FBS Colloquia No.395Laboratory of Epigenome Dynamics

In mammals, including humans, individuals with an XY chromosome combination differentiate into males, while those with XX differentiate into females. The Y chromosome contains the sex-determining gene Sry (Sex-determining region Y), which is essential for male development, and its expression pattern is extremely stringent. Specifically, Sry is expressed only in specific cell types of sexually undifferentiated gonads at specific developmental stages. This stringent expression of Sry is essential for male gonadal development (testis formation), and gonads with insufficient Sry expression levels or mistimed expression will differentiate into ovaries instead. The molecular basis underlying Sry's stringent expression pattern remained unclear for a long time, but our laboratory has revealed that epigenetic regulation plays a crucial role. In this colloquium, I will present the male and female differentiation pathways in mouse fetal gonads revealed by single-cell RNA sequencing, as well as the functions of novel epigenetic regulatory factors involved in Sry expression control.