Regulation of the DNA damage response on male meiotic sex chromosomes.

During meiotic prophase in males, the sex chromosomes partially synapse to form the XY body, a unique structure that recruits proteins involved in the DNA damage response, which is believed to be important for silencing of the sex chromosomes. It remains elusive how the DNA damage response in the XY body is regulated. Here we show that H2AX-MDC1-RNF8 signaling, which is well characterized in somatic cells, is dispensable for the recruitment of proteins to the unsynapsed axes in the XY body. On the other hand, the DNA damage response that spreads over the sex chromosomes is largely similar to that in somatic cells. This analysis shows that there are important differences between the regulation of the DNA damage response at the XY body and at DNA damage sites in somatic cells.