Germ cell migration-Evolutionary issues and current understanding

Cecilia Grimaldi; Erez Raz

doi:10.1016/j.semcdb.2019.11.015

Germ cell migration-Evolutionary issues and current understanding

Semin Cell Dev Biol. 2020 Apr:100:152-159. doi: 10.1016/j.semcdb.2019.11.015. Epub 2019 Dec 19.

Authors

Cecilia Grimaldi¹, Erez Raz²

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Cell Biology, Center for Molecular Biology of Inflammation, University of Münster, Münster, 48149, Germany.
² Institute of Cell Biology, Center for Molecular Biology of Inflammation, University of Münster, Münster, 48149, Germany. Electronic address: erez.raz@uni-muenster.de.

PMID: 31864795
DOI: 10.1016/j.semcdb.2019.11.015

Abstract

In many organisms, primordial germ cells (PGCs) are specified at a different location than where the gonad forms, meaning that PGCs must migrate toward the gonad within the early developing embryo. Following species-specific paths, PGCs can be passively carried by surrounding tissues and also perform active migration. When PGCs actively migrate through and along a variety of embryonic structures in different organisms, they adopt an ancestral robust migration mode termed "amoeboid motility", which allows cells to migrate within diverse environments. In this review, we discuss the possible significance of the PGC migration process in facilitating the evolution of animal body shape. In addition, we summarize the latest findings relevant for the molecular and cellular mechanisms controlling the movement and the directed migration of PGCs in different species.

Keywords: Cell migration; Chemokine; Dead end; Evolvability; Germ cell; Gonad.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Review

MeSH terms

Animals
Cell Movement*
Germ Cells / cytology*
Germ Cells / metabolism
Humans