RNA synthesis in spermatocytes and spermatids and preservation of meiotic RNA during spermiogenesis in the mouse

The rate of RNA synthesis at different stages of spermatogenesis in the mouse, and the preservation of RNA from the diploid to the haploid phase of spermatogenesis were studied in homogeneous germ cell fractions separated by velocity sedimentation at unit gravity. The uridine pool expansion method was used for determining the rate of RNA synthesis: seminiferous tubules were labelled in culture with increasing concentrations of [3H]-uridine and the incorporated radioactivity was estimated in cell fractions separated by velocity sedimentation. The results indicate that before nuclear elongation, round spermatids (steps 1 to 8 of spermiogenesis) synthesize RNA at the same rate per DNA content as middle-late pachytene spermatocytes. The preservation of RNA molecules synthesized in meiosis was investigated by labelling pachytene spermatocytes with [3H]uridine in vivo and collecting samples of germ cells at definite stages of spermatogenesis at various time intervals thereafter. The results show that a considerable proportion of the RNA synthesized during the pachytene stage is preserved through spermatid development until late spermiogenesis.