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Cells
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Genetic and Epigenetic Regulations of Embryonic Male Germ Cell Development...
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Genetic and Epigenetic Regulations of Embryonic Male Germ Cell Development and Adult Spermatogenesis

A special issue of Cells (ISSN 2073-4409). This special issue belongs to the section "Reproductive Cells and Development".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (1 February 2024) | Viewed by 5915

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Zhibing Zhang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Medicine, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA
Interests: manchette; intraflagellar transport; transcriptional regulation; acrosome biogenesis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Shuiqiao Yuan

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute Reproductive Health, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430030, China
Interests: piRNA; spermatogenesis; DNA methylation
Dr. Zine Eddine Kherraf

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute for Advanced Biosciences, University Grenoble Alpes, INSERM, CNRS, 38000 Grenoble, France
Interests: genetics of male infertility; asthenozoospermia; ciliopathy
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

A new life starts when a spermatozoon fertilizes an egg. A special cell population, the primordial germ cells (PGC), forms during the embryonic stage, and they migrate to the embryonic gonads thereafter. In males, the PGCs develop into male germ cells and undergo spermatogenesis. Spermatogenesis begins from puberty, and spermatogonia undergo mitosis, meiosis, and spermiogenesis, finally forming sperm. The whole process of embryonic male germ cell development and spermatogenesis is precisely regulated. Genetic and epigenetic regulations are two fundamental mechanisms for this process. Many genes have been identified to play key roles in this process, and epigenetic factors are a critical component of gene expression. It has been established that a dynamic cascade of epigenetic changes occurs during PGC development and, later, spermatogenesis. Defects in genetic and epigenetic regulation are associated with male infertility. The main aim of this topic is to introduce the new findings of the genetic and epigenetic regulations of embryonic male germ cell development and adult spermatogenesis and to explore the molecular pathogeny associated with their disorders, which lead to male infertility. 

Dr. Zhibing Zhang
Prof. Dr. Shuiqiao Yuan
Dr. Zine Eddine Kherraf
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 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

  • the primordial germ cells
  • male germ cells
  • spermatogenesis
  • genetic regulation
  • epigenetic factors

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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14 pages, 2583 KiB  
Article
The Transcriptome of Chicken Migratory Primordial Germ Cells Reveals Intrinsic Sex Differences and Expression of Hallmark Germ Cell Genes
by Dadakhalandar Doddamani, Mark Woodcock, Lorna Taylor, Sunil Nandi, Lynn McTeir, Megan G. Davey, Jacqueline Smith and Mike J. McGrew
Cells 2023, 12(8), 1151; https://doi.org/10.3390/cells12081151 - 13 Apr 2023
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3074
Abstract
Primordial germ cells (PGCs) are germline-restricted embryonic cells that form the functional gametes of the adult animal. The use of avian PGCs in biobanking and producing genetically modified birds has driven research on the in vitro propagation and manipulation of these embryonic cells. [...] Read more.
Primordial germ cells (PGCs) are germline-restricted embryonic cells that form the functional gametes of the adult animal. The use of avian PGCs in biobanking and producing genetically modified birds has driven research on the in vitro propagation and manipulation of these embryonic cells. In avian species, PGCs are hypothesized to be sexually undetermined at an early embryonic stage and undergo differentiation into an oocyte or spermatogonial fate dictated by extrinsic factors present in the gonad. However, chicken male and female PGCs require different culture conditions, suggesting that there are sex-specific differences, even at early stages. To understand potential differences between male and female chicken PGCs during migratory stages, we studied the transcriptomes of circulatory stage male and female PGCs propagated in a serum-free medium. We found that in vitro cultured PGCs were transcriptionally similar to their in ovo counterparts, with differences in cell proliferation pathways. Our analysis also revealed sex-specific transcriptome differences between male and female cultured PGCs, with notable differences in Smad7 and NCAM2 expression. A comparison of chicken PGCs with pluripotent and somatic cell types identified a set of genes that are exclusive to germ cells, enriched in the germplasm, and associated with germ cell development. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Genetic and Epigenetic Regulations of Embryonic Male Germ Cell Development and Adult Spermatogenesis)
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15 pages, 5730 KiB  
Article
The Male-Biased Expression of miR-2954 Is Involved in the Male Pathway of Chicken Sex Differentiation
by Yu Cheng, Zhen Zhang, Guixin Zhang, Ligen Chen, Cuiping Zeng, Xiaoli Liu and Yanping Feng
Cells 2023, 12(1), 4; https://doi.org/10.3390/cells12010004 - 20 Dec 2022
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2332
Abstract
Many expression data showed miRNAs have a potential function on regulating gonadal differentiation in animals, but their function is rarely studied in vivo, especially in chickens. Using the comprehensive expression profiles analysis, the specific male-biased miR-2954, which is significantly higher expressed in male [...] Read more.
Many expression data showed miRNAs have a potential function on regulating gonadal differentiation in animals, but their function is rarely studied in vivo, especially in chickens. Using the comprehensive expression profiles analysis, the specific male-biased miR-2954, which is significantly higher expressed in male embryos and gonads at all detected stages, was firstly screened during the early stages of chicken embryogenesis and gonadogenesis. In sex-reversed female gonads treated with aromatase inhibitors, the expression of miR-2954 was increased, which was consistent with the up-regulation of DMRT1 and SOX9. The injection of vivo-morpholino of miR-2954 significantly inhibited the expression of miR-2954 in chicken embryos, and the down-regulation of miR-2954 decreased the expression of testis-associated genes DMRT1 and SOX9, while the expression of ovary-associated genes and the gonadal morphology did not change obviously. These results confirm that miR-2954 coincides with testicular differentiation in chicken embryos, but whether it might be an upstream cell autonomous factor to sex development in birds still need to be further determined. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Genetic and Epigenetic Regulations of Embryonic Male Germ Cell Development and Adult Spermatogenesis)
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