Ballow Daniel J, Xin Yun, Choi Youngsok, Pangas Stephanie A, Rajkovic Aleksandar
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
Gene Expr Patterns. 2006 Oct;6(8):1014-8. doi: 10.1016/j.modgep.2006.04.007. Epub 2006 Apr 30.
Germ cell-specific transcriptional regulation is essential to understand pathways that confer germ cells their unique biology. Germ cell-specific transcription factors such as Figla and Nobox are critical in oogenesis, while Zfp148 and Taf4b are also critical in spermatogenesis. Identification and characterization of the full complement of germ cell-specific transcription factors is necessary to understand germ cell-specific regulatory networks. Here, we describe a discovery of a novel spermatogenesis- and oogenesis-specific basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcription factor, Sohlh2. Sohlh2 is expressed both in the male and female germline. In females, Sohlh2 transcripts are detectable in the female embryonic gonad but confined to oocytes of small follicles in the immature ovary. In adult ovaries, SOHLH2 protein is present in primordial follicles but not detected in growing oocytes. SOHLH2 expression in testes is confined to spermatogonia. The expression pattern of SOHLH2 suggests that it may be a critical regulator of early germ cell development.
生殖细胞特异性转录调控对于理解赋予生殖细胞独特生物学特性的途径至关重要。生殖细胞特异性转录因子，如Figla和Nobox，在卵子发生过程中至关重要，而Zfp148和Taf4b在精子发生过程中也至关重要。鉴定和表征生殖细胞特异性转录因子的完整互补对于理解生殖细胞特异性调控网络是必要的。在此，我们描述了一种新型的精子发生和卵子发生特异性碱性螺旋-环-螺旋（bHLH）转录因子Sohlh2的发现。Sohlh2在雄性和雌性生殖系中均有表达。在雌性中，Sohlh2转录本在雌性胚胎性腺中可检测到，但局限于未成熟卵巢中小卵泡的卵母细胞中。在成年卵巢中，SOHLH2蛋白存在于原始卵泡中，但在生长中的卵母细胞中未检测到。SOHLH2在睾丸中的表达局限于精原细胞。SOHLH2的表达模式表明它可能是早期生殖细胞发育的关键调节因子。
