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Researchers successfully induce primate oocytes in the lab

Date:
May 25, 2023
Source:
Kyoto University
Summary:
The many types of cells in the human body are produced through the process of differentiation, in which stem cells are converted to more specialized types. Currently, it is challenging for researchers to control the differentiation of stem cells in the lab (in vitro). Of particular interest are oocytes, which are female germ cells that develop into eggs. Understanding their development could have far-ranging impacts, from infertility treatment to conservation of endangered species. A new study has successfully induced meiotic (dividing) oocytes from the embryonic stem cells of cynomolgus monkeys, which share many physiological traits with humans. By establishing a culture method for inducing the differentiation of meiotic oocytes, the researchers aimed to shed light on germ cell development in both humans and other primates.
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FULL STORY

The many types of cells in the human body are produced through the process of differentiation, in which stem cells are converted to more specialized types. Currently, it is challenging for researchers to control the differentiation of stem cells in the lab (in vitro). Of particular interest are oocytes, which are female germ cells that develop into eggs. Understanding their development could have far-ranging impacts, from infertility treatment to conservation of endangered species. A new study by a Japanese team of researchers led by Dr. Mitinori Saitou has successfully induced meiotic (dividing) oocytes from the embryonic stem cells of cynomolgus monkeys, which share many physiological traits with humans. By establishing a culture method for inducing the differentiation of meiotic oocytes, the researchers aimed to shed light on germ cell development in both humans and other primates. The study's findings were published in the March 2023 issue ofThe EMBO Journal.

The team previously reported conditions for inducing oogonia, the precursors of oocytes, by aggregating human primordial germ cell-like cells (hPGCLCs) with cells from the ovaries of female mouse embryos and then culturing them under air-liquid interface conditions1. Similarly, PGCLCs from cynomolgus monkey were induced to differentiate into oogonia but did not progress to meiotic oocytes. To overcome this hurdle, the induced oogonia were isolated and re-aggregated with somatic cells from the ovaries of female mouse embryos and cultured again.

这些新的文化条件下,猕猴monkey oogonia were successfully induced to differentiate into meiotic oocytes, but their development stopped at the second stage of meiosis. Single-cell transcriptome analysis showed that the transcriptomic dynamics of the oocytesin vitro(in the lab) were similar to those of oocytesin vivo(身体)。研究人员还identified differences in gene expression between thein vitroandin vivooocytes, which suggested a bottleneck forin vitrooocyte development that might lead to the arrest of meiosisin vitro.

Furthermore, by performing whole-genome methylome analysis, the authors found that the induced oocytes were involved in the genome-wide demethylation processin vitro,as seen in mouse and human female germ cell development. They also noticed that demethylation behaved differently in paternally and maternally-derived X chromosomes. These unique methylation dynamics were also found in human oogonia inducedin vitro, suggesting that the mechanisms underlying female germ cell development may be the same across primate species. Thus, this culture system might be useful as a model of the primate germ cell differentiation process.

被问及他们的研究的潜在影响,the authors said that their method of reconstituting multiple steps in the development of female germ cells may help to clarify the molecular mechanisms of primate oocyte development and could one day contribute to the treatment of impaired oocyte development in reproductive medicine. First author Dr. Sayuri Gyobu-Motani says, "We hope that that our culture system can aid in the conservation of endangered species and the creation ofin vitrooocyte induction systems for other mammalian species with long lifespans."

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Materialsprovided byKyoto University.Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


Journal Reference:

  1. Sayuri Gyobu‐Motani, Yukihiro Yabuta, Ken Mizuta, Yoshitaka Katou, Ikuhiro Okamoto, Masanori Kawasaki, Ayaka Kitamura, Tomoyuki Tsukiyama, Chizuru Iwatani, Hideaki Tsuchiya, Taro Tsujimura, Takuya Yamamoto, Tomonori Nakamura, Mitinori Saitou.Induction of fetal meiotic oocytes from embryonic stem cells in cynomolgus monkeys.The EMBO Journal, 2023; 42 (9) DOI:10.15252/embj.2022112962

Cite This Page:

Kyoto University. "Researchers successfully induce primate oocytes in the lab." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 25 May 2023. .
Kyoto University. (2023, May 25). Researchers successfully induce primate oocytes in the lab.ScienceDaily. Retrieved June 30, 2023 from www.koonmotors.com/releases/2023/05/230525141343.htm
Kyoto University. "Researchers successfully induce primate oocytes in the lab." ScienceDaily. www.koonmotors.com/releases/2023/05/230525141343.htm (accessed June 30, 2023).

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