Equal and Unequal Crossovers During Meiosis (IMAGE)

University of Rochester

Equal and Unequal Crossovers During Meiosis

Caption

During sexual reproduction, chromosomes transmitted via the mother and the father's gametes (egg and sperm) are shuffled to produce a genetic combination unique to each offspring. In most cases, the chromosomes line up properly and crossover (left panel). The unequal crossover (right panel) occurs because of "selfish DNA" sequences known as transposons, represented here as triangles. When abnormal crossovers occur, chromosomes do not line up properly and important genes may be duplicated or deleted.

Credit

University of Rochester illustration / Michael Osadciw

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