Initial detachment of the mouse oocyte from the zona pellucida is mediated by metallopeptidase activity†.

ABSTRACT: The fully grown mammalian oocyte is tightly attached to its extracellular matrix shell, the zona pellucida (ZP), but the oocyte detaches from the ZP shortly after ovulation is signaled. The mechanism by which the oocyte detaches from the ZP is unknown. Because ZP proteins are initially secreted as transmembrane proteins, we hypothesized that attachment of the oocyte to the ZP is mediated by transmembrane ZP proteins and that detachment occurs when these proteins are cleaved by peptidases. To identify potential candidates for the type of peptidase, we used mouse oocyte transcriptome data sets to identify candidate peptidases localized to the exterior of the oocyte. Screening with a set of small molecule inhibitors that broadly target the families of peptidases represented by the candidates,

SUBMITTER: Macaulay AD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9843679 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature