We investigate mechanisms that maintain genome stability using the baker’s yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae as a model system. We use high-throughput genomic technologies, classical genetics and molecular biology approaches.

 

Key areas of research in our laboratory are:

• Mechanisms of meiotic recombination: We focus on meiotic crossover pathways and their role in promoting accurate chromosome segregation during meiosis. Errors in this process are linked to congenital birth defects in humans such as Down syndrome.

• Mechanisms of mitotic genome stability: We investigate mechanisms contributing to mutagenesis, loss of heterozygosity and aneuploidy in S. cerevisiae and other eukaryotic models. Next generation sequencing and other high through-put DNA analyses technologies are used in these studies to obtain high resolution genome wide measures. These studies are relevant for understanding disease progression (e.g cancer), genome evolution and architecture.