Start of life controlled by poly(A) tail-mediated remodeling

Understanding a remarkable event at the start of life, the oocyte-to-embryo transition (OET), has remained elusive, especially in humans. Using newly developed techniques, Liu et al. showed that human maternal mRNAs undergo global poly(A) tail mediated remodeling during OET, identified the enzymes involved, and demonstrated the essentiality of remodeling for embryo cleavage.

Automated summary

Using new techniques, Liu et al. found that human maternal mRNAs undergo global poly(A) tail mediated remodeling during the oocyte-to-embryo transition (OET), identified the enzymes involved, and demonstrated the essentiality of remodeling for embryo cleavage.