Fig. 4

Allografted testicular tissue, including somatic cells, was fused with the recipient testis. a–d Representative images of IHC analysis using an anti-GFP antibody visualized by DAB. Sections were counterstained by hematoxylin. DAB-positive cells are donor-derived (actb-GFP strain) cells. a Representative image from IHC analysis of the recipient whose testis was mainly derived from allografted (donor-derived) testis. The actb-GFP strain was used as a donor male. ed, efferent duct. Asterisks denote non-gonadal tissue of the recipient. Scale bar, 100 μm. b Representative image from IHC analysis of the recipient whose testis was partly derived from allografted testis. F1 hybrid of actb-GFP strain and recipient strain (actb-GFP hetero) were used as a donor male. Scale bar, 100 μm. The boxed areas are magnified in panel c GFP-positive area (donor-derived tissue) and d GFP-negative area (recipient-derived tissue). IC, interstitial cells; sg, spermatogonia; sc, spermatocyte; st, spermatid; sp, spermatozoa. Scale bar, 50 μm. e, f Identification of the presence of Sertoli or Leydig cells in the allografted testis. The panels show the images of nuclear counterstaining (DAPI, blue), the cells of allografted testis (GFP, green), the expression of indicated marker genes (e gsdf, f hsd3b; magenta), and the merged image from the left in the same sections. Arrowheads denote representative cells that showed co-existence of the GFP and indicated marker genes. Scale bar, 50 μm