2016 Fiscal Year Final Research Report
Study on chromosome architecture and regulation in germ cell
| Project/Area Number |
26440003
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
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| Allocation Type | Multi-year Fund |
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| Section | 一般 |
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| Research Field |
Molecular biology
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| Research Institution | Kumamoto University (2016)
Keio University (2014-2015) |
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Principal Investigator |
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| Project Period (FY) |
2014-04-01 – 2017-03-31
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| Keywords | 生殖細胞 / 減数分裂 / 胚性幹細胞 / 着床前胚 / 染色体 |
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| Outline of Final Research Achievements |
ZSCAN4 is expressed specifically in preimplantation embryos in vivo and ES cells in vitro. However, expression patterns of mouse ZSCAN4 in vivo have been largely elusive. We showed that ZSCAN4 proteins are expressed not only in preimplantation embryo but also in adult ovaries and testes. In ovaries, ZSCAN4 proteins were detected in germinal vesicle stage oocytes, indicating that Zscan4 loci are activated during the late stage in meiotic prophase I. Remarkably, ZSCAN4 showed different spatial localization patterns between two distinct GV oocytes, which can be distinguished by global chromatin organization. These spatiotemporal difference in ZSCAN4 localizations correlated with the transition of RNA polymerase II-mediated transcriptional status during GV oocytes maturation. In testes, ZSCAN4 proteins were detected in spermatocytes at late pachytene/diplotene stages and in Sertoli cells. These results suggest that ZSCAN4 may play critical roles during late meiotic prophase in germ cells.
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| Free Research Field |
分子生物学
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