Society for Reproductive Biology Founders' Lecture 2007 Insights into germ cell biology: from the bench to the clinic
Angshumoy Roy A and Martin M. Matzuk A B C DA Department of Pathology, Baylor College of Medicine, One Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX, USA.
B Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, One Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX, USA.
C Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, One Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX, USA.
D Corresponding author. Email: mmatzuk@bcm.tmc.edu
Reproduction, Fertility and Development 19(7) 783-791 https://doi.org/10.1071/RD07090
Submitted: 11 June 2007 Accepted: 18 July 2007 Published: 8 August 2007
Abstract
The germline is unique among tissues in being the only lineage that is transmitted through generations. The gonadal somatic cells that interact with male and female germ cells are equally important for their juxtacrine and paracrine signalling pathways that lead to the formation of functionally mature gametes and healthy progeny. The present review summarises exciting new studies that our group and others have achieved at the frontier of male and female germ cell biology and in studying transforming growth factor-β signalling pathways in oocyte–somatic cell interactions and gonadal growth and differentiation. In the process, we have produced over 70 transgenic and knockout models to study reproduction in vivo. These models have helped us identify novel and unexplored areas of germ cell biology and translate this work into the fertility clinic.
Acknowledgements
Research in the Matzuk laboratory on reproduction and TGF-β superfamily signalling pathways has been supported by National Institutes of Health grants CA60651, HD32067, HD33438 and HD42500, and the Specialised Cooperative Centers Program in Reproduction and Infertility Research (U54 HD07495) and National Institutes of Health Infertility Center (PO1 HD36289).
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