Final Report Summary - BLIMP1 IN PGCS (Molecular mechanism for primordial germ cell specification - the role of Blimp1)
Germ cells serve the critical function of transmitting genetic and epigenetic information across generations in multi-cellular organisms. A unique role of the germ line is to generate the totipotent state. Furthermore, while the early primordial germ cells (PGCs) exhibit many features of pluripotency, this lineage is functionally unipotent. Studies of this cell lineage are potentially of wide general impact in the context of stem cells and mechanisms underlying pluripotency. The purpose of the current project is to address the molecular mechanism of events that accompany specification of the germ cells, which distinguishes them from the neighbouring somatic cells that share common ancestry.
The focus of my work has been the transcription factor Blimp1, with the main objective of uncovering the precise molecular mechanism of its action in PGC specification. To this end, I generated genome wide DNA binding profiles for Blimp1 in the context of pluripotent cells. I have also performed gene expression profiling to assess the transcriptional changes occurring downstream of Blimp1 in pluripotent cells. Integrating the data sets reveals primary and secondary events occurring downstream of Blimp1. I have also compared the DNA binding profiles to published results for other factors important for pluripotency, revealing potential mechanisms for Blimp1 acting in conjunction with other factors in PCG specification.
The focus of my work has been the transcription factor Blimp1, with the main objective of uncovering the precise molecular mechanism of its action in PGC specification. To this end, I generated genome wide DNA binding profiles for Blimp1 in the context of pluripotent cells. I have also performed gene expression profiling to assess the transcriptional changes occurring downstream of Blimp1 in pluripotent cells. Integrating the data sets reveals primary and secondary events occurring downstream of Blimp1. I have also compared the DNA binding profiles to published results for other factors important for pluripotency, revealing potential mechanisms for Blimp1 acting in conjunction with other factors in PCG specification.