EXTENSIVE 3'-OVERHANGING, SINGLE-STRANDED-DNA ASSOCIATED WITH THE MEIOSIS-SPECIFIC DOUBLE-STRAND BREAKS AT THE ARG4 RECOMBINATION INITIATION SITE

Meiosis-specific double-strand breaks occur at the initiation site for meiotic gene conversion in the yeast ARG4 gene. Here we show that the break fragments end in extensive 3'-overhanging, single-stranded tails. The single-stranded tails vary in length, generating a gradient of single-strandedness that parallels the gradient of gene conversion frequencies in ARG4. In strains carrying a rad50S mutation, which blocks meiotic recombination, the extensive single-stranded tails do not form, suggesting that their generation is an obligatory step in meiotic recombination. Using the rad50S mutant, we have mapped the site of the ARG4 break to a small region within the genetically defined recombination initiation site. These results strongly support the double-strand break model of meiotic recombination.