DNA synthesis studies in pre-meiotic mouse oogenesis.

DNA fiber autoradiography was used in mouse oogenesis to test Callan's hypothesis that a longer S phase results from a reduction in the number of active initiation sites. The data indicated that the premeiotic increase in the duration of S phase in mouse oogenesis was characterized by a rapid initial rate of chain growth and a larger replicon size when compared with replicating DNA of somatic mouse cells. These findings were at variance with those in mouse spermatogenesis and also did not support the Callan hypothesis of activation site repression.