High frequency of microsatellites in S. cerevisiae meiotic recombination hotspots.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Microsatellites are highly abundant in eukaryotic genomes but their function and evolution are not yet well understood. Their elevated mutation rate makes them ideal markers of genetic difference, but high levels of unexplained heterogeneity in mutation rates among microsatellites at different genomic locations need to be elucidated in order to improve the power and accuracy of the many types of study that use them as genetic markers. Recombination could contribute to this heterogeneity, since while replication errors are thought to be the predominant mechanism for microsatellite mutation, meiotic recombination is involved in some mutation events. There is also evidence suggesting that microsatellites could function as recombination signals. The yeast S. cerevisiae is a

SUBMITTER: Bagshaw AT 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2267716 | biostudies-literature | 2008 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature