Zygotic Genome Activation During the Maternal-to-Zygotic Transition

Embryogenesis depends on a highly coordinated cascade of genetically encoded events. In animals, maternal factors contributed by the egg cytoplasm initially control development, whereas the zygotic nuclear genome is quiescent. Subsequently, the genome is activated, embryonic gene products are mobilized, and maternal factors are cleared. This transfer of developmental control is called the maternal-to-zygotic transition (MZT). In this review, we discuss recent advances toward understanding the scope, timing, and mechanisms that underlie zygotic genome activation at the MZT in animals. We describe high-throughput techniques to measure the embryonic transcriptome and explore how regulation of the cell cycle,…

• MO
  March of Dimes Foundation
• NI
  National Institutes of Health

  Awards: GM101108, GM103789, GM081602, T32GM007499, GM102251