The Synaptonemal Complex (SC) is a proteinaceous structure that assembles between each pair of homologous chromosomes in meiosis, to allow crossover formation and faithful segregation in the gametes. Many SC structural components have been isolated across organisms, however the regulatory pathways underlying its formation are largely unknown. We have identified the conserved putative histone H3K36me3 reader BRA-2 in Caenorhabditis elegans, as an essential factor for SC assembly. Mutations of human ortholog ZMYND11 cause several cognitive deficits, however a role during meiosis has never been unravelled. Through genetics, cell biology and biochemical tools we will dissect the meiotic functions of BRA-2 and its functional interplay with MRG-1, another H3K36me3 reader that seems to operate within the same pathway, as well as with the chromatin factor HIM-17, for which we have uncovered a previously unknown role in promoting SC assembly. Our analysis will shed new light on the requirements imposed by H3K36me3 during germ cells development and how these influence fertility across species.

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