Department of Cell Biology and Human Anatomy

Neil Hunter, Ph.D.

Neil Hunter, Ph.D.

Associate Professor
347C Briggs Hall, Davis Campus
(530) 754-4401
e-mail

Recent/Current
Research Funding

National Institutes of Health

Graduate Group Affiliations

Biochemistry, Molecular, Cellular and
Developmental Biology

Genetics

Microbiology

Research Interests

Molecular, genetic and cytological approaches to understanding the mechanism and regulation of crossing-over between chromosomes with respect chromosome transmission and genome instability.

Representative Publications

Oh S.D., Lao, J.P. and Hunter, N. (2008). RecQ Helicase, Sgs1, and XPF-Family Endonuclease, Mus81-Mms4, Resolve Aberrant Joint Molecules During Meiotic Recombination. Molecular Cell 31, 324-336.

Hunter, N. (2008). Hop1 and the meiotic DNA-damage response. Cell 132, 731-732.

Hunter, N. (2008). The RecQ DNA helicases: Jacks-of all-trades or master-tradesmen? Cell Research 18, 328-330.

Lao, J.P, Oh, S.D., Shinohara, M., Shinohara, A. and Hunter, N. (2008). Rad52 promotes post-invasion steps of meiotic double-strand-break repair. Molecular Cell, 29, 517-524.

Shinohara, M, Oh, S.D., Hunter, N. and Shinohara, A. (2008). Crossover assurance and crossover interference are distinctly regulated by the ZMM/SIC proteins during meiosis. Nature Genetics, 40, 299-309.

Oh S.D., Lao, J.P., Hwang, P.Y-H., Taylor, A.F., Smith, G.R. and Hunter, N. (2007). Sgs1, a Bloom's helicase ortholog, prevents aberrant crossing-over by suppressing the formation of multichromatid joint molecules. Cell 130, 259-272.

Hunter, N. (2006). Meiotic Recombination. In, Molecular Genetics of Recombination, Aguilera, A. and Rothstein, R. (Eds), Topics in Current Genetics, Springer-Verlag, Heidelberg.

Cromie, G. A., Hyppa, R. W., Taylor, A. F., Zakharyevich, K., Hunter, N., and Smith, G. R. (2006). Single Holliday Junctions are intermediates of meiotic recombination. Cell 127, 1167-1178.

Martini, E., Diaz, R.L., Hunter, N. and Keeney, S. (2006). Crossover homeostasis in yeast meiosis. Cell 126, 285-295.

Hunter, N. (2004). Meiosis. In, the Encyclopedia of Biological Chemistry, Lennarz, W. and Lane, M. (Eds), Elsevier Press, San Diego. pp 610-616.

Boerner, V.G., Kleckner, N. and Hunter, N. (2004). Crossover/noncrossover differentiation, synaptonemal complex formation and regulatory surveillance at the leptotene/zygotene transition of meiosis. Cell 117, 29-45.

de los Santos, T., Hunter, N., Lee, C., Larkin, B., Loidl, J., and Hollingsworth, N.M. (2003). The Mus81/Mms4 endonuclease acts independently of double-Holliday junction resolution to promote a distinct subset of crossovers during meiosis in budding yeast. Genetics, 164, 81-94.

Blat, Y., Protacio, R., Hunter, N. and Kleckner, N. (2002). Physical and functional interactions among basic chromosome organizational features govern early steps of meiotic chiasma formation. Cell, 111 791-802.

Hunter, N. and Kleckner, N. (2001). The single-end invasion: an asymmetric intermediate at the double-strand-break to double-Holliday junction transition of meiotic recombination. Cell 106, 59-70.

Recent/Current Teaching

MCB 220L BMB/CDB graduate student rotation course

MIC 296, Advanced Concepts in DNA Metabolism

BIS 101, Genes and Gene Expression

MIC 191, Introduction to Research

Honors and Awards

  • Wellcome Trust - Prize Travelling Postdoctoral Fellowship, 1993-1996
  • Wellcome Trust - Prize PhD Studentship, 2003-2006
  • Damon Runyon Cancer Foundation -Scholar Award, 2004-2006
  • Concern Foundation - Young Investigator Award, 2005
  • March of Dimes - Basil O'Conner Award, 2006
  • France-Berkeley Fund Award, 2007
  • Howard Hughes Medical Institute - Early Career Scientist, 2009
  • University of California, Davis Mutant Mouse Regional Resource Center Award