Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 3, 2026

In Situ Detection of Ribonucleoprotein Complex Assembly in the C. elegans Germline using Proximity Ligation Assay
Published on: May 5, 2020
Two zinc finger proteins, OMA-1 and OMA-2, are redundantly required for oocyte maturation in C. elegans
1Department of Molecular Biology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas 75390-9148, USA.
Abstract:
Oocytes are released from meiotic prophase I arrest through a process termed oocyte maturation. We present here a genetic characterization of oocyte maturation, using C. elegans as a model system. We show that two TIS11 zinc finger-containing proteins, OMA-1 and OMA-2, express specifically in maturing oocytes and function redundantly in oocyte maturation. Oocytes in oma-1;oma-2 mutants initiate but do not complete maturation and arrest at a defined point in prophase I. Two maturation signal-induced molecular events, including the maintenance of activated MAP kinase, do not occur in Oma oocytes. The Oma prophase arrest is released by inactivation of a MYT-1-like kinase, suggesting that OMA-1 and OMA-2 function upstream of MYT-1 as positive regulators of prophase progression during meiotic maturation.
Related Concept Videos
Oogenesis
Oogenesis
Each primary oocyte is surrounded by a layer of pre-granulosa cells, forming what is known...
Meiosis II
The timing and cell division patterns of meiosis differ between males and females. In male meiosis, the centrosomes are part of the formation of the meiotic spindle. However, in oocytes, including that of humans, Drosophila,...
Dosage Compensation
In addition to sexual development, the X chromosome has genes involved in autosomal functions such as brain development and the immune system. Therefore, males and females with distinct numbers of X chromosomes will have...
Master Transcription Regulators
Meiosis I
Prophase I is the most extended and complex step of meiosis I characterized by synapsis, chromosome pairing, and recombination of the homologous chromosomes. This process is facilitated by a proteinaceous structure called the...

