1. dany is required for normal spermatogenesis to proceed beyond the spermatocyte stage.
dany is required for normal spermatogenesis to proceed beyond the spermatocyte stage. Phase contrast images (A-C) of testes isolated from danyex11/Df(2R)BSC802, where dany function is completely lacking (B; ex11/Df), and from bam-GAL4-VP16>UAS-V20danyshmiR17, where dany knockdown occurs specifically in early spermatocytes (C; shmiR17), reveal an accumulation of spermatocytes and a lack of spermatid bundles, whereas the latter are clearly apparent in control testes from danyex11/+ (A; ex11/+). At the base of testes from dany mutant (B) or knockdown (C) males, rare conspicuous spermatocyte cysts were observed (arrows) presumably representing degenerating cysts rather than cysts that have entered into aberrant meiotic divisions, which were also detected in this proximal region (arrowhead) by anti-phospho-histone H3 immunolabeling (PH3) and DNA staining (D; ex11/Df). For comparison, the region where cysts are normally observed during meiotic divisions is indicated in the control testis (A, arrowhead). Scale bar: 200 µm.
Martina Trost et al. Development 2016;143:
© Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd