Le Paliulis

Educational Background

• B.A. Williams College
• Ph.D. Duke University

Research Areas

My research focuses on the segregation of chromosomes during cell division. Chromosomes are the bodies that contain our DNA and it’s critical that each cell has the correct DNA in the correct quantity. The consequences of errors in distribution of chromosomes include developmental delay and diseases like cancer.

We often think that the aim of cell division is to separate copied partner chromosomes, but there are strange cases in which chromosomes either have multiple pairing partners or have no partner. The ways in which these strange chromosomes successfully segregate when surrounded by a large number of "normally-partnered" chromosomes can inform the general rules for cell division, and help us to understand the development of human disease and answer some tough evolutionary questions. My students and I use these interesting exceptions to the “rules” of chromosome segregation to understand how forces are distributed along chromosomes and the importance and regulation of chromosome position at different stages of the cell division process.

Selected Publications

(Bucknell students underlined)

Borseth, A.B., Felt, K.D., Stowe, E.L., Paliulis, L.V. 2023. Segregation of the univalent X chromosome in the two-striped planthopper Acanalonia bivittata. Cytologia. 88: 1-6.

Paliulis, L.V., Fabig, G., Müller-Reichert, T. 2023. The X chromosome still has a lot to reveal:

Revisiting Hermann Henking’s work on firebugs. Journal of Cell Science. 136: jcs260998.

Felt, K.D., Lagerman, M.B., Powers, S., Oluwafemi, O., Pedraza-Aguado, N., Stowe, E.L., and Paliulis, L.V. 2022. Segregation of the univalent X chromosome in the wide-footed treehopper Enchenopa latipes (Say 1824). Caryologia. 75:165-171.

Paliulis, L.V., Stowe, E.L., Hashemi, L., Pedraza-Aguado, N., Striese, C., Tulok, S., Müller-Reichert, T., Fabig, G. 2022. Chromosome number, sex determination, and meiotic chromosome behavior in the praying mantid Hierodula membranacea. PLOS-ONE. 17(8):e0272978.

Czekalski, M.A., Paliulis, L.V. 2021. The pre-metaphase stretch: a re-examination. DNA. 1: 3–12.

Lin, K., Nance, R., Szybist, J., Cheville, A., and Paliulis, L.V. 2018. Micromanipulation of insect spermatocytes. Journal of Visualized Experiments. DOI: 10.3791/57359

Paliulis, L.V. and Forer, A. 2018. A review of tethers: elastic connections between separating partner chromosomes in anaphase. Protoplasma. DOI: 10.1007/s00709-017-1201-1

Forer, A., Duquette, M., Paliulis, L.V., Fegaras, E., Ono, M., Preece, D., and Berns M. 2017. Elastic ‘tethers’ connect separating anaphase chromosomes in a broad range of animal cells. European Journal of Cell Biology. DOI: 10.1016/j.ejcb.2017.07.001.

Felt, K.D., Lagerman, M., Ravida, N., Qian, L., Powers, S., and Paliulis, L.V. 2017. Segregation of the amphitelically-attached univalent X chromosome in the spittlebug Philaenus spumarius. Protoplasma. DOI: 10.1007.s00709-017-1117-9.

Ault, J.G., Felt, K.D., Nedo, A.O., Doan, R.N., Ellison, C.M., and Paliulis, L.V. 2017. Co-Segregation of sex chromosomes in the male black widow spider Latrodectus mactans (Araneae, Theridiidae). Chromosoma. DOI: 10.1007/s00412-017-0628-7.