A Powerful Model for the Study of Sex Determination Processes

Dr. Nitzan Gonen, from the Mina and Everard Goodman Faculty of Life Sciences at Bar-Ilan University, together with colleagues from France, UK, and Egypt, developed a model that enables an understanding of mechanisms of sex determination and disorders of sex development (DSDs). In the work, published in the prestigious journal Science Advances, researchers differentiated stem cells (cells that have the potential to differentiate into any cell) into Sertoli-like cells (cells of the male reproductive system). In addition, using CRISPR, a genomic editing technology, the researchers corrected mutation in stem cells derived from a person with DSD, manifested, among other things, in defective Sertoli cells, and were able to differentiate the corrected stem cells into Sertoli-like cells with normal morphology. To date, knowledge and understanding of sex determination mechanisms and DSDs has stemmed from studies on mice embryos and genetic analysis of humans with errors in sex determination. The model developed by Dr. Gonen is an important tool in understanding the molecular processes of testis differentiation and DSDs and perhaps even in understanding processes related to fertility issues.

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