New Insights into the Mechanism of Fertilization in Nematodes

Singaravelu, Gunasekaran; Singson, Andrew

doi:10.1016/b978-0-12-386039-2.00006-7

Cited by 16 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 101 publications

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“…This complex triggers the completion of meiosis and is also required for proper assembly of the eggshell (2). Our data demonstrate that EGG-3 is required for pheromone suppression, but tht its two binding partners as well as its known substrates, MBK-2 and CHS-1, are dispensable for pheromone suppression.…”

Section: Significancementioning

confidence: 73%

“…Activated oocytes rearrest if they are not fertilized by spermatozoa. Ovulated oocytes that are not fertilized are laid by the hermaphrodite as if they were eggs (2).…”

Section: Significancementioning

confidence: 99%

“…The generation time of C. elegans is under 3 d, and a single hermaphroditic worm can use its sperm to fertilize its own eggs, without the need for mating (1). C. elegans and related nematodes have a robust sperm sensation pathway that limits unfruitful oocyte maturation and ovulation (2). Both self-sperm and nonself-sperm secrete protein ligands, known as major sperm proteins (MSPs), that activate signal transduction pathways in both unfertilized oocytes, leading to activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MPK-1), and the somatic gonad, involving transcription factor CEH-18.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Communication between oocytes and somatic cells regulates volatile pheromone production in Caenorhabditis elegans

Leighton

Choe

et al. 2014

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Males of the androdioecious species Caenorhabditis elegans are more likely to attempt to mate with and successfully inseminate C. elegans hermaphrodites that do not concurrently harbor sperm. Although a small number of genes have been implicated in this effect, the mechanism by which it arises remains unknown. In the context of the battle of the sexes, it is also unknown whether this effect is to the benefit of the male, the hermaphrodite, or both. We report that successful contact between mature sperm and oocyte in the C. elegans gonad at the start of fertilization causes the oocyte to release a signal that is transmitted to somatic cells in its mother, with the ultimate effect of reducing her attractiveness to males. Changes in hermaphrodite attractiveness are tied to the production of a volatile pheromone, the first such pheromone described in C. elegans.fertilization | sex pheromones | egg-soma communication I ts properties of self-fertilization and rapid generation, along with its extensive library of mutants, make Caenorhabditis elegans an excellent system in which to study reproductive events. The generation time of C. elegans is under 3 d, and a single hermaphroditic worm can use its sperm to fertilize its own eggs, without the need for mating (1). C. elegans and related nematodes have a robust sperm sensation pathway that limits unfruitful oocyte maturation and ovulation (2). Both self-sperm and nonself-sperm secrete protein ligands, known as major sperm proteins (MSPs), that activate signal transduction pathways in both unfertilized oocytes, leading to activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MPK-1), and the somatic gonad, involving transcription factor CEH-18. The result of this signaling is the release of oocytes from prophase I arrest and the ovulation of unarrested oocytes into the uterus (3, 4).Several behaviors of female and hermaphroditic nematodes have been demonstrated to correlate with either the presence of sperm or the recentness of mating. C. elegans hermaphrodites that have exhausted their supply of self-sperm are more likely to elicit a mating response from males of their species, and less likely to resist an attempted mating. Mutant C. elegans hermaphrodites that develop without self-sperm also elicit more mating attempts, and this increase in attractiveness vanishes after a successful mating (5, 6). In the gonochoristic species Caenorhabditis brenneri and Caenorhabditis remanei, males are attracted to a volatile pheromone produced only by females that have not recently mated (7). The mechanisms that link these behaviors to sperm status remain unknown.Pheromones have been shown to exist in dozens of nematode species (8-10) and have been positively identified in several, including C. elegans (11-14). Although HPLC-MS studies have led to the identification of more than 140 pheromones and pheromone-related metabolites in C. elegans (15), little is known about how production of such pheromones is regulated. Life stage and environmental conditions have been shown to affect pheromone o...

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Section: Significancementioning

confidence: 73%

“…Activated oocytes rearrest if they are not fertilized by spermatozoa. Ovulated oocytes that are not fertilized are laid by the hermaphrodite as if they were eggs (2).…”

Section: Significancementioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Communication between oocytes and somatic cells regulates volatile pheromone production in Caenorhabditis elegans

Leighton

Choe

et al. 2014

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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“…Given the involvement of kinases and phosphatases in modulating the assembly and disassembly of MSP filaments in nematodes [23–26], it is tempting to speculate that Ca 2+ /calmodulin kinase – one of the main downstream target proteins of calmodulin - could potentially play a role in regulating the dynamics of MSP filament formation by altering the phosphorylation status of target proteins.…”

Section: Roles Of Ca2+ and Ca2+ Binding Proteins During Sperm Actimentioning

confidence: 99%

Calcium signaling surrounding fertilization in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans

Singaravelu

Singson

2013

Cell Calcium

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Summary Calcium plays a prominent role during fertilization in many animals. This review focuses on roles of Ca2+ during the events around fertilization in the model organism, Caenorhabditis elegans. Specifically, the role of Ca2+ in sperm, oocytes and the surrounding somatic tissues during fertilization will be discussed, with the focus on sperm activation, meiotic maturation of oocytes, ovulation, sperm-egg interaction and fertilization.

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“…Homologous chromosomes then segregate into daughter cells that undergo a second division during Meiosis II separating sister chromatids (reviewed in Zickler & Kleckner 1999). In animals, these daughter cells undergo final developmental stages of spermatogenesis in males (Hecht 1998), oogenesis in females (Sagata 1996), or both spermatogenesis and oogenesis within a hermaphroditic species (Singaravelu & Singson 2011), to create mature gametes. External or internal fertilization facilitates the fusion of mature gametes to complete the process of sexually producing a new individual.…”

Section: Meiosis In Sexual Reproductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evolution of meiosis genes in sexual vs. asexual Potamopyrgus antipodarum

Rice¹

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Department, and the National Science Foundation for their support. Lastly I'd like to thank my thesis committee for their insight and assistance in the completion of my research. iii ABSTRACT How asexual reproduction affects genome evolution, and how organisms that are ancestrally sexual alter their reproductive machinery upon becoming asexual are both central unanswered questions in evolutionary biology. While these questions have been addressed to some extent in organisms such as asexual clams, rotifers, ostracods, arthropods, and fungi, the most powerful and direct tests of how sex and its absence influence evolution requires direct comparisons between closely related and otherwise similar sexual and asexual taxa. Here, I quantify the rates and patterns of molecular evolution in the meiosis-specific genes Msh4, Msh5, and Spo11 in multiple sexual and asexual lineages of Potamopyrgus antipodarum, a New Zealand freshwater snail. Because asexual P. antipodarum reproduce apomictically (without recombination), genes used only for meiosis should be under relaxed selection relative to meiosis-specific genes in sexual P. antipodarum,allowing me to directly study how asexuality affects the evolution of meiosisspecific genes. Contrary to expectations under relaxed selection, I found no evidence that these meiosis-specific genes are degrading in asexual P. antipodarum; instead they display molecular patterns consistent with purifying selection. The presence of intact meiosis-specific genes in asexual P. antipodarum hints that the asexuals may maintain the ability to perform meiosis despite reproducing apomictically. Asexual meiotic capability suggests that some meiotic components may persist or acquire a new role in these asexuals. iv PUBLIC ABSTRACTHow asexual reproduction affects genome evolution, and how ancestrally sexual organisms alter their reproductive machinery upon becoming asexual are central unanswered questions in evolutionary biology. While these questions have been addressed to some extent in different asexual species, the most powerful tests of how sex and its absence influence evolution requires direct comparisons between closely related and otherwise similar sexual and asexual taxa. I address these questions by studying the evolution of genes critical to sexual reproduction in sexual and asexual lineages of

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New Insights into the Mechanism of Fertilization in Nematodes

Cited by 16 publications

References 101 publications

Communication between oocytes and somatic cells regulates volatile pheromone production in Caenorhabditis elegans

Communication between oocytes and somatic cells regulates volatile pheromone production in Caenorhabditis elegans

Calcium signaling surrounding fertilization in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans

Evolution of meiosis genes in sexual vs. asexual Potamopyrgus antipodarum

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