As the oocyte grows and as various inclusions are produced in its cytoplasm, a pattern of organization gradually emerges, which will be of importance when the eggs start developing. The arrangement of various substances and cellular constituents in the advanced oocyte and, later, in the egg shows a polarity, that is, an unequal distribution with respect to what may be [...]
Messenger RNA is the link between the genome and the cell cytoplasm. For this reason alone it is of central importance in the study of gene action. This study has been greatly facilitated by the methods which are now available for the isolation and purification of mRNA's (and other RNA's as well). Purified mRNA is, of course, a prerequisite for [...]
During the growth of the oocyte not only does the amount of cytoplasm increase in quantity, but it changes in quality by the elaboration and regular distribution of various cell inclusions and specially modified parts of the cytoplasm which, are essential for the development of the embryo. In most animals which have been investigated with modern methods, young oocytes show [...]