Originally: a stage of meiosis after synapsis; specifically †(a) the stage in late anaphase during which paired chromosomes or chromatids become completely separated (obsolete); (b) the diplotene stage of meiosis, during which paired DNA strands begin to separate and chiasmata become visible (now rare or disused). In later use: (Molecular Biology) the final stage of genetic recombination, involving the processes by which the continuity of nucleic acid molecules which have undergone recombination is restored.