Recombination hotspots are small regions in the genome of sexually reproducing organisms that exhibit highly elevated rates of meiotic recombination. The peak recombination rate within hotspots can be hundreds or thousands times that of the surrounding region.[1] The cause of hotspots is currently unknown, however all hotspots so far characterized share similar morphology and are approximately 1.5 to 2.0 kb in width, which suggests a common causal process. Furthermore, recent studies have used patterns in linkage disequilibrium to identify over 25,000 hotspots in the human genome,[2] suggesting that hotspots are a ubiquitous feature of the genome.
Researchers find surprising difference between human and chimp genomes "Despite 99% DNA similarity between humans and our nearest relative, chimpanzees, the locations of DNA swapping between chromosomes, known as recombination hotspots, are almost entirely different. The surprising finding is reported in a paper just published online in Science by Oxford University statisticians and US and Dutch geneticists."
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