The mechanisms and biological significance of primordial germ cell development in extragonadal environment
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- Saito Daisuke
- Principal Investigator
- 九州大学
About this project
- Japan Grant Number
- JP18H02445
- Funding Program
- Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research
- Funding organization
- Japan Society for the Promotion of Science
- Project/Area Number
- 18H02445
- Research Category
- Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B)
- Allocation Type
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- Single-year Grants
- Review Section / Research Field
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- Basic Section 44020:Developmental biology-related
- Research Institution
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- Kyushu University
- Project Period (FY)
- 2018-04-01 〜 2022-03-31
- Project Status
- Completed
- Budget Amount*help
- 17,160,000 Yen (Direct Cost: 13,200,000 Yen Indirect Cost: 3,960,000 Yen)
Research Abstract
The germ cells are born in extraembryonic region, and migrate toward the gonad. Why the germ cells are formed outside the embryo (gonad) is one of major problems in developmental biology, but it remains unknown. We approached this problem by elucidating the mechanism of maintenance and migration of germ cells outside the gonad. The material is avian embryos in which primordial germ cells (PGCs) use blood vessels as the pathway to the gonad. We revealed the cellular mechanism by which PGCs relocate into blood vessels (PGC envelopment by endothelial cells during angiogenesis), and the mechanism by which PGC extravasation (occlusion of circulating PGCs in micro-capillaries due to PGC high stiffness, and transmigration using membrane blebs). Furthermore, we found that excessive input of FGF signals into PGCs transform them into large tumor-like clusters in the dorsal mesentery.