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Investigation: Meiosis in Sordaria

In this investigation, you will measure the crossover frequencies in the

fungus, Sordaria fimicola. Crossing over occurs during meiosis I when
homologous pairs of chromosomes exchange DNA. Sordaria is a
microscopic fungus commonly found in the feces of herbivores.

Life Cycle of Sordaria

The most common form of S. fimicola is dark brown, though some mutants
are gray or tan. Sordaria is a haploid organism for most of its life cycle, and then becomes diploid when
mycelia fuse together to form a diploid nucleus. Mycelia is the vegetative part of the fungus, which consists of
a network of fine filaments called hyphae.

That diploid nucleus of the fused cell then undergoes meiosis to form eight haploid ascospores contained in a
sac called an ascus (plural, asci.) Asci are continued in a fruiting body called a perithecium, which will rupture
when the spores are mature. Each new ascospore will develop into a new haploid fungus.

1. The graphic illustrates the life cycle of the fungus. Answer true of false to the following statements:

___ Sordaria spend most of their life as a haploid organism.

___ Ascospores are diploid.
___ Sexual reproduction involves the fusion of haploid cells.
___ The zygote undergoes mitosis to form 4 haploid nuclei.
___ The haploid nuclei form 8 ascospores.

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Crossing-Over in Sordaria

To observe crossing over in Sordaria, hybrids are made between wild-type and mutant strains of the fungus.
The wild-type strains have black spores, and the mutant strains have tan spores. When the mycelia of the two
strains come together (forming a diploid cell), they undergo meiosis and will develop into four black ascospores
and four tan ascospores.

If no crossing over occurs, the arrangement of the ascospores will be grouped together 4 tan, 4 black, or black
then tan, a 4:4 pattern. If crossing-over had occurred, then the arrangement of the ascospores will follow a
2:2:2:2 pattern, or a 2:4:2 pattern, depending on how the recombinant chromosomes arrange before the final
division.

2. There are two additional arrangements, another 2:2:2:2 pattern, and

a 2:4:2 pattern. Shade the diagram below to indicate the two other
possibilities in the ascospores.

3. Identify the types of crossovers in the diagram as

either 2:2:2:2, 2:4:2, or no crossover.

How many are: 2:2:2:2? ____

How many are: 2:4:2? ____

How many show no crossover? ____

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Determining the Distance Between the Centromere and the Gene
A map unit is used to describe the distances between linked genes. The number of map units between two
genes or between a gene and the centromere is equal to the percentage of recombinants. Use the photo on
the next page to count the number of asci that didn’t crossover (4:4) and the number of crossovers.

4. Complete the table using the attached photo.

Number of Asci Number of Asci Total Number of Asci % Asci Showing Gene to Centromere
Showing 4:4 pattern Showing Crossover Crossover Divided by 2 Distance (map units)

Analysis
5. Why did you divide the percentage of asci showing crossover by 2? (Refer to the background information.)

6. How do the mechanisms of meiosis affect diversity and evolution?

7. The published map distance between the centromere and the spore color gene is 26 map units. How does
that compare to your own data? Explain why your data may differ from what is published.

8. The Philadelphia chromosome in humans is an abnormality that

occurs when a part of chromosome 9 is transferred to chromosome 22.
The result of this translocation is a fusion gene created from the ABL
gene on chromosome 9 and the BCR gene on chromosome 22. This
fusion results in a combination of genes that causes uncontrolled cell
division that can lead to leukemia, a type of cancer.

Explain how translocation and crossing-over are different.

Why is one more likely to result in cancer than the other?

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*During the preparation of the slide, spores can be moved or jumbled. Count the ones you are
certain of their arrangement pattern.

Photo from Wikimedia Commons:

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Linear_arrangement_of_ascospores_in_the_asci_of_the_fungus_Sordaria_macrospora.jpg

Sordaria Slides: https://amzn.to/2VjdNIt

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Investigation: Meiosis in Sordaria - Answer KEY
Student Document: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1p36deEdzMw5CQITSBcM7Nk-okM3bUZClAhLi5xMrkws/edit?usp=sharing

1. The graphic illustrates the life cycle of the fungus. Answer true of false to the
following statements:

_T__ Sordaria spend most of their life as a haploid organism.

_F__ Ascospores are diploid.
_T_ Sexual reproduction involves the fusion of haploid cells.
_F__ The zygote undergoes mitosis to form 4 haploid nuclei.
_T__ The haploid nuclei form 8 ascospores.

Crossing-Over in Sordaria

2. There are two additional arrangements, another 2:2:2:2 pattern, and a 2:4:2
pattern. Shade the diagram below to indicate the two other possibilities in the
ascospores.

3. Identify the types of crossovers in the diagram as either 2:2:2:2, 2:4:2, or no

crossover.

How many are: 2:2:2:2? _2___

How many are: 2:4:2? _4___
How many show no crossover? _10___

Determining the Distance Between the Centromere and the Gene

4. Complete the table using the attached photo. *Counts may vary, some images
are not clear.
*Tip: laminate image for multiple uses, students can use whiteboard markers to keep count.

Number of Asci Number of Asci Total Number of Asci % Asci Showing Gene to Centromere
Showing 4:4 pattern Showing Crossover Crossover Divided by Distance (map units)
2

16 15 31 49 / 2 = 24 24

5. Why did you divide the percentage of asci showing crossover by 2? (Refer to the background information.)
4 haploid nuclei undergo meiosis to create 8 haploid nuclei (which are identical)

6. How do the mechanisms of meiosis affect diversity and evolution?

(Answers vary). During meiosis, genetic material is shuffled creating different combinations. Some of those
combinations may be better than others.

7. The published map distance between the centromere and the spore color gene is 26 map units. How does that
compare to your own data? Explain why your data may differ from what is published. The calculations may be slightly
off, but should be close to 26, their data differs because of the small sample size.

8. … Explain how translocation and crossing-over are different. Translocation moves DNA from different chromosomes,
which can change the DNA or damage the genes. Crossing over exchanges the same information (genes).
Why is one more likely to result in cancer than the other? Translocation can actually damage the DNA or the gene
causing a loss of function.

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