Meiotic chromosome pairing in the human male: experience from surface spread synaptonemal complexes

Abstract

The surface spreading technique has allowed a more detailed account of the pairing of chromosomes at first meiotic prophase than has been possible by traditional investigations (review in Moses et al 1985) and gives complementary information to that obtained by the more time consuming serial sectioning (review in Rasmussen and Holm 1980). This presentation will give a broad outline of the most interesting findings on human male spermatocytes using modifications of the surface spreading techniques by Moses (1977), Fletcher (1979) and Solari (1980) as detailed in Hulten et al (1986). The material investigated is given in Tables 1 and 2. Most men were ascertained for a disturbance in reproduction and further investigations were undertaken when a constitutional chromosomal rearrangement was revealed. As it is not easy to obtain testicular biopsies from an entirely adequate normal material of fertile men, ‘controls’ were men with an apparently normal mitotic karyotype and normal testicular histology without obvious signs of impaired spermatogenesis. Most investigations concentrated on the pachytene pairing stage, and there is less information on the previous leptotene and zygotene or the following diplotene stages.