Regulation of fibroblast growth factor 8 (FGF8) in chicken embryonic stem cells differentiation into spermatogonial stem cells

J Cell Biochem. 2018 Feb;119(2):2396-2407. doi: 10.1002/jcb.26402. Epub 2017 Oct 18.

Abstract

Fibroblast growth factors (FGFs) are essential in regulating the formation of spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs). Here, we explored the effect of FGF8 on chicken SSCs formation by knockdown or overexpression of FGF8 in chicken embryonic stem cells (ESCs) both in vitro and in vivo. Our results showed that knockdown of FGF8 could facilitate the differentiation of ESCs into SSCs, overexpression of FGF8 could promote PGCs self-renewal, inhibit SSCs formation. This study further revealed the positive correlation between the expression level of FGF8 and MAPK/ERK signal. In the absence of FGF8, the expression of downstream genes such as FGFR2, GRB2, RAS, BRAF, RAF1, and MEK2 was not maintained, while overexpressing FGF8 enhances them. Thus, our study demonstrated that FGF8 can regulate germ cell fate by modulating the dynamic equilibrium between differentiation and self-renewal, which provides a new idea for the study of germ cell regulatory network.

Keywords: ESCs; FGF8; MAPK/ERK signaling pathway; PGCs; SSCs; chicken.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Cell Differentiation
  • Cell Self Renewal
  • Chick Embryo
  • Chickens
  • Embryonic Stem Cells / cytology*
  • Embryonic Stem Cells / metabolism
  • Fibroblast Growth Factor 8 / genetics*
  • Fibroblast Growth Factor 8 / metabolism*
  • Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental
  • Gene Knockdown Techniques
  • Gene Regulatory Networks
  • Male
  • Sex Determination Processes
  • Spermatogonia / cytology*
  • Spermatogonia / metabolism
  • Up-Regulation

Substances

  • Fibroblast Growth Factor 8