Fig 3. Smad4 signaling is required for the expression of genes involved in follicular formation.

(A) Expression levels of the indicated genes were compared by RT-qPCR in E14.5 control and Smad4 (Stella) ovaries (n = 6), and the expression levels of the indicated genes were normalized to that of mouse vasa homolog (Mvh). Expression level of genes in one of the control ovaries was set as 1. Significance was assessed by the Student’s t test. (B,C) Representative images of E17.5 Smad4 (Stella) and control ovarian tissue sections stained for NOBOX and TRA98 (B), and FOXO3A and TRA98 (C) are shown. The quantitative data are shown below (n = 3). Significance was assessed by the Student’s t test. Underlying data is available in S1 Data. Scale bars: 50 μm.