Guoxing Yin

Methods E3 and J1 cell lines were used in this study. E3 ESCs were cultured on MEF feeder cells (Ye et al., 2021), whereas J1 ESCs were cultured on gelatin. The culture medium of ESCs consisted of 15% fetal bovine serum (ES quality, HyClone) supplemented with penicillin (100 U/mL) and streptomycin (100 μg/mL), LIF (1000 U/mL) (ESGRO, Chemicon), nonessential amino acids, β-mercaptoethanol (0.1 mM), L-glutamine (1 mM), and knockout DMEM (Gibco).

Abstract Homologous synapsis and recombination are the central events that take place in the prophase I of meiosis. Signaling that promotes the germ cell differentiation and prophase I remains elusive. Here we show a key Kitl/Kit signaling between somatic cells and germ cells in regulating meiotic prophase I in the mouse fetal gonad. Disruption of Kitl/Kit signaling, both in vivo and in vitro, impairs meiosis initiation, disrupts homologous synapsis and recombination.

Abstract In mouse, minor zygotic genome activation (ZGA) precedes and is essential for major ZGA in two-cell (2C) embryos. A subset of ZGA genes (known as “2C” genes) are also activated in a rare population of embryonic stem cells (ESCs) (2C-like cells). However, the functions of the 2C genes are not fully understood.