Cortical Granule Dynamics in Oocyte Development
Summary
Cortical granules are specialised secretory vesicles that accumulate beneath the plasma membrane of the oocyte during its growth and maturation. Upon fertilisation, these granules undergo rapid exocytosis, releasing their contents into the perivitelline space to induce modifications of the zona pellucida and establish a robust block to further sperm entry, thereby ensuring monospermy. The biogenesis, transport and tethering of cortical granules depend upon orchestrated interactions with the actin cytoskeleton and motor proteins, while their spatial distribution evolves through meiosis I and II. In vitro maturation protocols have revealed that cytoplasmic maturation and cortical domain organisation are critical for effective granule secretion. Aberrations in granule dynamics are implicated in fertilisation failure, increased polyspermy and compromised embryo viability, with significant ramifications for assisted reproduction technologies.
Research from Nature Portfolio
No recent Nature Portfolio content available.
Cortical Granule Dynamics in Oocyte Development publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in cortical granule dynamics in oocyte development across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Cortical granule: Membrane-bound secretory vesicle in the oocyte cortex that releases factors to block additional sperm entry.
Exocytosis: Process by which intracellular vesicles fuse with the plasma membrane to secrete their contents.
Oocyte maturation: Series of nuclear and cytoplasmic changes that render an oocyte capable of fertilisation.
In vitro maturation: Laboratory culture of immature oocytes to achieve maturation outside the organism.
Polyspermy: Fertilisation of an egg by more than one sperm, typically prevented by cortical granule exocytosis.
References
- Live imaging of cortical granule exocytosis reveals that in vitro matured mouse oocytes are not fully competent to secrete their content. Biology Open (2018).
- Reconstitution of Calcium-triggered Membrane Fusion Using “Reserve” Granules*. Journal of Biological Chemistry (1998).
About these summaries
This Nature Research Intelligence Topic summary is created with the cited references and a large language model. We take care to ground generated text with facts, and have systems in place to gain human feedback on the overall quality of the process in line with our AI principles. We strive to create accurate and useful summaries for people unfamiliar with the research topic and that supports this goal. These pages are a beta release and will be updated as we learn how best to help people gain value from a research topic summary.
Turn complex research questions into confident strategic decisions
When you're under pressure to set direction, justify investment, or understand your competitive position, you need more than raw data — you need trusted insights you can act on.
Benchmark your performance against global peers using robust, methodologically sound analysis.
Combine quantitative metrics with qualitative expert insight to uncover strengths, gaps and emerging opportunities.
Gain tailored, decision-ready recommendations aligned to your strategic priorities.
Talk to us to learn more about our data dashboards and bespoke strategy reports.
Grow research skills, confidence and careers with training built for every stage of the research lifecycle.
Developed with Nature Portfolio journal Editors and internationally renowned experts. Discover three ways to learn:
Self-paced, online courses in convenient bite-sized units, covering key skills across scientific writing, publishing, grant writing, data analysis, and more.
Expert trainer-led workshops with hands-on exercises and real-time feedback across core research skills, delivered via interactive group sessions.
Editor-led workshops combining core principles in writing and publishing, personalised 1:1 feedback from Nature Portfolio Editors and hands-on exercises.
Explore course catalogues and workshop agendas, enquire about the options or request institutional pricing.