Dppa3 / Pgc7 / stellais a maternal factor and is not required for germ cell specification in mice
Author(s)
Bortvin, Alex; Goodheart, Mary L.; Liao, Michelle; Page, David C.
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Background: In mice, germ cells are specified through signalling between layers of cells comprising the primitive embryo. The function of Dppa3 (also known as Pgc7 or stella), a gene expressed in primordial germ cells at the time of their emergence in gastrulating embryos, is unknown, but a recent study has claimed that it plays a central role in germ cell specification. Results: To test Dppa3's role in germ cell development, we disrupted the gene in mouse embryonic stem cells and generated mutant animals. We were able to obtain viable and fertile Dppa3-deficient animals of both sexes. Examination of embryonic and adult germ cells and gonads in Dppa3-deficient animals did not reveal any defects. However, most embryos derived from Dppa3-deficient oocytes failed to develop normally beyond the four-cell stage. Conclusion: We found that Dppa3 is an important maternal factor in the cleavage stages of mouse embryogenesis. However, it is not required for germ cell specification.
Date issued
2004-02Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Biology; Whitehead Institute for Biomedical ResearchJournal
BMC Developmental Biology
Publisher
BioMed Central Ltd
Citation
Bortvin, Alex, Mary Goodheart, Michelle Liao, and David C. Page (2004). Dppa3 / Pgc7 / stellais a maternal factor and is not required for germ cell specification in mice. BMC developmental biology 4:2/1-15.
Version: Final published version
ISSN
1471-213X
Keywords
Animals, Biological factors, physiology, Cell differentiation, physiology, Embryo, mammalian, cytology, Embryo, mammalian, physiology, Female, Gene expression regulation, developmental, physiology, Germ cells, physiology, Gonads, cytology, Gonads, physiology, Male, Mice, Ovary, cytology, Ovary, physiology, Proteins, physiology, Repressor proteins, physiology, Biological factors, Dppa3 protein, mouse, Proteins, Repressor proteins