Abstract
Publisher Summary This chapter describes the Balbiani body (Bb) in various animal species. The most comprehensive ultrastructural and molecular studies on the origin, composition, and function of Bb and its relationship to the germplasm have been done for the oocytes and embryos of Xenopus. Various RNAs and proteins have been discovered localized in the mitochondrial cloud (MC) and in the germplasm in Xenopus oocytes and embryos. The chapter discusses two major pathways of RNA localization in Xenopus: (1) Message Transport Organizer (METRO) or early pathway-localizing RNAs, (2) Late or Vg1 pathway-localizing RNAs. Emphasis is given on the localization of METRO pathway RNAs within the MC and the germplasm islands in the embryo. The chapter discusses the ultrastructural, molecular, and functional studies that have been carried out on polar granules and germ cells of Drosophila melanogaster . It reveals that the molecular composition of pole plasm, polar granules, nuage, and sponge bodies in Drosophila has been deduced from mutational and functional analyses and indirect genetic approaches.
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