Histological Differentiation of Primordial Germ Cells in Zebrafish

In this study, primordial germ cells (PGCs) in zebrafish were described histologically using eosinophilic granules as a marker. PGC-like cells (PL-cells) with eosinophilic granules were identified initially at the sphere stage (4-hr postfertilization), and were observed until the bud stage, the earliest stage to which PGCs with proper morphology could be traced. The morphology and distribution of eosinophilic granules in PL-cells changed during epiboly. Mitoses of PL-cells were observed only from the shield to bud stage, after eosinophilic granules aggregated to the perinuclear region in PGCs. These shifts of eosinophilic granules corresponded histologically to those of germ plasm described in Xenopus. These results suggest that eosinophilic granules represent germ plasm in fish and that PL-cells with these granules correspond to the PGCs or presumptive PGCs (pPGCs).