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Cyclin D2 arrests Xenopus early embryonic cell cycles
F Taieb1, I Chartrain, S Chevalier
1Laboratoire de Physiologie de la Reproduction, INRA/URA-CNRS 1449, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris, France.
Experimental Cell Research
|January 22, 1998
Summary
Xenopus cyclin D2, a maternal RNA, halts early embryonic cell cycles after the first DNA replication. This suggests cyclin D2 controls the G2 phase or G2/M transition in early development.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Biology
- Cell Cycle Regulation
Background:
- Maternal RNAs are crucial for early embryonic development.
- Xenopus cyclin D2 is a rare, stable maternal RNA during early development.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of Xenopus cyclin D2 in early embryonic cell cycle progression.
- To elucidate the mechanism by which cyclin D2 influences cell division.
Main Methods:
- Injection of Xenopus cyclin D2 into a blastomere of a two-cell Xenopus embryo.
- Utilizing cycling Xenopus egg extracts supplemented with sperm heads to mimic cell cycle events.
- Monitoring DNA replication and histone H1 kinase activity in response to cyclin D2 addition.
Main Results:
- Cyclin D2 injection caused cell cycle arrest in the injected blastomere.
- In egg extracts, cyclin D2 allowed the first DNA replication but blocked subsequent rounds.
- Cell cycle arrest occurred after the first S-phase, not due to lack of cyclin B2.
- Radiolabeled cyclin D2 localized to nuclei and remained stable during arrest.
Conclusions:
- Xenopus cyclin D2 plays a role in controlling early embryonic cell cycles.
- Cyclin D2 appears to arrest the cell cycle at the G2 phase or the G2/M transition.
- This suggests an original regulatory function for cyclin D2 in Xenopus development.