DMC1 (gene)

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Meiotic recombination protein Dmc1 is a homolog of the bacterial strand exchange protein RecA. Dmc1 plays the central role in homologous recombination in meiosis by assembling at the sites of programmed DNA double strand breaks and carrying out a search for allelic DNA sequences located on homologous chromatids. The name "Dmc" stands for "disrupted meiotic cDNA" and refers to the method used for its discovery which involved using clones from a meiosis-specific cDNA library to direct knock-out mutations of abundantly expressed meiotic genes. The DMC1 gene and protein were discovered in the budding yeast S. cerevisiae by Douglas Bishop when he was a postdoctoral fellow in the laboratory of Nancy Kleckner at Harvard University.[1] The Dmc1 protein is one of two homologs of RecA found in eukaryotic cells, the other being Rad51. In budding yeast, Rad51 serves as a strand exchange protein in mitosis where it is critical for the repair of DNA breaks. Rad51 is converted to an accessory factor for Dmc1 during meiosis by inhibition of its strand exchange activity.[2] Homologs of DMC1 have been identified in many organisms including divergent fungi, plants and mammals including humans.[3][4][5][6]

The protein encoded by this gene is essential for meiotic homologous recombination. Genetic recombination in meiosis plays an important role in generating diversity of genetic information and is essential for the reductional segregation of chromosomes that must occur for formation of gametes during sexual reproduction.


DMC1 (gene) has been shown to interact with RAD51.[7] The protein has also been shown to bind Tid1(Rdh54), Mei5/Sae3, and Hop2/Mnd1. All of these interacting proteins act to enhance Dmc1's activity in purified systems and are also implicated as being required for Dmc1 function in cells.


  1. ^ Bishop, Douglas; Park, D., Xu, L., Kleckner N. (1992). "DMC1: a meiosis-specific yeast homolog of E. coli recA required for recombination, synaptonemal complex formation, and cell cycle progression.". Cell 60 (3): 439–456. doi:10.1016/0092-8674(92)90446-j. PMID 1581960. 
  2. ^ Cloud, Veronica; Chan, Y-L, Grubb, JT, Budke, B, Bishop DK (2012). "Rad51 is an accessory factor for Dmc1-mediated joint molecule formation during meiosis.". Science 337 (6099): 1222–1225. doi:10.1126/science.1219379. PMID 22955832. 
  3. ^ Habu T, Taki T, West A, Nishimune Y, Morita T (May 1996). "The mouse and human homologs of DMC1, the yeast meiosis-specific homologous recombination gene, have a common unique form of exon-skipped transcript in meiosis". Nucleic Acids Res 24 (3): 470–477. doi:10.1093/nar/24.3.470. PMC 145652. PMID 8602360. 
  4. ^ Sato S, Seki N, Hotta Y, Tabata S (Mar 1996). "Expression profiles of a human gene identified as a structural homologue of meiosis-specific recA-like genes". DNA Res 2 (4): 183–186. doi:10.1093/dnares/2.4.183. PMID 8590282. 
  5. ^ Thorslund T, Esashi F, West SC (Jun 2007). "Interactions between human BRCA2 protein and the meiosis-specific recombinase DMC1". EMBO J 26 (12): 2915–2922. doi:10.1038/sj.emboj.7601739. PMC 1894777. PMID 17541404. 
  6. ^ "Entrez Gene: DMC1 DMC1 dosage suppressor of mck1 homolog, meiosis-specific homologous recombination (yeast)". 
  7. ^ Masson, J Y; Davies A A; Hajibagheri N; Van Dyck E; Benson F E; Stasiak A Z; Stasiak A; West S C (Nov 1999). "The meiosis-specific recombinase hDmc1 forms ring structures and interacts with hRad51". EMBO J. (ENGLAND) 18 (22): 6552–6560. doi:10.1093/emboj/18.22.6552. ISSN 0261-4189. PMC 1171718. PMID 10562567. 

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