How egg cells control a key protein switch during egg division
Official title: Novel approaches for the discovery of dephosphorylation control in oocyte meiosis
Funded at University of Southern Mississippi · NIH-11167815 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This work aims to discover whether the enzyme PP1 and its partner proteins help egg cells complete division properly, which could explain some causes of female infertility.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Southern Mississippi NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Hattiesburg, United States) |
| Project start | September 1, 2022 |
| Project end | August 31, 2026 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $215,797 |
| NIH project number | 5R00HD103909-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-11167815 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Women with unexplained infertility suspected to involve egg division problems or those willing to donate oocytes for research would be the most directly relevant participants or contributors.
✕Less likely to help
People whose infertility is due to non-egg factors (for example, male-factor infertility, blocked fallopian tubes, or uterine issues) are unlikely to benefit directly from these findings.
What this research studies
The research looks at a protein called PP1 that helps remove phosphate tags from other proteins during the final stages of egg cell division. Lab experiments will use mammalian oocytes and targeted tools that block PP1 interactions to see which partner proteins direct its action. The team will map PP1 partner proteins and test how changing those partnerships affects an egg's ability to finish meiosis. Results will help explain why some eggs fail to divide correctly and lead to infertility.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could reveal causes of some forms of female infertility and point to new targets for future fertility treatments or diagnostics.
How similar studies have gone: PP1 is known to regulate cell division in other cell types and is linked to disease when its partnerships change, but applying a PIP-based approach to dissect PP1 roles in mammalian oocytes is a novel direction with promising preliminary data.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Southern Mississippi
Hattiesburg, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Camlin, Nicole Jacqueline — University of Southern Mississippi
- Study coordinator: Camlin, Nicole Jacqueline
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.