TY - JOUR
T1 - Balbiani cytoplasm in oocytes of a primitive fish, the sturgeon Acipenser gueldenstaedtii, and its potential homology to the Balbiani body (mitochondrial cloud) of Xenopus laevis oocytes
AU - Zelazowska, Monika
AU - Kilarski, Wincenty
AU - Bilinski, Szczepan M.
AU - Podder, Daniel D.
AU - Kloc, Malgorzata
N1 - Copyright:
Copyright 2008 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2007/7
Y1 - 2007/7
N2 - The oocytes of many organisms, including frogs and fish, contain a distinct cytoplasmic organelle called the Balbiani body. Because of the scarcity of published information and the tremendous variability in the appearance, ultrastructure, and composition of Balbiani bodies between species, the function of the Balbiani body and its inter-species homology remain a mystery. In Xenopus laevis, the Balbiani body is known to play a role in transporting germ cell determinants and localized RNAs to the oocyte vegetal cortex. In fish, however, the molecular composition of the Balbiani body has not been studied to date, and its function remains completely unknown. We have studied the ultrastructure and molecular composition of previtellogenic oocytes of the sturgeon, Acipenser gueldenstaedtii, by using electron microscopy, in situ hybridization, and immunostaining. We have found that sturgeon oocytes contain two distinct zones of cytoplasm: homogeneous (organelle-free) and granular (organelle-rich). We have also found that the granular ooplasm, which we term the Balbiani cytoplasm, shares important homologies, in both ultrastructure and molecular composition, with Xenopus Balbiani bodies.
AB - The oocytes of many organisms, including frogs and fish, contain a distinct cytoplasmic organelle called the Balbiani body. Because of the scarcity of published information and the tremendous variability in the appearance, ultrastructure, and composition of Balbiani bodies between species, the function of the Balbiani body and its inter-species homology remain a mystery. In Xenopus laevis, the Balbiani body is known to play a role in transporting germ cell determinants and localized RNAs to the oocyte vegetal cortex. In fish, however, the molecular composition of the Balbiani body has not been studied to date, and its function remains completely unknown. We have studied the ultrastructure and molecular composition of previtellogenic oocytes of the sturgeon, Acipenser gueldenstaedtii, by using electron microscopy, in situ hybridization, and immunostaining. We have found that sturgeon oocytes contain two distinct zones of cytoplasm: homogeneous (organelle-free) and granular (organelle-rich). We have also found that the granular ooplasm, which we term the Balbiani cytoplasm, shares important homologies, in both ultrastructure and molecular composition, with Xenopus Balbiani bodies.
KW - Balbiani body
KW - Oogenesis
KW - RNA localization
KW - Sturgeon, Acipenser gueldenstaedtii (Chondrostei)
KW - Xenopus laevis (Anura)
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U2 - 10.1007/s00441-007-0403-9
DO - 10.1007/s00441-007-0403-9
M3 - Article
C2 - 17364198
AN - SCOPUS:34247610928
VL - 329
SP - 137
EP - 145
JO - Cell and Tissue Research
JF - Cell and Tissue Research
SN - 0302-766X
IS - 1
ER -