Temporal fluctuations in zinc concentration are essential signals, including during oogenesis and early embryogenesis. In mammals, zinc accumulation and release are required for oocyte maturation and egg activation, respectively. Here, we demonstrate that zinc flux occurs in Drosophila oocytes and activated eggs, and that zinc is required for female fertility. Our synchrotron-based X-ray fluorescence microscopy reveals zinc as the most abundant transition metal in Drosophila oocytes. Its levels increase during oocyte maturation, accompanied by the appearance of zinc-enriched intracellular granules in the oocyte, which depend on transporters. Subsequently, in egg activation, which mediates the transition from oocyte to embryo, oocyte zinc levels decrease significantly, as does the number of zinc-enriched granules. This pattern of zinc dynamics in Drosophila oocytes follows a similar trajectory to that in mammals, extending the parallels in female gamete processes between Drosophila and mammals and establishing Drosophila as a model for dissecting reproductive roles of zinc.

锌浓度的时间波动是重要信号，包括在卵子发生和早期胚胎发生期间。在哺乳动物中，锌的积累和释放分别是卵母细胞成熟和卵子激活所必需的。在这里，我们证明果蝇卵母细胞和活化的卵中存在锌通量，并且锌是雌性生育能力所必需的。我们基于同步加速器的 X 射线荧光显微镜显示，锌是果蝇卵母细胞中最丰富的过渡金属。它的水平在卵母细胞成熟过程中增加，伴随着卵母细胞中富锌细胞内颗粒的出现，这依赖于转运蛋白。随后，在介导从卵母细胞到胚胎的转变的卵子激活过程中，卵母细胞的锌水平显着下降，富锌颗粒的数量也显着下降。果蝇卵母细胞中锌的动态模式遵循与哺乳动物相似的轨迹，扩展了果蝇和哺乳动物之间雌配子过程的相似性，并将果蝇建立为剖析锌的生殖作用的模型。