2022 Fiscal Year Final Research Report
Adaptation of in vitro gametogenesis across a wide range of species
| Project Area | Ensuring integrity in gametogenesis |
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| Project/Area Number |
18H05548
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research on Innovative Areas (Research in a proposed research area)
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| Allocation Type | Single-year Grants |
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| Review Section |
Biological Sciences
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| Research Institution | The University of Tokyo (2021-2022)
National Institute for Physiological Sciences (2018-2020) |
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Principal Investigator |
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| Project Period (FY) |
2018-06-29 – 2023-03-31
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| Keywords | 多能性幹細胞 / 始原生殖細胞 / ラット / ウサギ |
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| Outline of Final Research Achievements |
We aim to adapt in vitro gametogenesis technology, which has been rapidly developed in mice in recent years, to various animal species for future industrial and medical applications. Here we use rats and rabbits, the second most common experimental animals next to mice. As one of the major achievements, we could successfully develop a method for inducing primordial germ cells (PGCs), founder cells of sperm and oocytes, from pluripotent stem cells in rats and rabbits, respectively. In particular, in rats, the induced rat PGC-like cells are fully functional to complete spermatogenesis leading to the birth of offspring, for the first time other than mice.
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| Free Research Field |
発生工学
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| Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements |
これまでの生殖細胞を作る研究ではマウスを用いた研究が飛躍的に発展してきたが、それを追随できる動物種がなく、マウスで得られた知見や技術がどこまで動物種を越えて汎用なのか判断することが困難であった。本研究成果によりラット・ウサギをはじめとした様々な動物種の生殖細胞の特徴を比較する解析も可能になり、そこから導き出された種を越えた保存性などを元に試験管内での生殖細胞作製研究が一層進むと考えられる。またそれらは将来的な産業応用やヒトを対象とした医学研究に繋がることが期待される。
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