The specialised apparatus for meiotic chromosome segregation in oocytes

The focus of Hiro's research is to understand chromosome segregation and mis-segregation in oocytes. Genes must be passed on accurately from cell to cell and from parents to children. Errors in chromosome segregation in oocytes are a major cause of infertility, miscarriage and birth defects in humans. This error-prone division has many features distinct from mitosis, but little is known about the molecular mechanism. Using Drosophila oocytes, Hiro's lab currently investigates how chromosomes and the spindle are built and how they interact with each other at a molecular level using a genetics-led multidisciplinary approach.