Abstract
Meiosis is a process unique to the differentiation of germ cells and exhibits sex-specific in timing. Previous studies showed that retinoic acid (RA) as the vitamin A metabolite is crucial for controlling Stra8 (Stimulated by retinoic acid gene 8) expression in the gonad and to initiate meiosis; however, the mechanism by which retinoid-signaling acts has remained unclear. In the present study, we investigated the role of the enzyme retinaldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (RALDH2) which catalyzes RA synthesizes by initiating meiosis in chicken ovarian germ cells. Meiotic germ cells were first detected at day 15.5 in chicken embryo ovary when the expression of synaptonemal complex protein 3 (Scp3) and disrupted meiotic cDNA 1 homologue (Dmc1) became elevated, while Stra8 expression was specifically up-regulated at day 12.5 before meiosis onset. It was observed from the increase in Raldh2 mRNA expression levels and decreases in Cyp26b1 (the enzyme for RA catabolism) expression levels during meiosis that requirement for RA accumulation is essential to sustain meiosis. This was also revealed by RA stimulation of the cultured ovaries with the initiation of meiosis response, and the knocking down of the Raldh2 expression during meiosis, leading to abolishment of RA-dependent action. Altogether, these studies indicate that RA synthesis by the enzyme RALDH2 and signaling through its receptor is crucial for meiosis initiation in chicken embryonic ovary.
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Acknowledgments
This study was supported by the Ph.D. Programs Foundation of Ministry of Education of China (20110101110099), Zhejiang Provincial Natural Science Foundation (Z3110115), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (30871843) and Chinese Universities Scientific Fund (2011XZZX006). We thank Weidong Zeng for the help in the experiment.
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Yu, M., Yu, P., Leghari, I.H. et al. RALDH2, the enzyme for retinoic acid synthesis, mediates meiosis initiation in germ cells of the female embryonic chickens. Amino Acids 44, 405–412 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00726-012-1343-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00726-012-1343-6