Dedication

pp v-vi

Contents

pp vii-viii

List of Contributors

pp ix-xii

Preface

pp xiii-xiv

Section 1 - Historical perspective

1 - Insights into the amphibian egg to understand the mammalian oocyte

pp 1-11

Section 2 - Life cycle

2 - Ontogeny of the mammalian ovary

pp 12-23

3 - Gene networks in oocyte meiosis

pp 24-37

4 - Follicle formation and oocyte death

pp 38-49

5 - The early stages of follicular growth

pp 50-61

6 - Follicle and oocyte developmental dynamics

pp 62-72

7 - Mouse models to identify genes throughout oogenesis

pp 73-80

Section 3 - Developmental biology

8 - Structural basis for oocyte–granulosa cell interactions

pp 81-98

9 - Differential gene expression mediated by oocyte–granulosa cell communication

pp 99-108

10 - Hormones and growth factors in the regulation of oocyte maturation

pp 109-118

11 - Getting into and out of oocyte maturation

pp 119-141

12 - Chromosome behavior and spindle formation in mammalian oocytes

pp 142-153

13 - Transcription, accumulation, storage, recruitment, and degradation of maternal mRNA in mammalian oocytes

pp 154-163

14 - Setting the stage for fertilization: transcriptome and maternal factors

pp 164-176

15 - Egg activation: initiation and decoding of Ca2+ signaling

pp 177-186

16 - In vitro growth and differentiation of oocytes

pp 187-199

17 - Metabolism of the follicle and oocyte in vivo and in vitro

pp 200-211

18 - Improving oocyte maturation in vitro

pp 212-223

Section 4 - Imprinting and reprogramming

19 - Human genes modulating primordial germ cell and gamete formation

pp 224-235

20 - In vitro differentiation of germ cells from stem cells

pp 236-249

21 - Parthenogenesis and parthenogenetic stem cells

pp 250-260