Abstract
Germ cell lineages are the carriers to pass genetic information through generations. Understanding the regulatory mechanisms that govern germ cell specification, development, and maturation is crucial for elucidating and treating infertility in humans. In addition to genetically modified animal models, pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) offer a robust in vitro platform to investigate mechanistic control of mammalian reproduction. The past decades have witnessed great progress in the derivation of germ cell lineages from both human and mouse PSCs. Primordial germ cells (PGCs), spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs), and haploid gametes have been generated robustly from mouse PSCs—recently even healthy offspring was successfully produced with sperm completely developed in vitro from mouse PSCs. Although less thoroughly characterized, human PSCs apparently display a similar competency to generate PGCs, SSCs, and immature gametes. In this review, we will highlight major findings and biotechnology to generate male germ cell lineages from PSCs.
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