Oocytes display a maternal-specific gene expression profile, which is switched to a zygotic profile when a haploid set of chromatin is passed on to the fertilized egg that develops into an embryo. The mechanism underl...Oocytes display a maternal-specific gene expression profile, which is switched to a zygotic profile when a haploid set of chromatin is passed on to the fertilized egg that develops into an embryo. The mechanism underlying this transcription reprogramming is currently unknown. Here we demonstrate that by the time when transcription is shut down in germinal vesicle oocytes, a range of general transcription factors and transcriptional regulators are dissociated from the chromatin. The global dissociation of chromatin factors （CFs） disrupts physical contacts between the chromatin and CFs and leads to erasure of the maternal transcription program at the functional level. Critical transcription factors and regulators remain separated from chromatin for a prolonged period, and become re-associated with chromatin shortly after pronuclear formation. This is followed temporally by the re-establishment of nuclear functions such as DNA replication and transcription. We propose that the maternal transcription program is erased during oogenesis to generate a relatively naive chromatin and the zygotic transcription program is rebuilt de novo after fertilization. This process is termed as the ＂erase-and-rebuild＂ process, which is used to reset the transcription program, and most likely other nuclear processes as well, from a maternal one to that of the embryo. We further show in the accompanying paper （Gao T, et al., Cell Res 2007; 17：135-150.） that the same strategy is also employed to reprogram transcriptional profiles in somatic cell nuclear transfer and parthenogenesis, suggesting that this model is universally applicable to all forms of transcriptional reprogramming during early embryogenesis. Displacement of CFs from chromatin also offers an explanation for the phenomenon of transcription silence during the maternal to zygotic transition.展开更多
Somatic cell nuclear transfer （SCNT） and parthenogenesis are alternative forms of reproduction and development, building new life cycles on differentiated somatic cell nuclei and duplicated maternal chromatin, respe...Somatic cell nuclear transfer （SCNT） and parthenogenesis are alternative forms of reproduction and development, building new life cycles on differentiated somatic cell nuclei and duplicated maternal chromatin, respectively. In the preceding paper （Sun F, et al., Cell Res 2007; 17：117-134.）, we showed that an ＂erase-and-rebuild＂ strategy is used in normal development to transform the maternal gene expression profile to a zygotic one. Here, we investigate if the same strategy also applies to SCNT and parthenogenesis. The relationship between chromatin and chromatin factors （CFs） during SCNT and parthenogenesis was examined using immunochemical and GFP-fusion protein assays. Results from these studies indicated that soon after nuclear transfer, a majority of CFs dissociated from somatic nuclei and were redistributed to the cytoplasm of the egg. The erasure process in oogenesis is recaptured during the initial phase in SCNT. Most CFs entered pseudo-pronuclei shortly after their formation. In parthenogenesis, all parthenogenotes underwent normal oogenesis, and thus had removed most CFs from chromosomes before the initiation of development. The CFs were subsequently re-associated with female pronuclei in time and sequence similar to that in fertilized embryos. Based on these data, we conclude that the ＂erase-and-rebuild＂ process observed in normal development also occurs in SCNT and in parthenogenesis, albeit in altered fashions. The process is responsible for transcription reprogramming in these procedures. The ＂erase＂ process in SCNT is compressed and the efficiency is compromised, which likely contribute to the developmental defects often observed in nuclear transfer （nt） embryos. Furthermore, results from this study indicated that the cytoplasm of an egg contains most, if not all, essential components for assembling the zygotic program and can assemble them onto appropriate diploid chromatin of distinct origins.展开更多
文摘Oocytes display a maternal-specific gene expression profile, which is switched to a zygotic profile when a haploid set of chromatin is passed on to the fertilized egg that develops into an embryo. The mechanism underlying this transcription reprogramming is currently unknown. Here we demonstrate that by the time when transcription is shut down in germinal vesicle oocytes, a range of general transcription factors and transcriptional regulators are dissociated from the chromatin. The global dissociation of chromatin factors （CFs） disrupts physical contacts between the chromatin and CFs and leads to erasure of the maternal transcription program at the functional level. Critical transcription factors and regulators remain separated from chromatin for a prolonged period, and become re-associated with chromatin shortly after pronuclear formation. This is followed temporally by the re-establishment of nuclear functions such as DNA replication and transcription. We propose that the maternal transcription program is erased during oogenesis to generate a relatively naive chromatin and the zygotic transcription program is rebuilt de novo after fertilization. This process is termed as the ＂erase-and-rebuild＂ process, which is used to reset the transcription program, and most likely other nuclear processes as well, from a maternal one to that of the embryo. We further show in the accompanying paper （Gao T, et al., Cell Res 2007; 17：135-150.） that the same strategy is also employed to reprogram transcriptional profiles in somatic cell nuclear transfer and parthenogenesis, suggesting that this model is universally applicable to all forms of transcriptional reprogramming during early embryogenesis. Displacement of CFs from chromatin also offers an explanation for the phenomenon of transcription silence during the maternal to zygotic transition.
文摘Somatic cell nuclear transfer （SCNT） and parthenogenesis are alternative forms of reproduction and development, building new life cycles on differentiated somatic cell nuclei and duplicated maternal chromatin, respectively. In the preceding paper （Sun F, et al., Cell Res 2007; 17：117-134.）, we showed that an ＂erase-and-rebuild＂ strategy is used in normal development to transform the maternal gene expression profile to a zygotic one. Here, we investigate if the same strategy also applies to SCNT and parthenogenesis. The relationship between chromatin and chromatin factors （CFs） during SCNT and parthenogenesis was examined using immunochemical and GFP-fusion protein assays. Results from these studies indicated that soon after nuclear transfer, a majority of CFs dissociated from somatic nuclei and were redistributed to the cytoplasm of the egg. The erasure process in oogenesis is recaptured during the initial phase in SCNT. Most CFs entered pseudo-pronuclei shortly after their formation. In parthenogenesis, all parthenogenotes underwent normal oogenesis, and thus had removed most CFs from chromosomes before the initiation of development. The CFs were subsequently re-associated with female pronuclei in time and sequence similar to that in fertilized embryos. Based on these data, we conclude that the ＂erase-and-rebuild＂ process observed in normal development also occurs in SCNT and in parthenogenesis, albeit in altered fashions. The process is responsible for transcription reprogramming in these procedures. The ＂erase＂ process in SCNT is compressed and the efficiency is compromised, which likely contribute to the developmental defects often observed in nuclear transfer （nt） embryos. Furthermore, results from this study indicated that the cytoplasm of an egg contains most, if not all, essential components for assembling the zygotic program and can assemble them onto appropriate diploid chromatin of distinct origins.
