Development of the nucleolus in early goat embryos

In vivo nucleologenesis was studied in goat embryos from the pronuclear stage to the blastocyst stage by light and electron microscopy. Ultrastructural changes of the nucleoli were characterized by the following progression: homogeneous electron-dense fibrillar primary nucleoli in the pronucleus; small, dense fibrillar masses dispersed in clusters of chromatin at the two-cell stage; ring-shaped nucleoli made up of a fibrillar center surrounded by a layer of dense fibrillar components at the four-cell stage; reticulated nucleoli composed of a three-dimensional network of fibrillar components surrounded by small amounts of granular components at the eight-cell stage; fully developed compact-type nucleoli consisting of several fibrillar centers each surrounded by a layer of fibrillar components and abundant granular components in morulae and blastocysts. Moreover, it was concluded that activation of rRNA transcription, as evidenced by specific silver nitrate staining of the nucleolus organizer regions of metaphase chromosomes, occurs at the two- to four-cell stage and that the morphological changes accompanied a substantial increase in nucleolar transcriptional activity up to the blastocyst stage. This study provides evidence that a structure-function relationship exists during nucleologenesis in goat embryos.