Oocyte-derived microvilli control female fertility by optimizing ovarian follicle selection in mice

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Abstract

Crosstalk between oocytes and surrounding somatic cells is crucial for mammalian oogenesis, but the structural mechanisms on oocytes to control female reproduction remain unknown. Here we combine endogenous-fluorescent tracing mouse models with a high-resolution live-cell imaging system to characterize oocyte-derived mushroom-like microvilli (Oo-Mvi), which mediate germ-somatic communication in mice. We perform 3D live-cell imaging to show that Oo-Mvi exhibit cellular characteristics that fit an exocrine function for signaling communication. We find that deletion of the microvilli-forming gene Radixin in oocytes leads to the loss of Oo-Mvi in ovaries, and causes a series of abnormalities in ovarian development, resulting in shortened reproductive lifespan in females. Mechanistically, we find that Oo-Mvi enrich oocyte-secreted factors and control their release, resulting in optimal selection of ovarian follicles. Taken together, our data show that the Oo-Mvi system controls the female reproductive lifespan by governing the fate of follicles.

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Zhang, Y., Wang, Y., Feng, X., Zhang, S., Xu, X., Li, L., … Zhang, H. (2021). Oocyte-derived microvilli control female fertility by optimizing ovarian follicle selection in mice. Nature Communications, 12(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-22829-2

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