Zebrafish vasa homologue RNA is localized to the cleavage planes of 2- and 4-cell-stage embryos and is expressed in the primordial germ cells - PubMed (original) (raw)
Zebrafish vasa homologue RNA is localized to the cleavage planes of 2- and 4-cell-stage embryos and is expressed in the primordial germ cells
C Yoon et al. Development. 1997 Aug.
Abstract
Identification and manipulation of the germ line are important to the study of model organisms. Although zebrafish has recently emerged as a model for vertebrate development, the primordial germ cells (PGCs) in this organism have not been previously described. To identify a molecular marker for the zebrafish PGCs, we cloned the zebrafish homologue of the Drosophila vasa gene, which, in the fly, encodes a germ-cell-specific protein. Northern blotting revealed that zebrafish vasa homologue (vas) transcript is present in embryos just after fertilization, and hence it is probably maternally supplied. Using whole-mount in situ hybridization, we investigated the expression pattern of vas RNA in zebrafish embryos from the 1-cell stage to 10 days of development. Here we present evidence that vas RNA is a germ-cell-specific marker, allowing a description of the zebrafish PGCs for the first time. Furthermore, vas transcript was detected in a novel pattern, localized to the cleavage planes in 2- and 4-cell-stage embryos. During subsequent cleavages, the RNA is segregated as subcellular clumps to a small number of cells that may be the future germ cells. These results suggest new ways in which one might develop techniques for the genetic manipulation of zebrafish. Furthermore, they provide the basis for further studies on this novel RNA localization pattern and on germ-line development in general.
Similar articles
- A vasa-like gene in zebrafish identifies putative primordial germ cells.
Olsen LC, Aasland R, Fjose A. Olsen LC, et al. Mech Dev. 1997 Aug;66(1-2):95-105. doi: 10.1016/s0925-4773(97)00099-3. Mech Dev. 1997. PMID: 9376327 - Cloning and pattern of expression of the shiro-uo vasa gene during embryogenesis and its roles in PGC development.
Miyake A, Saito T, Kashiwagi N, Ando D, Yamamoto A, Suzuki T, Nakatsuji N, Nakatsuji T. Miyake A, et al. Int J Dev Biol. 2006;50(7):619-25. doi: 10.1387/ijdb.062172am. Int J Dev Biol. 2006. PMID: 16892175 - Characterization of zebrafish primordial germ cells: morphology and early distribution of vasa RNA.
Braat AK, Zandbergen T, van de Water S, Goos HJ, Zivkovic D. Braat AK, et al. Dev Dyn. 1999 Oct;216(2):153-67. doi: 10.1002/(SICI)1097-0177(199910)216:2<153::AID-DVDY6>3.0.CO;2-1. Dev Dyn. 1999. PMID: 10536055 - Germ line development in fishes.
Braat AK, Speksnijder JE, Zivkovic D. Braat AK, et al. Int J Dev Biol. 1999;43(7):745-60. Int J Dev Biol. 1999. PMID: 10668983 Review. - Vasa homolog genes in mammalian germ cell development.
Noce T, Okamoto-Ito S, Tsunekawa N. Noce T, et al. Cell Struct Funct. 2001 Jun;26(3):131-6. doi: 10.1247/csf.26.131. Cell Struct Funct. 2001. PMID: 11565805 Review.
Cited by
- Early fasting does not impact gonadal size nor vasa gene expression in the European seabass Dicentrarchus labrax.
Geffroy B, Goikoetxea A, Villain-Naud N, Martinez AS. Geffroy B, et al. Fish Physiol Biochem. 2024 Aug 28. doi: 10.1007/s10695-024-01395-6. Online ahead of print. Fish Physiol Biochem. 2024. PMID: 39196454 - Somatostatin signalling coordinates energy metabolism allocation to reproduction in zebrafish.
Chen J, Zhao W, Cao L, Martins RST, Canário AVM. Chen J, et al. BMC Biol. 2024 Jul 29;22(1):163. doi: 10.1186/s12915-024-01961-7. BMC Biol. 2024. PMID: 39075492 Free PMC article. - The killifish germline regulates longevity and somatic repair in a sex-specific manner.
Moses E, Atlan T, Sun X, Franěk R, Siddiqui A, Marinov GK, Shifman S, Zucker DM, Oron-Gottesman A, Greenleaf WJ, Cohen E, Ram O, Harel I. Moses E, et al. Nat Aging. 2024 Jun;4(6):791-813. doi: 10.1038/s43587-024-00632-0. Epub 2024 May 15. Nat Aging. 2024. PMID: 38750187 - Direct male development in chromosomally ZZ zebrafish.
Wilson CA, Batzel P, Postlethwait JH. Wilson CA, et al. Front Cell Dev Biol. 2024 Mar 11;12:1362228. doi: 10.3389/fcell.2024.1362228. eCollection 2024. Front Cell Dev Biol. 2024. PMID: 38529407 Free PMC article. - Germ plasm dynamics during oogenesis and early embryonic development in Xenopus and zebrafish.
Divyanshi, Yang J. Divyanshi, et al. Mol Reprod Dev. 2024 Aug;91(8):e23718. doi: 10.1002/mrd.23718. Epub 2023 Dec 21. Mol Reprod Dev. 2024. PMID: 38126950 Review.
Publication types
MeSH terms
Substances
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Other Literature Sources
Molecular Biology Databases