The Sox family plays essential roles as transcription factors in vertebrates; however, little is known about the Lutraria sieboldii. L. sieboldii are pleasant to eat with a short growth cycle and have become one of best bottom-seeded enrichment species Guang Xi. In this study, Sox2 (named LsSox2) Sox9 LsSox9) from were cloned, their expression patterns analyzed. length LsSox2 gene coding sequen...

Background: in vitro maturation (IVM) of oocytes has increasing potential applications in assisted reproductive technology (ART), during which germinal vesicle (GV) oocytes cultured in vitro to produce mature (MII arrested) ones. Although functional, IVM oocytes have low developmental competence compared to in vivo matured oocytes; possibly because IVM comprises asynchrony between nuclear and c...

To understand whether fusions of thylakoid membranes from the parental chloroplasts occurred during zygote formation in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, we performed an ultrastructural analysis of the zygotes produced by crossing mutants lacking photosystem I or II protein complexes, in the absence of de novo chloroplast protein synthesis. Thylakoid membranes from each parent could be distinguished o...

BACKGROUND Since March 2004, only a maximum of three oocytes were allowed to be subjected to ICSI at one time in Italy. A previous study failed to show an impact of this restriction on fresh embryo transfer outcomes. The objective of this study was to compare ICSI outcomes before and after this restriction in patients with nonobstructive azoospermia. METHODS Patients underwent testicular sper...

Calcium-dependent protein kinases (CDPKs) play key regulatory roles in the life cycle of the malaria parasite, but in many cases their precise molecular functions are unknown. Using the rodent malaria parasite Plasmodium berghei, we show that CDPK1, which is known to be essential in the asexual blood stage of the parasite, is expressed in all life stages and is indispensable during the sexual m...

The placenta contains several types of feto-maternal interfaces where zygote-derived cells interact with maternal cells or maternal blood for the promotion of fetal growth and viability. The genetic factors regulating the interactions between different cell types within feto-maternal interfaces and the relative contributions of the maternal and zygotic genomes are poorly understood. Genomic imp...

This paper gives evidence suggesting that one of the two chloroplasts contributed to the zygote of Ulva mutabilis is rapidly destroyed. Chloroplasts in an advanced stage of disintegration can be seen only 4 min after copulation. Radioactive labelling of gametes prior to copulation shows that the disintegrating chloroplast is supplied through the + (plus) gamete, while the chloroplast from the —...

Background. Patients with poor ovarian response to ovarian hyperstimulation represent an interesting group for studying the impact of embryo cleavage irregularities on clinical outcome since all embryos, regardless of their quality, are usually transferred to the uterus. The aim of our study was to follow the morphokinetics of fertilized oocytes from natural cycles in poor responders. Methods. ...