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Download or read book Understanding the Role of Yeast 14-3-3 Proteins Bmh1 and Bmh2 During Meiosis and Meiotic Commitment written by Janardan Nanda Gavade and published by . This book was released on 2021 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Meiosis is the cell division process important for forming gametes. During meiosis, a single round of DNA replication is followed by two successive rounds of chromosome segregation, resulting in haploid gametes. Induction into meiosis requires an exogenous signal, and once cells pass through a meiotic commitment point, the exogenous signal is no longer required for the cells to complete meiosis. A failure to maintain meiosis can lead to germline oncogenesis in multicellular organisms. The current understanding of the mechanisms governing meiotic commitment is limited. My thesis aims to determine the regulation of meiotic commitment using the model organism Saccharomyces cerevisiae (budding yeast). In budding yeast, starvation is the major meiosis-inducing signal and cells pass through meiotic commitment in prometaphase I. To understand the underlying mechanism of meiotic commitment, I performed a genome-scale screen and identified five new regulators of meiotic commitment: the 14-3-3 proteins Bmh1 and Bmh2, Polo kinase Cdc5, a protein involved in nutrient sensing called Bcy1, and the meiosis-specific kinase Ime2. I identified how these proteins regulate meiotic commitment, with the 14-3-3 proteins being the central regulators of meiotic commitment. 14-3-3 proteins are conserved across different species, and perform a number of roles by binding and modulating the activity or localization of target proteins. I have discovered that Bmh1/Bmh2 interacts with the middle meiosis transcription factor Ndt80, leading to an increase in Ndt80 protein levels, which in turn leads to an increase in expression of Ndt80 target genes. Bmh1/Bmh2 also enhances Cdc5 kinase activity, which likely has a substrate important for meiotic commitment. Furthermore, Bmh1/Bmh2 interacts with RNA-binding protein Pes4 to maintain meiotic commitment. In addition to the roles in meiotic commitment, I show that Bmh1 and Bmh2 are important for DNA repair during prophase I. My work uncovers a key network needed to maintain genome stability during meiosis.