OCT4 and the acquisition of the oocyte developmental competence during folliculogenesis

The role that the transcription factor OCT4 plays during oocyte growth is yet unknown. In this review we summarise the data on its potential role in the acquisition of the mouse oocyte developmental competence. These studies describe the presence in MII oocytes and 2-cell embryos of an OCT4 transcriptional network that might be part of the molecular signature of maternal origin on which the inner cell mass and the embryonic stem cell-associated pluripotency is assembled and shaped. The Oct4-gene regulatory network thus provides a connection between eggs, early preimplantation embryos and embryonic stem cells.