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Jeng SR, Wu GC, Yueh WS, Kuo SF, Dufour S, Chang CF. Dmrt1 (doublesex and mab-3-related transcription factor 1) expression during gonadal development and spermatogenesis in the Japanese eel. Gen Comp Endocrinol 2019; 279:154-163. [PMID: 30902612 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2019.03.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2018] [Revised: 03/17/2019] [Accepted: 03/18/2019] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Dmrt1, doublesex- and mab-3-related transcription factor-1, has been suggested to play critical roles in male gonadogenesis, testicular differentiation and development, including spermatogenesis, among different vertebrates. Vasa is a putative molecular marker of germ cells in vertebrates. In this study, we cloned the full-length dmrt1 cDNA from Japanese eel, and the protein comprised 290 amino acids and presented an extremely conserved Doublesex and Mab-3 (DM) domain. Vasa proteins were expressed in gonadal germ cells in a stage-specific manner, and were expressed at high levels in PGC and spermatogonia, low levels in spermatocytes, and were absent in spermatids and spermatozoa of Japanese eels. Dmrt1 proteins were abundantly expressed in spermatogonia B cells, spermatocytes, spermatids, but not in spermatozoa, spermatogonia A and Sertoli cells. To our knowledge, this study is the first to show a restricted expression pattern for the Dmrt1 protein in spermatogonia B cells, but not spermatogonia A cells, of teleosts. Therefore, Dmrt1 might play vital roles at the specific stages during spermatogenesis from spermatogonia B cells to spermatids in the Japanese eel. Moreover, the Dmrt1 protein exhibited a restricted localization in differentiating oogonia in the early differentiating gonad (ovary-like structure) of male Japanese eels and in E2-induced feminized Japanese eels. We proposed that dmrt1 may be not only required for spermatogenesis but might also play a role in oogenesis in the Japanese eel.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shan-Ru Jeng
- Department of Aquaculture, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung 811, Taiwan
| | - Guan-Chung Wu
- Department of Aquaculture, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 202, Taiwan; Center of Excellence for the Oceans, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 202, Taiwan.
| | - Wen-Shiun Yueh
- Department of Aquaculture, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung 811, Taiwan
| | - Shu-Fen Kuo
- Department of Aquaculture, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung 811, Taiwan
| | - Sylvie Dufour
- Laboratory Biology of Aquatic Organisms and Ecosystems (BOREA), Museum National d'Histoire Naturelle, CNRS, IRD, Sorbonne Université, Université de Caen Normandie, Université des Antilles, 75231 Paris Cedex 05, France
| | - Ching-Fong Chang
- Department of Aquaculture, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 202, Taiwan; Center of Excellence for the Oceans, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 202, Taiwan.
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Developmental asynchrony and antagonism of sex determination pathways in a lizard with temperature-induced sex reversal. Sci Rep 2018; 8:14892. [PMID: 30291276 PMCID: PMC6173690 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-33170-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2018] [Accepted: 09/19/2018] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Vertebrate sex differentiation follows a conserved suite of developmental events: the bipotential gonads differentiate and shortly thereafter sex specific traits become dimorphic. However, this may not apply to squamates, a diverse vertebrate lineage comprising of many species with thermosensitive sexual development. Of the three species with data on the relative timing of gonad differentiation and genital dimorphism, the females of two (Niveoscincus ocellatus and Barisia imbricata) exhibit a phase of temporary pseudohermaphroditism or TPH (gonads have differentiated well before genital dimorphism). We report a third example of TPH in Pogona vitticeps, an agamid with temperature-induced male to female sex reversal. These findings suggest that for female squamates, genital and gonad development may not be closely synchronised, so that TPH may be common. We further observed a high frequency of ovotestes, a usually rare gonadal phenotype characterised by a mix of male and female structures, exclusively associated with temperature-induced sex reversal. We propose that ovotestes are evidence of a period of antagonism between male and female sex-determining pathways during sex reversal. Female sexual development in squamates is considerably more complex than has been appreciated, providing numerous avenues for future exploration of the genetic and hormonal cues that govern sexual development.
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The roles of Dmrt (Double sex/Male-abnormal-3 Related Transcription factor) genes in sex determination and differentiation mechanisms: Ubiquity and diversity across the animal kingdom. C R Biol 2015; 338:451-62. [DOI: 10.1016/j.crvi.2015.04.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2015] [Revised: 04/14/2015] [Accepted: 04/15/2015] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
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Wang Q, Weng H, Chen Y, Wang C, Lian S, Wu X, Zhang F, Li A. Early development of gonads in Muscovy duck embryos. Br Poult Sci 2015; 56:390-7. [PMID: 25760463 DOI: 10.1080/00071668.2015.1027172] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
Characteristics of gonadal development were investigated in Muscovy duck embryos at various embryonic ages. Hematoxylin-Eosin and periodic acid-Schiff staining were used to identify primordial germ cells, oogonia and sustentacular cells. Gene specific primers were designed based on conserved regions of duck antimullerian hormone (AMH), oestrogen receptor-α (ESR-α), doublesex and Mab-3 related transcription factor-1(DMRT1) and W chromosome protein kinase C inhibitor/interacting gene (WPKCI). Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction was used to characterise gene expression during gonad development in Muscovy duck embryos. Histology indicated that ovarian and testicular cells of Muscovy duck embryos developed on d 9 and 10. Immunohistochemistry showed that mouse vasa homologue-positive cells as well as Glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor-positive cells increased significantly more in females than in males between d 9 and 10. AMH and ESR-α expression increased significantly during early development. DMRT1 acts prior to and during testis differentiation whereas WPKCI was expressed actively in the female Muscovy duck embryo before the onset of gonadal differentiation. Gonad development in Muscovy duck embryo was associated with several genes that were expressed before morphological features appear and were gender specific.
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Affiliation(s)
- Q Wang
- a College of Animal Science , Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University , Fuzhou , China
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Ubeda-Manzanaro M, Merlo MA, Ortiz-Delgado JB, Rebordinos L, Sarasquete C. Expression profiling of the sex-related gene Dmrt1 in adults of the Lusitanian toadfish Halobatrachus didactylus (Bloch and Schneider, 1801). Gene 2013; 535:255-65. [PMID: 24275345 DOI: 10.1016/j.gene.2013.11.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2013] [Revised: 11/06/2013] [Accepted: 11/12/2013] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Doublesex and mab-3 related transcription factor 1 (Dmrt1) gene is a widely conserved gene involved in sex determination and differentiation across phyla. To gain insights on Dmrt1 implication for fish gonad cell differentiation and gametogenesis development, its mRNA was isolated from testis and ovary from the Lusitanian toadfish (Halobatrachus didactylus). The cDNA from Dmrt1 was synthesized and cloned, whereas its quantitative and qualitative gene expression, as well as its protein immunolocalization, were analyzed. A main product of 1.38 kb, which encodes a protein of 295 aa, was reported, but other minority Dmrt1 products were also identified by RACE-PCR. This gene is predominantly expressed in testis (about 20 times more than in other organs or tissues), specially in spermatogonia, spermatocytes and spermatids, as well as in somatic Sertoli cells, indicating that Dmrt1 plays an important role in spermatogenesis. Although Dmrt1 transcripts also seem to be involved in oogenesis development, and it cannot be excluded that toadfish Dmrt1 could be functionally involved in other processes not related to sex.
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Affiliation(s)
- María Ubeda-Manzanaro
- Institute of Marine Sciences of Andalusia (ICMAN.CSIC), University Campus, 11519 Puerto Real, Cadiz, Spain.
| | - Manuel A Merlo
- Laboratory of Genetics, Faculty of Marine and Environmental Sciences, University of Cadiz, Campus Río San Pedro, 11510, Puerto Real, Cadiz, Spain.
| | - Juan B Ortiz-Delgado
- Institute of Marine Sciences of Andalusia (ICMAN.CSIC), University Campus, 11519 Puerto Real, Cadiz, Spain.
| | - Laureana Rebordinos
- Laboratory of Genetics, Faculty of Marine and Environmental Sciences, University of Cadiz, Campus Río San Pedro, 11510, Puerto Real, Cadiz, Spain.
| | - Carmen Sarasquete
- Institute of Marine Sciences of Andalusia (ICMAN.CSIC), University Campus, 11519 Puerto Real, Cadiz, Spain.
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Zhang EF, Qiu GF. A novel Dmrt gene is specifically expressed in the testis of Chinese mitten crab, Eriocheir sinensis. Dev Genes Evol 2010; 220:151-9. [DOI: 10.1007/s00427-010-0336-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2010] [Accepted: 08/15/2010] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
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Shoemaker-Daly CM, Jackson K, Yatsu R, Matsumoto Y, Crews D. Genetic network underlying temperature-dependent sex determination is endogenously regulated by temperature in isolated cultured Trachemys scripta gonads. Dev Dyn 2010; 239:1061-75. [PMID: 20235200 DOI: 10.1002/dvdy.22266] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
In reptiles with temperature-dependent sex determination, gonadogenesis is initially directed by the incubation temperature of the egg during the middle third of embryonic development. The mechanism by which temperature is transduced into a sex-determining molecular signal remains a mystery, and here we examine the molecular network underlying sex determination in gonads in vitro. We use a whole organ culture system to show that expression of putative members of the sex-determining network (Dmrt1, Sox9, Mis, and FoxL2) are regulated by temperature endogenously within cells in the bipotential gonad and do not require other embryonic tissues to be expressed in a normal pattern in the red-eared slider turtle, Trachemys scripta. Furthermore, following a change in temperature, these factors exhibit temperature-responsive expression patterns that last for the duration of gonadogenesis. Finally, mosaic misexpression of a fusion Sox9 construct demonstrates the ability to functionally manipulate the gonad at the molecular level.
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Tripathi V, Raman R. Identification of Wnt4 as the ovary pathway gene and temporal disparity of its expression vis-a-vis testis genes in the garden lizard, Calotes versicolor. Gene 2009; 449:77-84. [PMID: 19751810 DOI: 10.1016/j.gene.2009.09.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2009] [Revised: 08/06/2009] [Accepted: 09/01/2009] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
Sex determination in the Indian garden lizard, Calotes versicolor, which lacks sex chromosomes and temperature-dependent sex determination, appears to be genically controlled, and previous studies have identified orthologues of Sox9, Dmrt1 and Androgen receptor (AR) as genes involved in testis differentiation in genetic males. In the pursuit of female pathway genes in this species, the present paper deals with the identification of Wnt4 and Dax1 genes in C. versicolor and their expression in embryonic gonad. CvDax1 is expressed throughout the development in certain embryos from day 5 onwards but shows no clear association with either testis or ovary. However, its preferred association with CvSox9 in early development and with CvWnt4 during later development suggests a role in the structuring of the gonads. CvWnt4 shows little expression in early development. It expresses prominently from day 20 onwards, and almost exclusively in those embryos that do not express CvSox9, demonstrating that CvWnt4 is the ovary differentiation gene in this species. This evidence leads us to suggest that temporal distinction of expression of ovary-specific (day 20 onwards) and testis-specific (day 5 onwards) genes could be an important part of the process of sex determination in C. versicolor. Taken together, the mechanism of sex determination in C. versicolor appears closer to the CSD in mammals than that in the ESD reptiles and birds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vidisha Tripathi
- Cytogenetics Laboratory, Department of Zoology, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi-221005, India
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Chakraborty A, Sreenivasulu K, Raman R. Involvement of androgen receptor gene in male gonad differentiation in Indian garden lizard, Calotes versicolor. Mol Cell Endocrinol 2009; 303:100-6. [PMID: 19428997 DOI: 10.1016/j.mce.2009.01.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2008] [Revised: 01/21/2009] [Accepted: 01/22/2009] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
The Indian garden lizard, Calotes versicolor, shows neither cytologically distinguishable sex chromosomes nor temperature dependent sex determination. However, previous studies on the administration of androgens to embryos during early development have shown reversal towards male sex. We have cloned and sequenced a cDNA fragment of the androgen receptor (AR) gene (CvAR) and characterized its expression. CvAR shares much homology with AR gene of other vertebrates at the nucleotide and amino acid levels indicating their evolutionary conservation. Whole mount RNA in situ hybridization (WRISH) and semi-quantitative RT-PCR analyses of its expression in the genital ridge of individual embryos from different stages of development, demonstrate its initiation by day 10 which is later than CvSox9 but occurs dimorphically only in those embryonic gonads which express CvSox9, a male specific marker. It suggests that AR expression may be crucial in the male sex determination pathway in C. versicolor.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arindam Chakraborty
- Cytogenetics Laboratory, Department of Zoology, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India
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Herpin A, Nakamura S, Wagner TU, Tanaka M, Schartl M. A highly conserved cis-regulatory motif directs differential gonadal synexpression of Dmrt1 transcripts during gonad development. Nucleic Acids Res 2009; 37:1510-20. [PMID: 19139075 PMCID: PMC2655695 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkn1065] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Differential gene expression largely accounts for the coordinated manifestation of the genetic programme underlying embryonic development and cell differentiation. The 3′ untranslated region (3′-UTR) of eukaryotic genes can contain motifs involved in regulation of gene expression at the post-transcriptional level. In the 3′-UTR of dmrt1, a key gene that functions in gonad development and differentiation, an 11-bp protein-binding motif was identified that mediates gonad-specific mRNA localization during embryonic and larval development of fish. Mutations that disrupt the 11-bp motif leading to in vitro protein-binding loss and selective transcript stabilization failure indicate a role for this motif in RNA stabilization through protein binding. The sequence motif was found to be conserved in most of the dmrt1 homologous genes from flies to humans suggesting a widespread conservation of this specific mechanism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amaury Herpin
- Physiological Chemistry I, University of Würzburg, Biozentrum, Am Hubland, D-97074 Würzburg, Germany.
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Anand A, Patel M, Lalremruata A, Singh AP, Agrawal R, Singh L, Aggarwal RK. Multiple alternative splicing of Dmrt1 during gonadogenesis in Indian mugger, a species exhibiting temperature-dependent sex determination. Gene 2008; 425:56-63. [DOI: 10.1016/j.gene.2008.08.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2008] [Revised: 08/04/2008] [Accepted: 08/05/2008] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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12
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Analyzing the coordinated gene network underlying temperature-dependent sex determination in reptiles. Semin Cell Dev Biol 2008; 20:293-303. [PMID: 19022389 DOI: 10.1016/j.semcdb.2008.10.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2008] [Accepted: 10/24/2008] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Although gonadogenesis has been extensively studied in vertebrates with genetic sex determination, investigations at the molecular level in nontraditional model organisms with temperature-dependent sex determination are relatively new areas of research. Results show that while the key players of the molecular network underlying gonad development appear to be retained, their functions range from conserved to novel roles. In this review, we summarize experiments investigating candidate molecular players underlying temperature-dependent sex determination. We discuss some of the problems encountered unraveling this network, pose potential solutions, and suggest rewarding future directions of research.
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Lei N, Hornbaker KI, Rice DA, Karpova T, Agbor VA, Heckert LL. Sex-specific differences in mouse DMRT1 expression are both cell type- and stage-dependent during gonad development. Biol Reprod 2007; 77:466-75. [PMID: 17567962 PMCID: PMC2580730 DOI: 10.1095/biolreprod.106.058784] [Citation(s) in RCA: 77] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/01/2022] Open
Abstract
Immunohistochemistry was used to examine GCNA1, a germ cell-specific protein, together with DMRT1 (Doublesex and Mab-3-related transcription factor-1), a transcription factor implicated in Sertoli cell and germ cell function, in order to resolve DMRT1's cellular profile during pre- and postnatal gonad development in the mouse. In the indifferent gonad (10.5-11.5 days postcoitus [dpc]), DMRT1 localized to somatic cells and GCNA1(+) germ cells and was indistinguishable in males and females. By 12.5 dpc, a clear sexual preference for DMRT1 in male somatic cells was observed, with male DMRT1 localized to testicular cords and more abundant in Sertoli cells than in germ cells and female DMRT1 diffusely labeled and markedly lower in somatic cells than in germ cells. A male somatic preference continued throughout development, with DMRT1 evident in Sertoli cells at all ages examined and absent in ovarian somatic cells from 13.5 dpc onward. In contrast, expression in primordial germ cells was not sexually distinct, and both sexes showed DMRT1 increasing through 13.5 dpc and absent by 15.5 dpc. Notably, sexual differences in germ cell DMRT1 were detected after birth, when it was detected only in spermatogonia of the testis. Colocalization of DMRT1 with proliferation markers KI67 and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) and stem cell markers OCT4 (also known as POU5F1) and NGN3 indicated that, in postnatal testes, DMRT1 was present in both stem and proliferating spermatogonia. Together, the findings implicate opposite functions for DMRT1 in somatic and germ cells of the testis. In Sertoli cells, DMRT1 expression correlated with differentiation, whereas in germ cells, it suggested a role in expansion and maintenance of undifferentiated spermatogonia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ning Lei
- Department of Molecular and Integrative Physiology, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, Kansas 66160, USA
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Smith CA, Roeszler KN, Hudson QJ, Sinclair AH. Avian sex determination: what, when and where? Cytogenet Genome Res 2007; 117:165-73. [PMID: 17675857 DOI: 10.1159/000103177] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2006] [Accepted: 09/13/2006] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Sex is determined genetically in all birds, but the underlying mechanism remains unknown. All species have a ZZ/ZW sex chromosome system characterised by female (ZW) heterogamety, but the chromosomes themselves can be heteromorphic (in most birds) or homomorphic (in the flightless ratites). Sex in birds might be determined by the dosage of a Z-linked gene (two in males, one in females) or by a dominant ovary-determining gene carried on the W sex chromosome, or both. Sex chromosome aneuploidy has not been conclusively documented in birds to differentiate between these possibilities. By definition, the sex chromosomes of birds must carry one or more sex-determining genes. In this review of avian sex determination, we ask what, when and where? What is the nature of the avian sex determinant? When should it be expressed in the developing embryo, and where is it expressed? The last two questions arise due to evidence suggesting that sex-determining genes in birds might be operating prior to overt sexual differentiation of the gonads into testes or ovaries, and in tissues other than the urogenital system.
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Affiliation(s)
- C A Smith
- Murdoch Childrens Research Institute and University of Melbourne, Department of Paediatrics, Royal Childrens Hospital, Parkville, Australia.
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Kim S, Bardwell VJ, Zarkower D. Cell type-autonomous and non-autonomous requirements for Dmrt1 in postnatal testis differentiation. Dev Biol 2007; 307:314-27. [PMID: 17540358 PMCID: PMC1995593 DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2007.04.046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 118] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2007] [Revised: 03/21/2007] [Accepted: 04/30/2007] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Genes containing the DM domain, a conserved DNA binding motif first found in Doublesex of Drosophila and mab-3 of Caenorhabditis elegans, regulate sexual differentiation in multiple phyla. The DM domain gene Dmrt1 is essential for testicular differentiation in vertebrates. In the mouse, Dmrt1 is expressed in pre-meiotic germ cells and in Sertoli cells, which provide essential support for spermatogenesis. Dmrt1 null mutant mice have severely dysgenic testes in which Sertoli cells and germ cells both fail to differentiate properly after birth. Here we use conditional gene targeting to identify the functions of Dmrt1 in each cell type. We find that Dmrt1 is required in Sertoli cells for their postnatal differentiation, and for germ line maintenance and for meiotic progression. Dmrt1 is required in germ cells for their radial migration to the periphery of the seminiferous tubule where the spermatogenic niche will form, for mitotic reactivation and for survival beyond the first postnatal week. Thus Dmrt1 activity is required autonomously in the Sertoli and germ cell lineages, and Dmrt1 activity in Sertoli cells is also required non-autonomously to maintain the germ line. These results demonstrate that Dmrt1 plays multiple roles in controlling the remodeling and differentiation of the juvenile testis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shinseog Kim
- Department of Genetics, Cell Biology, and Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
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Xia W, Zhou L, Yao B, Li CJ, Gui JF. Differential and spermatogenic cell-specific expression of DMRT1 during sex reversal in protogynous hermaphroditic groupers. Mol Cell Endocrinol 2007; 263:156-72. [PMID: 17092636 DOI: 10.1016/j.mce.2006.09.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 104] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2006] [Revised: 09/24/2006] [Accepted: 09/26/2006] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
DMRT1 has been suggested to play different roles in sex determination and gonad differentiation, because different expression patterns have been reported among different vertebrates. The groupers, since their gonads first develop as ovary and then reverse into testis, have been thought as good models to study sex differentiation and determination. In this study, we cloned the full-length cDNAs of DMRT1 gene from orange-spotted grouper (Epinephelus coioides), and prepared corresponding anti-EcDMRT1 antiserum to study the relationship of DMRT1 to sex reversal. One important finding is that the grouper DMRT1 is not only differentially expressed in different stage gonads, but also restricted to specific stages and specific cells of spermatogenesis. Grouper DMRT1 protein exists only in spermatogonia, primary spermatocytes and secondary spermatocytes, but not in the supporting Sertoli cells. Moreover, we confirmed that EcSox3 is expressed not only in oogonia and different stage oocytes, but also in Sertoli cells and spermatogonia, and EcSox9 is expressed only in Sertoli cells. The data suggested that grouper DMRT1 might be a more specific sex differentiation gene for spermatogenesis, and play its role at the specific stages from spermatogonia to spermatocytes. In addition, no introns were found in the grouper DMRT1, and no duplicated DMRT1 genes were detected. The finding implicates that the intronless DMRT1 that is able to undergo rapid transcriptional turnover might be a significant gene for stimulating spermatogenesis in the protogynous hermaphroditic gonad.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Xia
- State Key Laboratory of Freshwater Ecology and Biotechnology, Wuhan Center for Developmental Biology, Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Graduate School of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan 430072, China
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Abstract
Although the sex of most animals is determined by genetic information, sex-determining genes had been identified only in mammals, several flies, and the worm Caenorhabditis elegans until the recent discovery of DMY (DM-domain gene on the Y chromosome) in the sex-determining region on the Y chromosome of the teleost fish medaka, Oryzias latipes. Functional and expression analyses of DMY have shown it to be the master gene for male sex determination in the medaka. The only sex-determining genes found so far in vertebrates are Sry and DMY. Therefore, the medaka is expected to become a good experimental animal for investigating the precise mechanisms involved in primary sex determination in nonmammalian vertebrates. This article reviews the origin of DMY and the sexual development of gonads in the medaka. The putative functions of DMY are also discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Masaru Matsuda
- PRESTO, Japan Science and Technology Corporation, Laboratory of Reproductive Biology, National Institute for Basic Biology, Okazaki 444-8585, Japan.
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