Importin α7 is essential for zygotic genome activation and early mouse development.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 21479251.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1371/journal.pone.0018310 and PMC identifier 3066239.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
Importin α is involved in the nuclear import of proteins. It also contributes to spindle assembly and nuclear membrane formation, however, the underlying mechanisms are poorly understood. Here, we studied the function of importin α7 by gene targeting in mice and show that it is essential for early embryonic development. Embryos lacking importin α7 display a reduced ability for the first cleavage and arrest completely at the two-cell stage. We show that the zygotic genome activation is severely disturbed in these embryos. Our findings indicate that importin α7 is a new member of the small group of maternal effect genes.
Medical subject headings
- Embryonic Development
- Genome
- Zygote
- alpha Karyopherins