SPE-44 implements sperm cell fate.

PLoS Genetics
Madhura KulkarniHarold E Smith

Abstract

The sperm/oocyte decision in the hermaphrodite germline of Caenorhabditis elegans provides a powerful model for the characterization of stem cell fate specification and differentiation. The germline sex determination program that governs gamete fate has been well studied, but direct mediators of cell-type-specific transcription are largely unknown. We report the identification of spe-44 as a critical regulator of sperm gene expression. Deletion of spe-44 causes sperm-specific defects in cytokinesis, cell cycle progression, and organelle assembly resulting in sterility. Expression of spe-44 correlates precisely with spermatogenesis and is regulated by the germline sex determination pathway. spe-44 is required for the appropriate expression of several hundred sperm-enriched genes. The SPE-44 protein is restricted to the sperm-producing germline, where it localizes to the autosomes (which contain sperm genes) but is excluded from the transcriptionally silent X chromosome (which does not). The orthologous gene in other Caenorhabditis species is similarly expressed in a sex-biased manner, and the protein likewise exhibits autosome-specific localization in developing sperm, strongly suggestive of an evolutionarily conserved role in s...Continue Reading

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Citations

Sep 30, 2014·Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews. Developmental Biology·Scott W Emmons
Sep 4, 2015·Genetics·Craig W LaMunyonJessica N Clark
Mar 6, 2016·G3 : Genes - Genomes - Genetics·Harold E SmithAndy Golden
Jun 9, 2018·G3 : Genes - Genomes - Genetics·Katja R KasimatisPatrick C Phillips
Apr 20, 2021·Biogerontology·Foteini AktypiNiki Chondrogianni
Jul 26, 2014·G3 : Genes - Genomes - Genetics·Marco A OrtizJudith Kimble
May 15, 2015·Development·Anne C Campbell, Dustin L Updike

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Datasets Mentioned

BETA
GMEB-1
-2
CE05305
JA05534
GMEB-3
CE31443
GMEB1

Methods Mentioned

BETA
PCR
RNA-Seq
dissection
light microscopy

Software Mentioned

Genomics Suite ( Partek )
Microarray Suite
IPLab
CLUSTALW2
Photoshop
Affymetrix

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