Liu C, Dernburg AF. Chemically induced proximity reveals a Piezo-dependent meiotic checkpoint at the oocyte nuclear envelope. Science. 2024;386(6724):eadm7969. doi:10.1126/science.adm7969 .

This work describes our devleopment of a chemically-induced proximity (CIP) system for C. elegans based on the auxin-inducible degradation (AID) system. Using this new tool, we discovered how meiotic cells detect unsynapsed chromosomes and target oocytes for apoptosis.

Kim HJ, Liu C, Zhang L, Dernburg AF. MJL-1 is a nuclear envelope protein required for homologous chromosome pairing and regulation of synapsis during meiosis in C. elegans. Sci Adv. 2023;9(6):eadd1453. doi:10.1126/sciadv.add1453 

Through a genetic screen, we discovered an essential component of the complex that links meiotic chromosomes to molecular motors in the cytoplasm to promote homolog pairing and synapsis. 

Zhang L, Stauffer WT, Wang JS, et al. Recruitment of Polo-like kinase couples synapsis to meiotic progression via inactivation of CHK-2. Elife. 2023;12:e84492. Published 2023 Jan 26. doi:10.7554/eLife.84492 

In C. elegans, a key cell cycle transition occurs at mid-pachytene of meiosis, once chromosomes have fully paired, synapsed, and formed crossover intermediates. This work illuminates the pathway that leads to this transition. We provide evidence that relocalization of one kinase, PLK-2, leads directly to inactivation of another essential meiotic kinase, CHK-2.

Yu Z, Kim HJ, Dernburg AF. ATM signaling modulates cohesin behavior in meiotic prophase and proliferating cells. Nat Struct Mol Biol. 2023;30(4):436-450. doi:10.1038/s41594-023-00929-5

This study reveals that meiotic cohesin is regulated by the DNA damage kinase ATM (ATM-1) and the meiosis-specific kinase CHK-2. We found that CHK-2 promotes activation of ATM-1, and together these kinases inactivate WAPL-1 to promote the formation of the meiotic chromosome axis. We also show that a similar pathway promotes cohesin accumulation at sites of DNA damage in mammalian cells.

Rog O, Köhler S, Dernburg AF. The synaptonemal complex has liquid crystalline properties and spatially regulates meiotic recombination factors. Elife. 2017 Jan 3;6:e21455. doi: 10.7554/eLife.21455. 

This work used live imaging to investigate the asssembly of the synaptonemal complex (SC) in C. elegans meiosis. It reports the surprising and  far-reaching discovery that the is a liquid crystalline condensate.

Zhang L, Ward JD, Cheng Z, Dernburg AF. The auxin-inducible degradation (AID) system enables versatile conditional protein depletion in C. elegans. Development. 2015 Dec 15;142(24):4374-84.
doi: 10.1242/dev.129635. 

This work established the auxin-inducible degradation (AID) system as a powerful new tool for research in C. elegans.

Kim Y, Kostow N, Dernburg AF. The Chromosome Axis Mediates Feedback Control of CHK-2 to Ensure Crossover Formation in C. elegans. Dev Cell. 2015 Oct 26;35(2):247-61. doi: 10.1016/j.devcel.2015.09.021. 

This work revealed that proper assembly of the chromosome axis regulates the activity of CHK-2, an essential meiotic kinase, to control meiotic progression and checkpoint activity.