Joao Matos

© Max Kropitz

The production of healthy gametes, eggs and sperm in humans, requires a process called crossing-over, in which maternal and paternal chromosomes exchange genetic information. Crossing-over plays a central role in ensuring that each gamete carries with it a uniquely rearranged version of the maternal or paternal genomes. With the support from the ERC Consolidator Grant, Joao Matos and his team will investigate how crossing-over is implemented along recombining chromosomes, with unprecedented molecular detail. The first aim of the project will be to develop a new high-resolution method to map sites of crossing-over throughout the entire genome. A second aim will be to study the ultra-structure of chromosomes at crossover sites. By understanding how cells implement genetic exchange through crossing-over, Joao Matos and his team hope to shed light on the molecular basis of heredity: the passing of traits from parents to their offspring.