Animal study · Aging · 29 Oct 2026
A mouse egg factor, OMC1, helped hold chromosome cohesion through adult life
Source: EurekAlert
What the research found
Nature Aging published this mouse paper on 29 October 2026 (DOI 10.1038/s43587-026-01245-5). The authors include Sakie Iisaka, Shuhei Yoshida, Ryuki Shimada, Tomoya S. Kitajima, and Kei-ichiro Ishiguro, at Chiba University and RIKEN. OMC1 sits with REC8 cohesin in mouse oocytes from fetal life through adulthood. Eggs lacking Omc1 lost REC8 earlier and showed chromosome errors like those in aged eggs. Putting OMC1 back into adult oocytes partly restored REC8 and cut those errors. Ishiguro called OMC1 a maintenance factor that extends the chromosomal lifespan of eggs, not a factor that stops aging. Variants in the human counterpart CCDC201 have been associated with early menopause, and a shortened mouse version matching one human variant failed to localize and could not restore cohesion. This is animal research. It is not a fertility treatment people can use. Not medical advice.
Evidence level: Animal study. Results in animals or cells often don't carry over to people.
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