title: ALDH1A1 provides a source of meiosis-inducing retinoic acid in mouse fetal ovaries.
abstract: Substantial evidence exists that during fetal ovarian development in mammals, retinoic acid (RA) induces germ cells to express the pre-meiotic marker Stra8 and enter meiosis, and that these effects are prevented in the fetal testis by the RA-degrading P450 enzyme CYP26B1. Nonetheless, the role of RA has been disputed principally because germ cells in embryos lacking two major RA-synthesizing enzymes, ALDH1A2 and ALDH1A3, remain able to enter meiosis. Here we show that a third RA-synthesizing enzyme, ALDH1A1, is expressed in fetal ovaries, providing a likely source of RA in the absence of ALDH1A2 and ALDH1A3. In ovaries lacking ALDH1A1, the onset of germ cell meiosis is delayed. Our data resolve the conundrum posed by conflicting published data sets and reconfirm the model that meiosis is triggered by endogenous RA in the developing ovary.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland 4072, Australia.
authors.forename: Josephine
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bowles
authors.affiliation: Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland 4072, Australia.
authors.forename: Chun-Wei
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9510-1012
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Feng
authors.affiliation: Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland 4072, Australia.
authors.forename: Kim
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Miles
authors.affiliation: Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland 4072, Australia.
authors.forename: Jessica
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ineson
authors.affiliation: Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland 4072, Australia.
authors.forename: Cassy
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Spiller
authors.affiliation: Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland 4072, Australia.
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Koopman
mesh_terms: D000444:Aldehyde Dehydrogenase / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D000080924:Aldehyde Dehydrogenase 1 Family; D000818:Animals; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008540:Meiosis; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D018345:Mice, Knockout; D010053:Ovary / Q000166:cytology / Q000196:embryology* / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000378:metabolism; D050697:Retinal Dehydrogenase; D014212:Tretinoin / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D014212:Tretinoin; D000080924:Aldehyde Dehydrogenase 1 Family; D000444:Aldehyde Dehydrogenase; C515028:ALDH1A1 protein, mouse; C512722:Aldh1a2 protein, mouse; D050697:Retinal Dehydrogenase