Lin28a Regulates Germ Cell Pool Size and Fertility

• DOI: 10.1002/stem.1343
• Publication Date: 2013-02-04T14:09:08Z
• Authors: Gen Shinoda; T. Yvanka De Soysa; Marc T. Seligson; Akiko Yabuuchi; Yuko Fujiwara; Pei Yi Huang; John P. Hagan; Richard I. Gregory; Eric G. Moss; George Q. Daley
• Keywords: Male; Mice, Knockout; 0301 basic medicine; Age Factors; RNA-Binding Proteins; Cell Differentiation; Mice; MicroRNAs; 03 medical and health sciences; Fertility; Germ Cells; Testis; Animals; Female; Spermatogenesis

Abstract Overexpression of LIN28A is associated with human germ cell tumors and promotes primordial (PGC) development from embryonic stem cells in vitro chimeric mice. Knockdown Lin28a inhibits PGC vitro, but how constitutional deficiency affects the mammalian reproductive system vivo remains unknown. Here, we generated knockout (KO) mice found that compromises size pool both males females by affecting proliferation during embryogenesis. Interestingly however, KO males, partially recovers postnatal expansion, while fertility impaired mated to wild-type Embryonic overexpression let-7, a microRNA negatively regulated Lin28a, reduces pool, corroborating role Lin28a/let-7 axis regulating lineage.