Regulatory and phenotypic evolution of the male mammalian germline and underlying stem cells (A17*)

• Subject Area: General Genetics and Functional Genome Biology
• Term: from 2018 to 2022
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 122491522

Our previous gene expression comparisons revealed that the male mammalian germline evolves rapidly at the molecular level. This observation is consistent with the fast evolutionary alterations of sperm cell properties, testis sizes, and sperm production rates and is likely explained by the competition among males to fertilize a female’s egg. Previous work suggests that evolutionary changes of spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs) contribute to the rapid germline evolution. The goal of the proposed project is therefore to explore in detail the regulatory and phenotypic evolution of SSCs, precursors and resulting spermatogenic cells within a cross-mammalian single-cell gene expression framework.

• DFG Programme: Collaborative Research Centres
• Subproject of: SFB 873: Maintenance and Differentiation of Stem Cells in Development und Disease
• Applicant Institution: Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg
• Project Head: Professor Henrik Kaessmann, Ph.D.