Effect of c-Maf mutation on Mafb-GFP-positive FACS-purified cells in the E12.5 mouse gonad

Morphogenesis of the gonad requires cell-cell adhesion changes between diverse cell types. In the Drosophila gonad, the gene traffic jam regulates cell adhesion changes required for gonad formation and germ cell development (Li et al., 2003. Nature Cell Biol). To determine if the mammalian homologs of traffic jam in mammals, c-Maf and Mafb, also play a role in the transcription regulation of cell adhesion molecules in the mouse gonad, we performed a microarray analysis of FACS-purified Mafb-GFP-positive cells in E12.5 male control and c-Maf/Mafb mutant gonads. We used microarrays to determine genes affected by c-Maf mutation in E12.5 mouse gonad/mesonephros interstitial cells and macrophages E12.5 XY control (c-Maf+/-;Mafb-GFP+/-) and c-mutant (c-Maf-/-;Mafb-GFP+/-) gonad/interstitial interstitial cells and macrophages were obtained by FACS sorting of Mafb-GFP-positive cells. RNA was extracted for subsequent hybridization on Affymetrix microarrays.