Spindle formation is essential for stable inheritance of genetic material. Experiments in various systems indicate that Ran GTPase is crucial for meiotic and mitotic spindle assembly. Such an important role for Ran in chromatin-induced spindle assembly was initially demonstrated in Xenopus laevis egg extracts. However, the requirement of RanGTP in living meiotic cells has not been shown. In this study, we used a fluorescence resonance energy transfer probe to measure RanGTP-regulated release of importin beta. A RanGTP-regulated gradient was established during meiosis I and was centered on chromosomes throughout mouse meiotic maturation. Manipulating levels of RanGTP in mice and X. laevis oocytes did not inhibit assembly of functional meiosis I spindles. However, meiosis II spindle assembly did not tolerate changes in the level of RanGTP in both species. These findings suggest that a mechanism common to vertebrates promotes meiosis I spindle formation in the absence of chromatin-induced microtubule production and centriole-based microtubule organizing centers.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1083/jcb.200605199 | DOI Listing |
Gene
January 2025
Instituto de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal da Bahia, Salvador, BA, Brasil. Electronic address:
Introduction: Overweight and obesity are chronic and multifactorial diseases with a strong genetic component contributing to weight gain across all age groups. This study aimed to conduct a Genome-wide Association Study (GWAS) on a cohort of 1,004 Brazilian children (5-11 years old) to identify specific DNA regions associated with susceptibility to overweight.
Methods: The GWAS was performed on children participating in the SCAALA (Asthma and Allergy Social Changes in Latin America) program, with participants classified as either overweight or non-overweight.
Nat Commun
January 2025
Zentrum für Molekulare Biologie der Universität Heidelberg (ZMBH), Heidelberg, Germany.
The γ-tubulin ring complex (γ-TuRC) is a structural template for controlled nucleation of microtubules from α/β-tubulin heterodimers. At the cytoplasmic side of the yeast spindle pole body, the CM1-containing receptor protein Spc72 promotes γ-TuRC assembly from seven γ-tubulin small complexes (γ-TuSCs) and recruits the microtubule polymerase Stu2, yet their molecular interplay remains unclear. Here, we determine the cryo-EM structure of the Candida albicans cytoplasmic nucleation unit at 3.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCytoskeleton (Hoboken)
January 2025
Department of Life Sciences, University of Siena, Siena, Italy.
We analysed here the dynamic of the kinesin-like Pavarotti (Pav) during male gametogenesis of wild-type and Sas4 mutant flies. Pav localizes to the equatorial region and the inner central spindle of late anaphase wild-type spermatogonia and displays a strong concentration at the midbody during late telophase. At metaphase of the first meiotic division, Pav shows widespread localization on the equatorial region of the spermatocytes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCell Commun Signal
January 2025
Laboratory of Theriogenology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Chungnam National University, Daejeon, 34134, Republic of Korea.
Background: Although the Notch signaling pathway is known to play an important role in ovarian follicle development in mammals, whether it is involved in oocyte maturation remains unclear. Therefore, this study was performed to elucidate the existence and role of the Notch signaling pathway during oocyte maturation in a porcine model.
Methods: Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and immunocytochemical assays were used to determine the existence of Notch signaling pathway-related transcripts and proteins in porcine cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs).
Aging Cell
January 2025
State Key Laboratory of Animal Biotech Breeding, National Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of the Ministry of Agriculture, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing, China.
With advancing age, significant changes occur in the female reproductive system, the most notable of which is the decline in oocyte quality, a key factor affecting female fertility. However, the mechanisms underlying oocyte aging remain poorly understood. In this study, we obtained oocytes from aged and young female mice and performed single-cell transcriptome sequencing, comparing our findings with existing proteomic analyses.
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