# Administrative Supplement for the purchase of a SEC-MALS instruments

> **NIH NIH R35** · UTAH STATE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM--UNIVERSITY OF UTAH · 2024 · $153,949

## Abstract

Chromosome segregation during sexual reproduction places one chromosome, either the maternal or paternal
copy, in each gamete. Accurate meiotic chromosome segregation requires that the parental chromosomes
interact with one another and exchange genetic information through the formation of crossovers. Mis-regulated
chromosomal interactions could lead to karyotype rearrangement and chromosomal mis-segregation, and
consequently to infertility and congenital birth defects. Indeed, crossover formation is tightly regulated on both
local and chromosome-wide scales. The research proposed here addresses the mechanisms regulating
chromosomal interactions by using nematodes and budding yeast, and by developing new experimental
approaches suited to study chromosomal processes that are regulated on large scales.
This proposal probes two aspects of chromosome organization and dynamics. The first part addresses the role
of the synaptonemal complex, a conserved interface that assembles between the parental chromosomes and
regulates the distribution of crossovers. This work builds on the recent understanding that the synaptonemal
complex, despite its ordered appearance when visualized by electron microscopy, is a liquid-like compartment.
By applying genetic approaches, evolutionary analysis, single-molecule tracking and cutting-edge microscopy,
the research aims to understand how the ultrastructure and liquid properties of the synaptonemal complex allow
it to assemble onto the parental chromosomes and regulate crossovers on a large scale. Specifically, how do
protein-protein interactions and the conserved coiled-coil domains in synaptonemal complex proteins generate
an ordered, 3-dimensional structure that nonetheless has liquid properties such as constant subunit exchange?
And, what is the molecular mechanism that regulates loading of a liquid-crystalline synaptonemal complex onto
meiotic chromosomes, aligning all of them from end to end?
The second part addresses the organization of the parental chromosomes and the sister chromatids during
sexual reproduction. These large bundles of chromatin form distinct cytological entities that can nonetheless
undergo precise exchange of information – a necessary step to successfully pass genomes from one generation
to the next. An approach developed in the lab to label only one of the two identical sister chromatids will allow
probing of the differentiation of the sisters from one another. This is important, since formation of crossovers –
which exchange information between the parental chromosomes – involves regulated avoidance the sister
chromatid. The lab is also developing a novel approach to obtain a single-molecule, high-resolution description
of chromosome conformation and dynamics by utilizing an emerging technology to sequence very long
molecules of DNA. Applying this approach to chromosomes during sexual reproduction – when chromosomes
are organized as an array of chromatin loops – will shed light on the mechanis...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 11032220
- **Project number:** 3R35GM128804-07S1
- **Recipient organization:** UTAH STATE HIGHER EDUCATION SYSTEM--UNIVERSITY OF UTAH
- **Principal Investigator:** Ofer Rog
- **Activity code:** R35 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $153,949
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2018-08-01 → 2028-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/11032220

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 11032220, Administrative Supplement for the purchase of a SEC-MALS instruments (3R35GM128804-07S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/11032220. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*