Impairment of pachytene spermatogenesis in Dmrt7 deficient mice, possibly causing meiotic arrest.

Although Dmrt7 has been reported to be essential for male spermatogenesis, the molecular mechanism underlying pachytene spermatogenesis by Dmrt7 is not known. In the present study, by detailed analysis of Dmrt7 protein distribution in spermatocytes in the first wave of spermatogenesis, we clarified the profile of Dmrt7 expression and localization in pachytene spermatogenesis. Dmrt7-deficient spermatocytes were arrested in the pachytene stage, followed by apoptosis. We analyzed to determine whether every event in the spermatogenesis at the Dmrt7-deficient mice progressed normally, because in several gene knockout mice with spermatogenic arrest described in the previous reports impairments of these events often appeared. Mutant mice showed normal synapsis and XY body formation, while impairment of meiotic sex chromosome inactivation (MSCI), decreased expression of backup genes, and increased expression of retrotransposons indicated incomplete meiotic recombination.