.."“Meiotic silencing also occurs in worms, mice and human beings,” said Patrick Shiu, assistant professor of biological sciences in the MU College of Arts and Science. “It’s unlikely that all share the same mechanism, but the principle of targeting unpaired DNA for silencing seems to be found in both simple and complex organisms. Knowing the process of how DNA in molds is targeted for silencing could be important for silencing genes you don’t want to be expressed, like disease-causing genes.”"