UV Chromosomes and Haploid Sexual Systems

Susana Margarida Coelho (1) , Josselin Gueno (1) , Agnieszka Paulina Lipinska (1) , Jeremy Mark Cock (1) , James G Umen (2)

1 SBR - Station biologique de Roscoff = Roscoff Marine Station
2 Donald Danforth Plant Science Center

The evolution of sex determination continues to pose major questions in biology. Sex-determination mechanisms control reproductive cell differentiation and development of sexual characteristics in all organisms, from algae to animals and plants. While the underlying processes defining sex (meiosis and recombination) are conserved, sex-determination mechanisms are highly labile. In particular, a flow of new discoveries has highlighted several fascinating features of the previously understudied haploid UV sex determination and related mating systems found in diverse photosynthetic taxa including green algae, bryophytes, and brown algae. Analyses integrating information from these systems and contrasting them with classical XY and ZW systems are providing exciting insights into both the universality and the diversity of sex-determining chromosomes across eukaryotes.

Mots clés: sex determination; haploid-diploid life cycle; UV chromosomes; mating-type loci

Domaines: Botanique; Reproduction sexuée

Susana Margarida Coelho, Josselin Gueno, Agnieszka Paulina Lipinska, Jeremy Mark Cock, James G Umen. UV Chromosomes and Haploid Sexual Systems. Trends in Plant Science, 2018, 23 (9), pp.794 - 807. ⟨10.1016/j.tplants.2018.06.005⟩. ⟨hal-02995679⟩