Pathway
Z-decay: degradation of maternal mRNAs by zygotically expressed factors
Maternal transcripts accumulate in the oocyte during oogenesis. Subsets of maternal transcripts are degraded during later development of the unfertilized oocyte and after fertilization of the oocyte. Zygotic decay (Z-decay) refers to the degradation of maternal transcripts by factors expressed by the zygotic genome after fertilization. In the zygote the YAP1:TEAD4 complex activates expression of TUT4 and TUT7 which then uridylate the 3' ends of specific, partially deadenylated maternal transcripts (inferred from mouse zygotes in Sha et al. 2020). The terminal uridylate residues recruit PABPN1 which recruits the 3'-5' ribonuclease DIS3L2 to degrade the mRNA (inferred from mouse homologs in Zhao et al. 2022). Absence of TUT4, TUT7, or PABPN1 results in altered mRNA abundances (inferred from mouse zygotes in Morgan et al. 2017, Sha et al. 2020, Zhao et al. 2022) and infertility. BTG4 expressed in oocytes and present in zygotes also plays a role in Z-decay possibly by recruiting the CCR4-NOT complex to deadenylate mRNAs prior to uridylation (inferred from mouse zygotes in Sha et al. 2020). Similar patterns of expression and mRNA decay are observed in human and mouse zygotes.
What the reference databases state
Statements
12 statements
12 statements · 1 reference database · Subject: Z-decay: degradation of maternal mRNAs by zygotically expressed factors · Sources: Reactome
- DIS3L2 participates in Z-decay: degradation of maternal mRNAs by zygotically expressed factorsProteinReactome R-HSA-9820865Inferred only
- EIF4A1 participates in Z-decay: degradation of maternal mRNAs by zygotically expressed factorsProteinReactome R-HSA-9820865Inferred only
- EIF4A2 participates in Z-decay: degradation of maternal mRNAs by zygotically expressed factorsProteinReactome R-HSA-9820865Inferred only
- EIF4A3 participates in Z-decay: degradation of maternal mRNAs by zygotically expressed factorsProteinReactome R-HSA-9820865Inferred only
- EIF4B participates in Z-decay: degradation of maternal mRNAs by zygotically expressed factorsProteinReactome R-HSA-9820865Inferred only
- EIF4E participates in Z-decay: degradation of maternal mRNAs by zygotically expressed factorsProteinReactome R-HSA-9820865Inferred only
- EIF4G1 participates in Z-decay: degradation of maternal mRNAs by zygotically expressed factorsProteinReactome R-HSA-9820865Inferred only
- PABPC1 participates in Z-decay: degradation of maternal mRNAs by zygotically expressed factorsProteinReactome R-HSA-9820865Inferred only
- PABPN1 participates in Z-decay: degradation of maternal mRNAs by zygotically expressed factorsProteinReactome R-HSA-9820865Inferred only
- PAIP1 participates in Z-decay: degradation of maternal mRNAs by zygotically expressed factorsProteinReactome R-HSA-9820865Inferred only
- TUT4 participates in Z-decay: degradation of maternal mRNAs by zygotically expressed factorsProteinReactome R-HSA-9820865Inferred only
- TUT7 participates in Z-decay: degradation of maternal mRNAs by zygotically expressed factorsProteinReactome R-HSA-9820865Inferred only