Surfeit locus protein 4 modulates endoplasmic reticulum function and maintains oocyte quality.

Surfeit locus protein 4 is a cargo receptor mediating cargo transport from the endoplasmic reticulum lumen to the Golgi apparatus. Loss of gene led to embryonic lethality in mice. However, the role of during oocyte development remains unknown. In this study, we generated the mouse model with oocyte-specific knockout of gene. We found that adult mice with deletion of showed normal folliculogenesis, ovulation and fertility. However, loss of slightly impaired oocyte quality, thus led to partial oocyte meiotic arrest and reduced ratio of blastocyst formation. Consistent with this, the distribution of endoplasmic reticulum was disturbed in -deficient oocytes in mice. These results demonstrated that although is dispensable for female mouse fertility, modulates endoplasmic reticulum arrangement and participates in regulation of developmental competence of oocytes.