卵母细胞第一次减数分裂的阻滞和恢复

哺乳动物卵母细胞第一次减数分裂阻滞期间,来自卵母细胞的Gs-GPR-ADCY诱导环磷酸腺苷(cyclic adenosine monophosphate, cAMP)的生成,升高卵母细胞内cAMP的水平。颗粒细胞中的C型利钠肽(natriuretic peptides C, NPPC)和肌苷-5'-磷酸脱氢酶(inosine-5′-monophosphate dehydrogenase, IMPDH)调节卵丘颗粒细胞中环磷酸鸟苷(cyclic guanosinc monophosphate, cGMP)的生成,cGMP进入卵母细胞抑制cAMP-磷酸二酯酶(cAMP-phosphodiesterase, cAMP-PDE)活性,升高cAMP浓度,并使细胞质成熟促进因子(maturation promoting factor, MPF)处于非活化态,最终诱导了减数分裂阻滞在双线期。促黄体素(luteinizing hormone, LH)峰的出现一方面降低了壁颗粒细胞中NPPC的水平,另一方面激活了卵丘颗粒细胞丝裂原活化蛋白激酶3/1 (mitogen-activated protein kinase3/1, MAPK3/1),两者均降低了卵母细胞中cGMP的浓度,促进cAMP水解,使得MPF处于活化态,最终诱导了减数分裂恢复。该综述将探讨这两种环核苷酸如何通过阻断或启动减数分裂过程来调节卵母细胞成熟,并对未来的研究提供一定的见解。     

钙调蛋白依赖的蛋白激酶Ⅱ在卵母细胞减数分裂和受精中的作用

钙调蛋白依赖的蛋白激酶 (CaMK)是一类分布广泛的丝 /苏氨酸蛋白激酶家族 ,在钙离子和钙调蛋白存在的条件下发生自磷酸化而被激活 ,在细胞内对于钙信号的传递具有重要的介导作用 .近年来的研究表明CaMKⅡ是参与调节卵母细胞减数分裂的重要分子 ,在卵母细胞成熟、极体排放、受精和活化等过程中发挥作用 .CaMKⅡ作为Ca2 的下游信号分子 ,在受精后促进成熟促进因子 (MPF)和细胞静止因子 (CSF)的失活 ,并调节纺锤体微管的组装和中心体的复制过程 .虽然CaMKⅡ在减数分裂中的作用广泛而关键 ,但目前的研究主要集中于低等动物和小鼠 ,今后有待进一步阐明该蛋白激酶在其他哺乳动物中的作用和调节机制     

核糖体S6蛋白激酶p90rsk与卵母细胞减数分裂

丝裂原活化蛋白激酶(MAPK)信号途径对减数分裂有重要调节作用,p90rsk是迄今研究最清楚的MAPK下游靶分子,介导MAPK途径在卵母细胞减数分裂中的多种功能,包括卵母细胞减数分裂的启动、MⅠ/MⅡ期转化和MⅡ期阻滞的维持等.p90rsk的磷酸化是MAPK激活的结果,而细胞退出减数分裂时,p90rsk的去磷酸化也发生在MAPK失活以后.介绍了在卵母细胞中p90rsk的研究进展.     

钙调蛋白依赖的蛋白激酶Ⅱ在卵母细胞减数分裂和受精中的作用(英)

钙调蛋白依赖的蛋白激酶（CaMK）是一类分布广泛的丝/苏氨酸蛋白激酶家族,在钙离子和钙调蛋白存在的条件下发生自磷酸化而被激活,在细胞内对于钙信号的传递具有重要的介导作用.近年来的研究表明CaMKⅡ是参与调节卵母细胞减数分裂的重要分子,在卵母细胞成熟、极体排放、受精和活化等过程中发挥作用.CaMKⅡ作为Ca²⁺的下游信号分子,在受精后促进成熟促进因子（MPF）和细胞静止因子（CSF）的失活,并调节纺锤体微管的组装和中心体的复制过程.虽然CaMKⅡ在减数分裂中的作用广泛而关键,但目前的研究主要集中于低等动物和小鼠,今后有待进一步阐明该蛋白激酶在其他哺乳动物中的作用和调节机制.     

丝裂原活化蛋白激酶(MAPK)信号通路的研究进展

丝裂原活化蛋白激酶（MAPK）信号通路是广泛存在于各种细胞中的一条信号转导途径,由一组级联活化的丝／苏氨酸蛋白激酶组成,对于细胞周期的运行和基因表达具有重要调控作用。MAPK包括多个成员,活化后向核内迁移,磷酸化包括转录因子在内的核蛋白和膜受体,实现对基因转录和其他事件的调节。MAPK激酶（MAPKK）是MAPK的上游激活分子,催化MAPK的Tyr和Thr残基双特异性磷酸化。Mos是脊椎动物生殖细胞中特有的MAPKK,通过MAPKK／MAPK途径活化成熟促进因子,启动卵母细胞成熟发育并维持中期阻滞。MAPK的下游分子包括MAPK活化的蛋白激酶（MAPKAPK）、核转录因子、热休克蛋白和细胞质磷脂酶A2等,执行由MAPK所介导的细胞生命活动调节功能。     

泛素-蛋白水解酶复合体通路在卵母细胞减数分裂和受精中的作用

泛素—蛋白水解酶复合体通路(Ubiquitin-proteasome pathway,UPP)高效快速并高度选择性地降解特定的蛋白质,从而参与控制多种重要的细胞生物学过程。在卵母细胞减数分裂和受精过程中,该通路通过降解细胞周期中的关键因子,如细胞周期蛋白、细胞周期蛋白依赖性激酶抑制图子等细胞周期调控因子,从而参与卵母细胞生发泡破裂、第一极体排放、MII阻滞的维持和克服等过程,使细胞通过特定的检验点。此外,UPP也与丝裂原活化蛋白激酶通路、Polo样激酶、成熟促进因子、蛋白激酶C、钙调蛋白依赖激酶Ⅱ等减数分裂关键调节因子相互作用来参与卵母细胞减数分裂成熟和受精。一些周期蛋白(如后期促进复合体的某些亚单位等)还充当泛素连接酶成分,直接参与泛素化过程。     

核糖体S6蛋白激酶p90rsk与卵母细胞减数分裂

丝裂原活化蛋白激酶（MAPK）信号途径对减数分裂有重要调节作用,p90^rsk是迄今研究最清楚的MAPK下游靶分子,介导MAPK途径在卵母细胞减数分裂中的多种功能,包括卵母细胞减数分裂的启动、MⅠ/MⅡ期转化和MⅡ期阻滞的维持等.p90^rsk的磷酸化是MAPK激活的结果,而细胞退出减数分裂时,p90^rsk的去磷酸化也发生在MAPK失活以后.介绍了在卵母细胞中p90^rsk的研究进展.     

钙离子和冈田酸对亚胺环己酮诱导小鼠卵子孤雌激活的影响

哺乳动物卵母细胞在排卵后停滞在第二次减数分裂中期,受精和多种物理或是化学刺激可以克服这一阻滞使卵母细胞活化。蛋白合成抑制剂亚胺环己酮可以诱导小鼠卵母细胞发生孤雌活化,但其机制尚未完全阐明。以前的研究提示亚胺环己酮可能是通过抑制蛋白激酶MOS的合成来发挥孤雌激活的作用的。本实验发现,CHX诱导的卵母细胞孤雌活化是Ca^2 依赖性,其效率可被钙离子载体A23187大大提高,免疫蛋白印迹结果表明,卵母细胞孤雌活化后MAPK发生去磷酸化。蛋白磷酸酶抑制剂冈田酸可以克服CHX＋A23187对小鼠放母细胞活化作用,并且部分阻止MAPK去磷酸化。以上结果表明,抑制MOS的合成并非CHX诱导的孤雌活化过程的惟一原因,并且蛋白磷酸酶抑制剂可以阻断这一激活事件。     

卵母细胞成熟调控的分子机制及进展

卵母细胞的成熟是人类配子发育成熟,进而形成胚胎的必然阶段。目前已知有多种因素调控卵母细胞的成熟。成熟促进因子(MPF)是卵母细胞成熟调控的最重要分子,它通过CDK1亚基的磷酸化及cyclin B累积合成调节卵母细胞的成熟。MAPK/Mos及cAMP均可通过影响MPF的活性从而间接调控卵母细胞成熟。这三者之间又存在相互影响相互作用,形成一个复杂的调控网络。阐明卵母细胞成熟的分子机制有利于为治疗女性不孕症及卵母细胞体外培养成熟提供可靠的理论依据。     

原癌基因c-erbB2和c-myb经丝裂原活化蛋白激酶和成熟促进因子途径调节卵母细胞的成熟

本研究探讨了原癌基因c-erbB:和c-myb对小鼠卵母细胞成熟的影响及其在调控卵母细胞成熟中与丝裂原活化蛋白激酶(mitogen-activated protein kinase,MAPK)和成熟促进因子(mamration promoting factor,MPF)的上下游关系.c-erbB2反义寡脱氧核苷酸(antisense oligodeoxynucleotide,ASODN)和c.myb ASODN均呈剂量依赖方式抑制卵母细胞的生发泡破裂(germinalvesicle breakdown,GVBD)率和第一极体(first polar body,PBl)排放率,并显著延迟其成熟时间.小鼠卵母细胞显微注射重组人c-erbB2蛋白和c-myb蛋白后,培养6 h其GVBD率分别比对照组上升了23.1%(P<0.05)和32.2%(P<0.05),.培养12 h其PBl排放率分别比对照组上升了17.3%(P<0.05)和23.5%(P<0.05).RT-PCR结果显示,小鼠卵母细胞中存在c-erbB2mRNA和c-myb mRNA表达;c-erbB2ASODN能明显抑制卵母细胞中c-erbB2mRNA和c-myb mRNA的表达,c-myb ASODN能明显抑制卵母细胞中c-myb mRNA的表达,对c-erbB2 mRNA无明显影响;MAPK抑制剂PD98059以及MPF抑制剂roscovitine在抑制卵母细胞成熟的同时,均能阻断显微注射重组人c-erbB:蛋白和重组人c-myb蛋白对卵母细胞成熟的促进作用,但对卵母细胞中c-erbB2mRNA和c-myb mRNA表达无明显影响.Western blot结果显示,c-erbB2ASODN、c-mybASODN、PD98059、roscovitine均使卵母细胞中MAPK磷酸化水平和cyclinB 1含量下降.结果提示,原癌基因c-erbB2、c-myb在卵母细胞成熟中起重要作用,可能是调控卵母细胞成熟中关键蛋白激酶如MAPK、MPF的上游激活物.     

Mitogen activated protein kinase plays a significant role in metaphase II arrest, spindle morphology, and maintenance of maturation promoting factor activity in bovine oocytes

Mammalian oocytes are arrested at the G2/M transition of the first meiotic division from which, after reaching full size and subsequent to an LH surge, they undergo final maturation. Oocyte maturation, which involves germinal vesicle breakdown, progression through metaphase I (MI), and arrest at MII, is triggered and regulated by the coordinated action of two kinases, maturation promoting factor (MPF) and mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK). The importance of the role of MPF in mammalian oocyte maturation is well established, while the role of MAPK, although well understood in mouse oocytes, has not been fully elucidated in oocytes of large domestic species, especially bovine oocytes. Here we show that injection of MKP-1 mRNA, which encodes a dual specificity MAPK phosphatase, into germinal vesicle stage bovine oocytes prevents the activation of MAPK during maturation. Despite the lack of MAPK activity, MKP-1-injected oocytes resume and progress through meiosis, although they are unable to arrest at MII stage and, by 22-26-hour post-maturation, exhibit decondensed pronucleus-like chromatin, a clear sign of parthenogenetic activation. MKP-1-injected bovine oocytes exhibit normal activation of MPF activity; however, by 18-hour post-maturation, MPF activity starts to decline and by 22-26 hr MPF activity is absent. MKP-1-injected oocytes also show disorganized MII spindles with poorly aligned chromosomes. In summary, our results demonstrate that in bovine oocytes MAPK activity is required for MII arrest, maintenance of MPF activity, and spindle organization.     

Meiotic cell cycle in Xenopus oocytes is independent of cdk2 kinase.

In vertebrates, M phase-promoting factor (MPF), a universal G2/M regulator in eukaryotic cells, drives meiotic maturation of oocytes, while cytostatic factor (CSF) arrests mature oocytes at metaphase II until fertilization. Cdk2 kinase, a G1/S regulator in higher eukaryotic cells, is activated during meiotic maturation of Xenopus oocytes and, like Mos (an essential component of CSF), is proposed to be involved in metaphase II arrest in mature oocytes. In addition, cdk2 kinase has been shown recently to be essential for MPF activation in Xenopus embryonic mitosis. Here we report injection of Xenopus oocytes with the cdk2 kinase inhibitor p21Cip in order to (re)evaluate the role of cdk2 kinase in oocyte meiosis. Immature oocytes injected with p21Cip can enter both meiosis I and meiosis II normally, as evidenced by the typical fluctuations in MPF activity. Moreover, mature oocytes injected with p21Cip are retained normally in metaphase II for a prolonged period, whereas those injected with neutralizing anti-Mos antibody are released readily from metaphase II arrest. These results argue strongly against a role for cdk2 kinase in MPF activation and its proposed role in metaphase II arrest, in Xenopus oocyte meiosis. We discuss the possibility that cdk2 kinase stored in oocytes may function, as a maternal protein, solely for early embryonic cell cycles.     

Induction of maturation-promoting factor during Xenopus oocyte maturation uncouples Ca(2+) store depletion from store-operated Ca(2+) entry.

During oocyte maturation, eggs acquire the ability to generate specialized Ca(2+) signals in response to sperm entry. Such Ca(2+) signals are crucial for egg activation and the initiation of embryonic development. We examined the regulation during Xenopus oocyte maturation of store-operated Ca(2+) entry (SOCE), an important Ca(2+) influx pathway in oocytes and other nonexcitable cells. We have previously shown that SOCE inactivates during Xenopus oocyte meiosis. SOCE inactivation may be important in preventing premature egg activation. In this study, we investigated the correlation between SOCE inactivation and the Mos-mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK)-maturation-promoting factor (MPF) kinase cascade, which drives Xenopus oocyte maturation. SOCE inactivation at germinal vesicle breakdown coincides with an increase in the levels of MAPK and MPF. By differentially inducing Mos, MAPK, and MPF, we demonstrate that the activation of MPF is necessary for SOCE inactivation during oocyte maturation. In contrast, sustained high levels of Mos kinase and the MAPK cascade have no effect on SOCE activation. We further show that preactivated SOCE is not inactivated by MPF, suggesting that MPF does not block Ca(2+) influx through SOCE channels, but rather inhibits coupling between store depletion and SOCE activation.     

Synthesis and function of mos: The control switch of vertebrate oocyte meiosis

One distinguishing feature of vertebrate oocyte meiosis is its discontinuity; oocytes are released from their prophase I arrest, usually by hormonal stimulation, only to again halt at metaphase II, where they await fertilization. The product of the c-mos proto-oncogene, Mos, is a key regulator of this maturation process. Mos is a serine-threonine kinase that activates and/or stabilizes maturation-promoting factor (MPF), the master cell cycle switch, through a pathway that involves the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) cascade. Oocytes arrested at prophase I lack detectable levels of Mos, which must be synthesized from a pool of maternal mRNAs for proper maturation. While Mos is necessary throughout maturation in Xenopus, it seems to be required only for meiosis II in the mouse. The translational activation of c-mos mRNA at specific times during meiosis requires cytoplasmic polyadenylation. Cis- and trans-acting factors for polyadenylation are, therefore, essential elements of maturation.     

Interaction of cell cycle kinases, microtubules, and chromatin in ascidian oocytes during meiosis

We used kinase assays and confocal microscopy to study the interaction of cell cycle proteins with microtubule organising centres (MTOC) and chromatin in ascidian oocytes during meiosis. The activity of maturation promoting factor (MPF) and mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK) appear not to be correlated in control oocytes. MPF activity peaks during metaphase I and II of the meiotic cell cycle whereas the activity of MAPK peaks at telophase I and is subsequently degraded to remain at low levels for the remainder of meiosis. The protein synthesis inhibitor emetine induces the degradation in MPF activity in unfertilized metaphase-I (M-I) oocytes, while MAPK is unaffected. Emetine does not alter the activities of these cell cycle kinases in fertilized oocytes during meiosis I but MPF activity remains low while MAPK activity is high for an elongated time period and oocytes do not complete meiosis I. Emetine induces maternal MTOC duplication in unfertilized M-I oocytes and prevents sperm aster growth in fertilized oocytes, but it does not alter the M-I meiotic apparatus in unfertilized oocytes. These experiments suggest that neither MPF alone nor emetine-sensitive proteins are responsible for M-I arrest in ascidian oocytes, MAPK may ensure this stability. In addition, we showed that the maternal MTOC is present at M-I but suppressed from duplicating in an emetine-sensitive manner.     

Several signaling pathways are involved in the control of cattle oocyte maturation

The main limit of in vitro production of domestic mammal embryos comes from the low capacity of in vitro matured oocytes to develop after fertilization. As soon as they are separated from follicular environment, oocytes spontaneously resume meiosis without completion of their terminal differentiation. Roscovitine (ROS), an inhibitor of M-phase promoting factor (MPF) kinase activity reversibly blocks the meiotic resumption in vitro. However, in cattle maturing oocytes several cellular events such as protein synthesis and phosphorylation, chromatin condensation and nuclear envelope folding escape ROS inhibition suggesting the alternative pathways in oocyte maturation. We compared the level of synthesis and phosphorylation of several protein kinases during bovine cumulus oocyte complex (COC) maturation in vitro in the presence or not of epidermal growth factor (EGF) and ROS. We showed that during the EGF-stimulated maturation, ROS neither affected the decrease of EGF receptor (EGFR) nor did inhibit totally its phosphorylation in cumulus cells and also did not totally eliminate tyrosine phosphorylation in oocytes. However, ROS did inhibit the Phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3) activity when oocytes mature without EGF. Accumulation of Akt/PKB (protein kinase B), JNK1/2 (jun N-terminal kinases) and Aurora-A in oocytes during maturation was not affected by ROS. However, the phosphorylation of Akt but not JNKs was diminished in ROS-treated oocytes. Thus, PI3 kinase/Akt, JNK1/2 and Aurora-A are likely to be involved in the regulation of bovine oocyte maturation and some of these pathways seem to be independent to MPF activity and meiotic resumption. This complex regulation may explain the partial meiotic arrest of ROS-treated oocytes and the accelerated maturation observed after such treatment.     

Association of MPF, MAPK, and nuclear progression dynamics during activation of young and aged bovine oocytes

We have previously shown that bovine oocytes parthenogenetically activated after 40 hours (hr) of in vitro maturation proceed through the cell cycle faster than those after 20 hr of maturation. In the present study, we used this model of different speed of nuclear progression to investigate the correlation of two hallmarks of nuclear events, exit of metaphase arrest and pronuclear formation, with dynamics of MPF and MAPK. Bovine oocytes were matured in vitro for 20 hr (young) or 40 hr (aged) and activated in 7% ethanol followed by incubation in cycloheximide for 0, 0.5, 1, 3, 5, or 7 hr. Activity of MPF and MAPK was lower in aged than young oocytes. The responses to oocyte activation by both the two kinases and nuclear progression were faster in aged than in young oocytes. The activity of MPF declined to undetectable levels (P < 0.05) as early as 0.5 hr after activation in aged oocytes, while this did not happen in young oocytes until 3 hr after activation. The inactivation of MAPK occurred approximately 2 hr earlier in aged oocytes (5 hr post-activation) than in young oocytes (7 hr post-activation). Furthermore, the decline in MPF activity preceded that of MAPK in both young and aged oocytes by about 2 hr. The decrease in activity of MPF and MAPK corresponded with the exit from meiosis and pronuclei formation regardless of the speed of nuclear progression. Despite dramatic changes in activity of MPF and MAPK, the levels of Cdc2 and Erk2 proteins were unchanged (P > 0.05) during the first 7 hr of activation. These observations suggest that inactivation of MPF and MAPK are pre-requisite for the release from metaphase arrest and formation of pronuclei in bovine oocytes.     

MAPK/ERK kinase (MEK) signalling is required for resumption of meiosis in cultured cumulus-enclosed pig oocytes

Resumption of meiosis of mammalian oocytes is facilitated by the maturation promoting factor (MPF) and accompanied by activation of mitogen activated protein kinases (MAPK) which are phosphorylated by the MAPK kinase (MEK). In this study we examined the effects of PD 98059, which inhibits the activity of MEK, on in vitro maturation of pig oocytes. Cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs) were cultured in the presence or absence of the drug (50 microM) for various time periods. To elucidate the influence of cumulus cells, COCs were first cultured in inhibitor-free medium, subsequently denuded, and incubated further in PD 98059 supplemented medium. Reversibility of drug action as tested following PD 98059 treatment of COCs by transferring them to drug-free medium. Culture of COCs in medium supplemented with PD 98059 prevents resumption of nuclear maturation in the majority of COCs. This inhibition was reversible and accompanied by a non-activation of both MAP and MPF. Addition of the MEK inhibitor to extracts of in vitro matured oocytes revealed that the kinase activities were not directly influenced by the inhibitor, suggesting a link between MAP and MPF kinases. Preincubation of COCs in inhibitor-free medium for 6 h followed by further culture of COCs or denuded oocytes in the presence of PD 98059 for various periods resulted in elevated MAP and MPF kinase activities, indicating an early and transient MEK signalling in the oocyte itself. These results support the idea that MAP and MPF are involved in the induction of germinal vesicle breakdown in porcine oocytes.