Michele Boiani: New Insight on Zona Pellucida Proteins
Michele Boiani, Private Lecturer at the University of Münster and Editor-in-Chief of Molecular Human Reproduction at Oxford University Press, shared a post on LinkedIn about a paper he co-authored with colleagues, published in BMC Genomics:
“New insight: zona pellucida proteins aren’t just an extracellular coat, but operate inside the embryo!
For decades, the zona pellucida proteins were thought to function only outside the mammalian oocyte and early embryo. A new study in BMC Genomics flips the narrative, as shown in the mouse model of human reproduction.
ZP2 has hitherto unsuspected intracellular roles essential for embryo quality, in addition to the canonical functions (oocyte encasement in the ovarian follicle, mediation of oocyte-sperm interaction, prevention of premature contact of the embryo with the oviductal epithelium). It’s also time to rethink the definition of ‘oocyte-specific’ genes, because although Zp genes are transcribed only in the oocyte, the proteins clearly function in the embryo as well.
Key Findings:
Intracellular ZP2 protein persists and even becomes more abundant during mouse preimplantation development.
Functional Role: Knockdown by Trim-Away delays the morula-to-blastocyst transition and reduces trophectoderm/endoderm cell numbers.
Mechanism: Linked to impaired cytoplasmic translation.
Interested to know more?
Read here open access.”
Title: Proteomic and transcriptomic analysis reveals an intracellular role for zona pellucida protein 2 in mouse morula-blastocyst transition
Authors: Thomas Nolte, Steffen Israel, Hannes C. A. Drexler, Georg Fuellen, Julina Wiese, Michele Boiani
You can read the Full Article in BMC Genomics.
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