Cytoplasmic Determination of Meiotic Spindle Size Revealed by a Unique Inter-Species Germinal Vesicle Transfer Model.

ABSTRACT: Spindle sizes are different in diverse species and cell types. In frogs, the meiotic spindle size is positively correlated with the egg cell volume. Across species, relatively small mouse oocytes (70-80 μm) have a relatively large spindle while larger pig oocytes (about 120 μm) have a considerably smaller spindle. In this study we investigated whether species-specific oocyte spindle size was determined by cytoplasmic or nuclear factors. By exchanging the germinal vesicle between mouse and pig oocytes, we obtained two kinds of reconstructed oocytes: one with mouse ooplasm and pig GV (mCy-pGV oocyte), and the other with pig ooplasm and mouse GV (pCy-mGV oocyte). We show that the MII spindle size of the mCy-pGV oocyte is similar to that of the mouse meiotic spindle and significantly larger th

SUBMITTER: Wang ZW 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4728387 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature