Skip to main content
Log in

Y chromosome replication and chromosome arrangement in germ line cells and sperm of the rat

  • Published:
Chromosoma Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The chronology of Y chromosome replication in meiosis of male adult rats was investigated. 3HTdR was injected into the testes and animals were sacrificed at 2-hour intervals from 2 to 24 hour after the injection; and at 2-day intervals from 2 to 64 days after the injection. Autoradiograms from germ line cell spreads were prepared. The study of spermatogonial metaphases showed that the Y chromosome is the last to begin and end DNA synthesis. Consequently, by detecting such a pattern of replication it was possible to trace the asynchronous Y from spermatogonia to sperm. Assuming that Y chromosomes are early replicating in preimplantation embryos of mammals it is proposed that Y chromosome of rats shift from late to early replicating in the first divisions of the fertilized egg. Moreover, the analysis of the patterns of sperm labeling allow one to infer that chromosomes are end-to-end associated in sperm nuclei, and that the Y chromosome and perhaps autosomes as well occupy a constant position in sperm of rats.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Bianchi, N. O.: Chromosomes of the rat II. DNA replication sequence of bone marrow chromosomes in vivo. Cytologia (Tokyo) 31, 276–293 (1966).

    Google Scholar 

  • —, Blanchi, M. S. de: Shifting in the duplication time of sex chromosomes in the rat. Chromosoma (Berl.) 19, 286–299 (1966).

    Google Scholar 

  • —, Lima-de-Faria, A., Jaworska, H.: A technique for removing silver grains and gelatin from tritium autoradiographs of human chromosomes. Hereditas (Lund) 31, 207–211 (1964).

    Google Scholar 

  • Comings, D. E.: The rationale for an ordered arrangement of chromatin in interphase nucleus. Amer. J. hum. Genet. 20, 440–460 (1968).

    Google Scholar 

  • Hill, R. N., Yunis, J. J.: Mammalian X-chromosomes: change in patterns of DNA replication during embryogenesis. Science 155, 1120–1121 (1967).

    Google Scholar 

  • Hughes-Schrader, S.: A new type of spermiogenesis in iceryne coccids with linear alignment of chromosomes in the sperm. J. Morph. 78, 43–84 (1946).

    Google Scholar 

  • Inoué, M., Sato, H.: Arrangement of DNA in living sperm: a biophysical analysis. Science 136, 1222–1224 (1962).

    Google Scholar 

  • Issa, M., Blank, C. E., Atherton, G. W.: The temporal appearance of sex chromatin and of the late replicating X chromosome in blastocysts of the domestic rabbit. Cytogenetics 88, 219–237 (1969).

    Google Scholar 

  • Leblond, C. P., Clermont, Y.: Definition of the stages of the cycle of the seminiferous epithelium in the rat. Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci. 55, 548–569 (1952).

    Google Scholar 

  • Lima-de-Faria, A.: Differential uptake of tritiated thymidine into hetero- and euchromatin in Melanoplus and Secale. J. biophys. biochem. Cytol. 5, 457–466 (1959).

    Google Scholar 

  • Monesi, V.: Autoradiographic study of DNA synthesis and the cell cycle in spermatogonia and spermatocytes of mouse testis using tritiated thymidine. J. Cell Biol. 4, 1–18 (1962).

    Google Scholar 

  • Mukherjee, B. B., Ghosal, S. K.: Differentiation of sex chromosomes in germ line cells of male golden hamster. Proc. III rd. Intern. Congr. of Genetics 1, 205 (1968).

    Google Scholar 

  • —: Replicative differentiation of mammalian chromosomes during spermatogenesis. Exp. Cell Res. 54, 101–106 (1969).

    Google Scholar 

  • Taylor, J. H.: The arrangement of chromosomes in mature sperm of grasshopper. J. Cell Biol. 21, 286–289 (1964).

    Google Scholar 

  • Tiepolo, L., Praccaro, M., Hultén, M., Lindsten, J., Mannini, A., Ming, L.: Timing of sex chromosome replication in somatic and germ-line cells of the mouse and rat. Cytogenetics 6, 51–66 (1967).

    Google Scholar 

  • Utakoji, T.: Chronology of nucleic acid synthesis in meiosis of the male Chinese hamster. Exp. Cell Res. 42, 585–596 (1966).

    Google Scholar 

  • Utakoji, T., Hsu, T. C.: DNA replication patterns in somatic and germ-line cells of the male Chinese hamster. Cytogenetics 4, 295–313 (1965).

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Bianchi, N.O., de Bianchi, M.S. Y chromosome replication and chromosome arrangement in germ line cells and sperm of the rat. Chromosoma 28, 370–378 (1969). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00284933

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00284933

Keywords

Navigation