignment and crossover patterning.

Gametic specialization of centromeric histone paralogs in Drosophila virilis

This study shows that two CenH3 paralogs in Drosophila virilis are specialized for male and female gametes, with Cid1 retained in oogenesis and Cid5 in sperm, and that Cid1 replaces Cid5 after fertilization.

Recurrent gene duplication leads to diverse repertoires of centromeric histones in Drosophila species

This study identifies four independent gene duplications of the centromeric histone gene Cid in Drosophila species, showing that duplicates localize to centromeres and may have subfunctionalized to perform distinct roles.