Male Germ Cell Development in Animals
A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Animal Reproduction".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 29 August 2026 | Viewed by 1
Special Issue Editors
Interests: spermatogenesis; stem cells; meiosis; testis; sperm
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Spermatogenesis is a highly intricate developmental process that occurs in the testes and is responsible for sperm production, and thereby maintains life-long male fertility. Spermatogenesis comprises three consecutive stages, i.e., spermatogonial stem cell (SSC) self-renewal and differentiation (mitosis), meiosis, and spermiogenesis. This process is regulated by multiple factors such as transcription factors, epigenetics, and chromatin structural variations. In addition, multiple somatic cell types, such as Sertoli cells, Leydig cells, peritubular myoid cells, testicular endothelial cells, and macrophages, also orchestrate spermatogenesis by way of autocrine, paracrine, or endocrine.
To date, due to the development of knockout models and gene manipulation strategies such as RNAi and CRISPR-Cas9, mechanisms for spermatogenesis have been well studied in model species such as Drosophila and mice. However, male germ cell development differs among species, and mechanisms underlying this process remain poorly understood in non-model species such as domestic animals and wildlife.
This Special Issue aims to gain more knowledge of spermatogenesis and male germ cell development in a broad range of mammalian species, particularly domestic animals and wildlife. To this end, we invite high-quality original research and review submissions that provide novel insights to this subject. Research areas may include, but are not limited to, in vitro SSC culture, SSC self-renewal and differentiation, in vivo/vitro meiosis, spermiogenesis, sperm maturation, germ cell characterization, testicular niche, and testicular somatic cells (Sertoli cells, Leydig cells, etc.), as well as the underlying regulatory mechanisms. Manuscripts on the preservation of germ cells/testis tissue/sperm are also welcome. With this new knowledge, this Special Issue is expected to contribute to the improvement of reproductive efficiency and the development of novel assisted reproductive technology (ART) in the long run.
We look forward to your valuable contributions.
Dr. Yi Zheng
Prof. Dr. Zhendong Zhu
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- spermatogenesis
- spermatogonia
- spermatocyte
- spermatid
- sperm
- Sertoli cell
- Leydig cell
- testis
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