Wee Kinases, Big Impact: Wee and Myt Kinases as Critical Regulators of Meiotic Progression

Regulation of the cell cycle is critical for maintaining genomic integrity. Therefore, cells have adapted several mechanisms to ensure that cell cycle events occur in a precise order. Some mechanisms regulate cell cycle progression by inhibiting cell cycle drivers, cyclin dependent kinases (CDKs). The Wee1/Myt1 family of kinases regulate the G2 to M phase transition by phosphorylating and inactivating Cdk1. Investigations of Wee1/Myt1 have mainly focused on its regulation of mitosis; the role of Wee1/Myt1 kinases in the meiotic cell cycle is less well understood. However, misregulation of Wee1/Myt1 during meiosis can have a range of fertility consequences from mild to severe, including human fertilization failure and infertility. Studies from several organisms reveals that the meiotic functions of Wee1/Myt1 kinases differ from mitosis depending on the species and sex. Here, we review how Wee1/Myt1 kinases regulate cell-cycle progression in meiosis across species. We highlight current knowledge of Wee1/Myt1 in meiosis and discuss unanswered questions and new directions to advance the fields of meiosis, reproduction, and development. Understanding the molecular and cellular functions of Wee1/Myt1 homologs in these various systems may contribute to the discovery of the mechanisms underlying human infertility cases, better diagnoses, and clinical treatments.