[Synaptonemal complex: the fundamental structure of meiosis].

Meiosis is a special type of cell division to produce haploid gametes with intact genome. The behavior of homologous chromosomes during the first division (meiosis prophase I) is the most prominent feature of meiosis. During meiosis prophase I, synaptonemal complex (SC) formed between homologous chromosomes to promote the initiation and repair of programmed DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs), which is necessary for the correct recognition, pairing, recombination and separation of homologous chromosomes. In this paper, we reviewed the recent research progress on the composition and function of SC, discussed how the assembly of SC affected the repair of DSBs, and also summarized the known mutations on SC genes which were responsible for human reproductive disorders. On this basis, we also explored the future research direction of this field.