INRA, UMR 1198 Biologie du Développement et Reproduction, Jouy-en-Josas, France.
PLoS One. 2011;6(11):e26950. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0026950. Epub 2011 Nov 1.
We had previously reported that the Suppression Subtractive Hybridization (SSH) approach was relevant for the isolation of new mammalian genes involved in oogenesis and early follicle development. Some of these transcripts might be potential new oocyte and granulosa cell markers. We have now characterized one of them, named TOPAZ1 for the Testis and Ovary-specific PAZ domain gene.
Sheep and mouse TOPAZ1 mRNA have 4,803 bp and 4,962 bp open reading frames (20 exons), respectively, and encode putative TOPAZ1 proteins containing 1,600 and 1653 amino acids. They possess PAZ and CCCH domains. In sheep, TOPAZ1 mRNA is preferentially expressed in females during fetal life with a peak during prophase I of meiosis, and in males during adulthood. In the mouse, Topaz1 is a germ cell-specific gene. TOPAZ1 protein is highly conserved in vertebrates and specifically expressed in mouse and sheep gonads. It is localized in the cytoplasm of germ cells from the sheep fetal ovary and mouse adult testis.
We have identified a novel PAZ-domain protein that is abundantly expressed in the gonads during germ cell meiosis. The expression pattern of TOPAZ1, and its high degree of conservation, suggests that it may play an important role in germ cell development. Further characterization of TOPAZ1 may elucidate the mechanisms involved in gametogenesis, and particularly in the RNA silencing process in the germ line.
我们之前报道过抑制差减杂交(SSH)方法可用于分离新的哺乳动物基因,这些基因参与卵母细胞发生和早期卵泡发育。其中一些转录本可能是潜在的新卵母细胞和颗粒细胞标记物。我们现在对其中一个基因进行了特征描述,命名为睾丸和卵巢特异性 PAZ 结构域基因 1(TOPAZ1)。
绵羊和小鼠 TOPAZ1 mRNA 分别具有 4803bp 和 4962bp 的开放阅读框(20 个外显子),并分别编码含有 1600 和 1653 个氨基酸的推定 TOPAZ1 蛋白。它们含有 PAZ 和 CCCH 结构域。在绵羊中,TOPAZ1 mRNA 在胎儿期雌性中优先表达,在减数分裂前期 I 达到峰值,在成年雄性中表达。在小鼠中,Topaz1 是一种生殖细胞特异性基因。TOPAZ1 蛋白在脊椎动物中高度保守,在小鼠和绵羊性腺中特异性表达。它定位于绵羊胎儿卵巢和小鼠成年睾丸生殖细胞的细胞质中。
我们鉴定了一种新的 PAZ 结构域蛋白,它在生殖细胞减数分裂期间在性腺中大量表达。TOPAZ1 的表达模式及其高度保守性表明,它可能在生殖细胞发育中发挥重要作用。进一步对 TOPAZ1 的特征描述可能阐明配子发生,特别是在生殖系中的 RNA 沉默过程中的机制。