Mice deficient in Dmrt7 show infertility with spermatogenic arrest at pachytene stage

Genes including DM domain regulate sexual development in diverse metazoan phyla. One of these genes, Dmrt7, was expressed only in testes of adult mice. To determine the role of Dmrt7 in mice, we generated Dmrt7-knockout mice (Dmrt7(-/-)). Although the Dmrt7(-/-) showed normal growth, null males were infertile. No sperm was detected in the epididymis of Dmrt7(-/-) adult males. Absence of spermatids in a histological analysis, decreased expression of Ccna1 mRNA and the accumulation of SCP3-positive spermatocytes showed the arrest of spermatogenesis at the pachytene stage in the Dmrt7-knockout mice. (c) 2006 Federation of European Biochemical Societies. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.