Molecular basis controlling the hierarchy of mouse spermatogenic stem cell populations

Research Project

Project/Area Number	25711014
Research Category	Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (A)
Allocation Type	Partial Multi-year Fund
Research Field	Developmental biology
Research Institution	National Institute for Basic Biology (2016-2017) Kyoto University (2013-2015)
Principal Investigator	Nakagawa Toshinori 基礎生物学研究所, 生殖細胞研究部門, 助教 (50456894)
Project Period (FY)	2013-04-01 – 2018-03-31
Project Status	Completed (Fiscal Year 2017)
Budget Amount *help	¥26,390,000 (Direct Cost: ¥20,300,000、Indirect Cost: ¥6,090,000) Fiscal Year 2016: ¥5,850,000 (Direct Cost: ¥4,500,000、Indirect Cost: ¥1,350,000) Fiscal Year 2015: ¥5,850,000 (Direct Cost: ¥4,500,000、Indirect Cost: ¥1,350,000) Fiscal Year 2014: ¥5,850,000 (Direct Cost: ¥4,500,000、Indirect Cost: ¥1,350,000) Fiscal Year 2013: ¥8,840,000 (Direct Cost: ¥6,800,000、Indirect Cost: ¥2,040,000)
Keywords	幹細胞 / 精子 / 精巣 / 発生・分化 / 細胞分化 / 生殖細胞
Outline of Final Research Achievements	The mouse spermatogonial stem cell population is composed of two functionally distinct subpopulations and these subpopulations form hierarchal relationship. To reveal molecular basis controlling this hierarchy, we identified several genes specifically expressed in these populations from transcriptome analysis. Through the functional screening, we selected candidate genes and found one of the genes regulating transcriptional network to maintain undifferentiated state in cultured spermatogonial stem cells. We did not find the obvious phenotype in conditional knockout mice, and thus further analysis is needed to unveil the role.