Project description:A number of environmental factors (e.g. toxicants) have been shown to promote the epigenetic transgenerational inheritance of disease and phenotypic variation. Transgenerational inheritance requires the germline transmission of altered epigenetic information between generations in the absence of direct environmental exposures. The primary periods for epigenetic programming of the germline is associated with primordial germ cell development and during fetal gonadal sex determination. The current study examined the actions of an agricultural fungicide vinclozolin on gestating female (F0 generation) progeny in regards to the primordial germ cell (PGC) epigenetic reprogramming of the F3 generation (i.e. great-grandchildren). The F3 generation primordial germ cell transcriptome and epigenome (DNA methylation) was altered transgenerationally. Interestingly, the differential DNA methylation regions (DMR) and altered transcriptomes were distinct between the onset of gonadal sex determination at embryonic day 13 (E13) and after cord formation in the testis at embryonic day 16 (E16). A larger number of DMR and transcriptional alterations were observed in the E13 PGC than E16 germ cells. Observations demonstrate an altered transgenerational epigenetic reprogramming and function of the primordial germ cells and subsequent male germline is a component of vinclozolin induced epigenetic transgenerational inheritance of disease. Insights into the molecular control of germline transmitted epigenetic inheritance are provided. The combined observations demonstrate ancestral exposure of a gestating female during fetal gonadal sex determination can promote transgenerational alterations in the primordial germ cell and subsequent male germline epigenetic and transcriptional programming. This altered germline programming leads to the epigenetic transgenerational inheritance of disease and phenotypic variation. Observations support the role of the primordial germ cell programming in the molecular mechanism involved and provides insights into the molecular mechanisms that control the epigenetic transgenerational inheritance phenomena. Results suggest a cascade of epigenetic and transcriptional events during germ cell development is needed to obtain the mature germline epigenome that is then transmitted transgenerationally. RNA samples from PGC of 2 F3-control lineage groups were compared to PGC of 2 F3-vinclozolin lineage groups for two embryonic age E13 and E16

Project description:A number of environmental factors (e.g. toxicants) have been shown to promote the epigenetic transgenerational inheritance of disease and phenotypic variation. Transgenerational inheritance requires the germline transmission of altered epigenetic information between generations in the absence of direct environmental exposures. The primary periods for epigenetic programming of the germline is associated with primordial germ cell development and during fetal gonadal sex determination. The current study examined the actions of an agricultural fungicide vinclozolin on gestating female (F0 generation) progeny in regards to the primordial germ cell (PGC) epigenetic reprogramming of the F3 generation (i.e. great-grandchildren). The F3 generation primordial germ cell transcriptome and epigenome (DNA methylation) was altered transgenerationally. Interestingly, the differential DNA methylation regions (DMR) and altered transcriptomes were distinct between the onset of gonadal sex determination at embryonic day 13 (E13) and after cord formation in the testis at embryonic day 16 (E16). A larger number of DMR and transcriptional alterations were observed in the E13 PGC than E16 germ cells. Observations demonstrate an altered transgenerational epigenetic reprogramming and function of the primordial germ cells and subsequent male germline is a component of vinclozolin induced epigenetic transgenerational inheritance of disease. Insights into the molecular control of germline transmitted epigenetic inheritance are provided. The combined observations demonstrate ancestral exposure of a gestating female during fetal gonadal sex determination can promote transgenerational alterations in the primordial germ cell and subsequent male germline epigenetic and transcriptional programming. This altered germline programming leads to the epigenetic transgenerational inheritance of disease and phenotypic variation. Observations support the role of the primordial germ cell programming in the molecular mechanism involved and provides insights into the molecular mechanisms that control the epigenetic transgenerational inheritance phenomena. Results suggest a cascade of epigenetic and transcriptional events during germ cell development is needed to obtain the mature germline epigenome that is then transmitted transgenerationally.

Project description:The molecular mechanisms underlying the commitment of cells to the germ cell lineage and the subsequent formation of germ cells during mammalian development remain poorly understood due to an inability to obtain sufficient amounts of cellular materials to conduct thorough in-vitro analyses. Although primordial germ cells (PGCs) have been generated and isolated from embryonic stem cells (ESCs) in vitro, concurrent expression of several cell surface receptors and transcription factors, at various levels, confounds the identification of these cells. To date, only a few genes that mark the onset of germ cell commitment to the epiblast, including tissue nonspecific alkaline phosphatase (TNAP), Blimp1, Stella, and Fragilis, have been used with some degree of success to detect PGC formation in in-vitro model systems. In light of the current literature, the generation of an unlimited supply of germ cells and gametes from pluripotent stem cells would greatly facilitate studies into reproductive development. To accomplish this, we would need to discover novel markers that are specifically expressed in germ cells. Here we identified four genes that are specifically expressed in male and female germ cells, both in vivo and in vitro, but are not expressed in somatic tissues or ESCs. Expression of these genes therefore allows us to distinguish committed germ cells from undifferentiated pluripotent cell populations, a prerequisite for the successful derivation of germ cells and gametes in vitro. For RNA isolation, PGCs were sorted by FACS, collected by centrifugation, lysed in RLT buffer (QIAGEN), and processed using RNeasy Micro kits with on-column DNase digestion as per the manufacturer's instructions. Integrity of RNA samples was quality-checked using a 2100 Bioanalyzer (Agilent). If possible, 300 ng of total RNA per sample was used as starting material for linear amplification (Illumina TotalPrep RNA amplification kit, Ambion), which involved synthesis of T7-linked double-stranded cDNA and 14 hrs of in-vitro transcription incorporating biotin-labeled nucleotides. Purified and labeled cRNA was then quality-checked on a 2100 Bioanalyser, and hybridized as biological or technical duplicates for 18 hrs onto MouseRef-8 v2 gene expression BeadChips (Illumina), following the manufacturer's instructions. After being washed, the chips were stained with streptavidin-Cy3 (GE Healthcare) and scanned using the iScan reader and accompanying software. 44 samples were analyzed. ESCm: OG2 male Embryonic Stem Cell, +/+ Oct4-GFP ES cells, 1 biological rep 11.5: 11.5 embryonic day PGC (Primordial Germ Cell), 2 biological reps 12.5F: 12.5 embryonic day female PGC (Primordial Germ Cell), 2 biological reps 13.5F: 13.5 embryonic day female PGC (Primordial Germ Cell), 2 biological reps 14.5F: 14.5 embryonic day female PGC (Primordial Germ Cell), 2 biological reps 15.5F: 15.5 embryonic day female PGC (Primordial Germ Cell), 2 biological reps 16.5F: 16.5 embryonic day female PGC (Primordial Germ Cell), 2 biological reps 17.5F: 17.5 embryonic day female PGC (Primordial Germ Cell), 2 biological reps 18.5F: 18.5 embryonic day female PGC (Primordial Germ Cell), 2 biological reps 12.5M: 12.5 embryonic day male PGC (Primordial Germ Cell), 2 biological reps 13.5M: 13.5 embryonic day male PGC (Primordial Germ Cell), 2 biological reps 14.5M: 14.5 embryonic day male PGC (Primordial Germ Cell), 2 biological reps 15.5M: 15.5 embryonic day male PGC (Primordial Germ Cell), 2 biological reps 16.5M: 16.5 embryonic day male PGC (Primordial Germ Cell), 2 biological reps 17.5M: 17.5 embryonic day male PGC (Primordial Germ Cell), 2 biological reps 18.5M: 18.5 embryonic day male PGC (Primordial Germ Cell), 2 biological reps 8M: 8 day after birth male PGC (Primordial Germ Cell), 2 biological reps 10M: 10 day after birth male PGC (Primordial Germ Cell), 2 biological reps 12M: 12 day after birth male PGC (Primordial Germ Cell), 2 biological reps 14M: 14 day after birth male PGC (Primordial Germ Cell), 1 biological rep 16M: 16 day after birth male PGC (Primordial Germ Cell), 2 biological reps 18M: 18 day after birth male PGC (Primordial Germ Cell), 2 biological reps 20M: 20 day after birth male PGC (Primordial Germ Cell), 2 biological reps

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Single-cell Next Generation Sequencing (scNGS) facilitates analysis of gonadal single cells transcriptomes and revealed germ cell heterogeneity

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