# DLGR-1, a homolog of vertebrate DLGAP proteins, regulates spindle length and anaphase velocity during C. elegans meiosis

## TL;DR

The study identifies DLGR-1, a protein in C. elegans, which influences spindle length and anaphase speed during meiosis.

## Contribution

The discovery of DLGR-1 as a C. elegans homolog of vertebrate DLGAP proteins and its role in meiotic spindle regulation.

## Key findings

- DLGR-1 localizes to the plasma membrane during anaphase I and II in C. elegans meiosis.
- Spindles in DLGR-1 deletion mutants are shorter and chromosome separation is slower.
- Chromosome extrusion and progeny viability remain normal in DLGR-1 deletion mutants.

## Abstract

Chromosome segregation requires a large number of microtubule-binding proteins that mediate spindle assembly and function during mitosis and meiosis. BLAST revealed a single

C. elegans

homolog of HURP/DLGAP5, a microtubule-binding protein that regulates mitotic and meiotic spindles in vertebrates. This homolog,
W03A5.6
, was named DLGR-1 (DLGAP related). Time-lapse imaging of an endogenously tagged DLGR-1::GFP during

C. elegans

meiosis revealed plasma membrane localization specifically during anaphase I and anaphase II when the meiotic spindle is closely apposed to the plasma membrane. Time-lapse imaging of microtubules and chromosomes during meiosis in a strain with a CRISPR deletion of the
DLGR-1
coding sequence revealed metaphase spindles that were significantly shorter than controls and chromosome separation velocities that were significantly slower than controls. Extrusion of chromosomes into polar bodies proceeded normally, consistent with the high progeny viability of the homozygous deletion strain. Thus
DLGR-1
may play an accessory or redundant role in meiotic spindle function during

C. elegans

meiosis.