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Barbara Meyer investigates sex determination and the interplay between chromosome structure and function.  Chromosomes undergo dynamic behaviors during development to ensure genome stability and accurate cell fate decisions.  Meyer and her team study interrelated gene networks that control these behaviors. Their projects include exploring the chromosome-counting mechanisms that determine sexual fate and the chromosome-wide regulatory processes – called dosage compensation – that balance X-chromosome gene expression between the sexes.  Previous work by Meyer’s team revealed that, in some species, X-chromosome gene regulation is functionally related to a structural challenge of all somatic and germline chromosomes: achieving ordered chromosome compaction prior to chromosome segregation, a topic they continue to investigate.