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Updated: Aug 1, 2026
10:24
Xenopus laevis as a Model to Identify Translation Impairment
Published on: September 27, 2015
Expression of cell-cycle regulators during Xenopus oogenesis
Nobuaki Furuno1, Ayako Kawasaki, Noriyuki Sagata
1Division of Differentiation Mechanism, Institute for Amphibian Biology, Graduate School of Science, Hiroshima University, 1-3-1 Kagamiyama, Higashihiroshima 739-8526, Japan. nfuruno@hiroshima-u.ac.jp
Gene Expression Patterns : GEP
|April 25, 2003
Summary
Cell-cycle regulators and maturation-promoting factor (MPF) are present from early oogenesis in Xenopus. Their synthesis timing, controlled by translation, influences oocyte maturation.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Biology
- Cell Cycle Regulation
- Xenopus Oogenesis
Background:
- Full-grown Xenopus oocytes store cell-cycle regulators and inactive maturation-promoting factor (pre-MPF).
- These components are essential for initiating the cell cycle during oocyte maturation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the expression patterns of cell-cycle regulators during Xenopus oogenesis.
- To analyze the formation of pre-MPF throughout oocyte development.
Main Methods:
- Northern blotting analysis was used to examine gene expression.
- Detection of pre-MPF formation was performed.
Main Results:
- Cdc2 and Cyclin B2, along with pre-MPF, were detected in stage I oocytes.
- Negative regulators (Myt1, Chk1) were synthesized early, while positive regulators (MEK, MAPK, Cdc25C) were synthesized late.
- Northern blotting indicated translation controls the synthesis of these regulators.
Conclusions:
- Differential synthesis timing of cell-cycle regulators is crucial for oocyte maturation.
- Translation plays a key role in regulating the expression of these factors during oogenesis.
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