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The transcriptome of human oocytes

  1. Arif Murat Kocabas *,
  2. Javier Crosby † ,
  3. Pablo J. Ross *,
  4. Hasan H. Otu ‡ , § ,
  5. Zeki Beyhan *,
  6. Handan Can ‡ , § ,
  7. Wai-Leong Tam ,
  8. Guilherme J. M. Rosa *,
  9. Robert G. Halgren *,
  10. Bing Lim ‡ , , ‖ ,
  11. Emilio Fernandez † , ‖ , and
  12. Jose Bernardo Cibelli * , ‖ , **
  1. *Cellular Reprogramming Laboratory, Department of Animal Science and
  2. **Physiology Department, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824;
  3. †Unidad de Medicina Reproductiva, Clínica Las Condes, Lo Fontecilla 441, Las Condes, Santiago 759 1040, Chile;
  4. ‡Department of Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115;
  5. §Department of Genetics and Bioengineering, Yeditepe University, Istanbul 34755, Turkey; and
  6. Genome Institute of Singapore, Singapore 138672

  1. Edited by George E. Seidel, Jr., Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, and approved July 21, 2006 (received for review April 26, 2006)

Abstract

The identification of genes and deduced pathways from the mature human oocyte can help us better understand oogenesis, folliculogenesis, fertilization, and embryonic development. Human metaphase II oocytes were used within minutes after removal from the ovary, and its transcriptome was compared with a reference sample consisting of a mixture of total RNA from 10 different normal human tissues not including the ovary. RNA amplification was performed by using a unique protocol. Affymetrix Human Genome U133 Plus 2.0 GeneChip arrays were used for hybridizations. Compared with reference samples, there were 5,331 transcripts significantly up-regulated and 7,074 transcripts significantly down-regulated in the oocyte. Of the oocyte up-regulated probe sets, 1,430 have unknown function. A core group of 66 transcripts was identified by intersecting significantly up-regulated genes of the human oocyte with those from the mouse oocyte and from human and mouse embryonic stem cells. GeneChip array results were validated using RT-PCR in a selected set of oocyte-specific genes. Within the up-regulated probe sets, the top overrepresented categories were related to RNA and protein metabolism, followed by DNA metabolism and chromatin modification. This report provides a comprehensive expression baseline of genes expressed in in vivo matured human oocytes. Further understanding of the biological role of these genes may expand our knowledge on meiotic cell cycle, fertilization, chromatin remodeling, lineage commitment, pluripotency, tissue regeneration, and morphogenesis.

Footnotes

  • ‖To whom correspondence may be addressed. E-mail: cibelli{at}msu.edu, efernandez{at}clinicalascondes.cl, or limb1{at}gis.a-star.edu.sg

  • Author contributions: A.M.K. and J.B.C. designed research; A.M.K. performed research; A.M.K., J.C., and E.F. contributed new reagents/analytic tools; A.M.K., P.J.R., H.H.O., Z.B., H.C., W.-L.T., G.J.M.R., R.G.H., B.L., and J.B.C. analyzed data; and A.M.K., J.C., P.J.R., H.H.O., Z.B., B.L., E.F., and J.B.C. wrote the paper.

  • The authors declare no conflict of interest.

  • This paper was submitted directly (Track II) to the PNAS office.

  • Abbreviations:
    ESC,
    embryonic stem cell;
    hESC,
    human ESC;
    mESC,
    mouse ESC;
    MII,
    metaphase II

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