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Single-cell roadmap of human gonadal development
Garcia-Alonso L, Lorenzi V, Mazzeo CI, Alves-Lopes JP, Roberts K, Sancho-Serra C, Engelbert J, Marečková M et al.. Nature, 2022-07-06
Topic: Brain proteins, microglia and lab models
Gonadal development is a complex process that involves sex determination followed by divergent maturation into either testes or ovaries 1 . Historically, limited tissue accessibility, a lack of reliable in vitro models and critical differences between humans and mice have hampered our knowledge of human gonadogenesis, despite its importance in gonadal conditions and infertility. Here, we generated a comprehensive map of first- and second-trimester human gonads using a combination of single-cell and spatial transcriptomics, chromatin accessibility assays and fluorescent microscopy.
Key findings
- Historically, limited tissue accessibility, a lack of reliable in vitro models and critical differences between humans and mice have hampered our knowledge of human gonadogenesis, despite its importance in gonadal conditions and infertility.
- Here, we generated a comprehensive map of first- and second-trimester human gonads using a combination of single-cell and spatial transcriptomics, chromatin accessibility assays and fluorescent microscopy.
- We extracted human-specific regulatory programmes that control the development of germline and somatic cell lineages by profiling equivalent developmental stages in mice.
- In both species, we define the somatic cell states present at the time of sex specification, including the bipotent early supporting population that, in males, upregulates the testis-determining factor SRY and sPAX8s, a gonadal lineage located at the gonadal-mesonephric interface.
Why it matters
This study maps human gonadal development and is unrelated to Alzheimer's disease. It provides no information on treating, curing or preventing Alzheimer's.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 62/100
Published in a top-tier journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 10 / 10 | Tier 1 — top-tier general journal (Nature) |
| Journal's citation record | 4 / 4 | Nature: journal h-index 1,841 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 3 / 5 | 2022 — within 6 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 6 / 7 | Cited 458 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 5 / 5 | 76.3 citations a year over 6 year(s) since 2022 |
| Impact for its field and year | 6 / 6 | Cited 52.4× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 1 / 6 | Cited by 1 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 4 / 4 | Cited 352 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 2 / 4 | Last-listed author Roser Vento Tormo: h-index 41 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 3 / 3 | Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique: institution h-index 2,511 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 3 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 12 institution(s) in 2 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 35794482) |
| Free to read | 2 / 2 | Free to read |
| Total | 62 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
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Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record's author list ends in “et al.”, so not every author is named. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Garcia-Alonso, L., Lorenzi, V., Mazzeo, C. I., Alves-Lopes, J. P., Roberts, K., Sancho-Serra, C., et al. (2022). Single-cell roadmap of human gonadal development. Nature. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-022-04918-4
Vancouver
Garcia-Alonso L, Lorenzi V, Mazzeo CI, Alves-Lopes JP, Roberts K, Sancho-Serra C, et al. Single-cell roadmap of human gonadal development. Nature. 2022. doi:10.1038/s41586-022-04918-4. PMID: 35794482.
BibTeX
@article{garciaalonso2022-35794482,
author = {Garcia-Alonso, L. and Lorenzi, V. and Mazzeo, C. I. and Alves-Lopes, J. P. and Roberts, K. and Sancho-Serra, C. and Engelbert, J. and Marečková, M. and others},
title = {{Single-cell roadmap of human gonadal development}},
journal = {Nature},
year = {2022},
doi = {10.1038/s41586-022-04918-4},
pmid = {35794482},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-022-04918-4}
}
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