This book explores sexual reproduction through the unifying perspectives of chromosome organization, chromatin regulation, and nuclear dynamics. Across vertebrates, fundamental reproductive processes such as germ cell specification, sex determination, meiosis, fertilization, and early embryogenesis are accompanied by highly coordinated changes in nuclear architecture. Although these processes have often been studied within separate research fields, this volume highlights their shared conceptual foundations and mechanistic connections.

Bringing together contributions from leading experts across disciplines, the book demonstrates how chromosome behavior and chromatin regulation provide a common framework for understanding reproductive development. Chapters cover a broad range of topics, including higher-order chromatin organization in germ cells, genome stability in the germ line, epigenetic regulation of sex determination, meiotic chromosome dynamics, chromosome segregation in oocytes, and chromatin regulation during early embryogenesis.

By integrating molecular mechanisms with large-scale nuclear organization, this volume offers a cohesive view of how nuclear events shape cell fate, developmental transitions, and reproductive success. It will be of interest to researchers and advanced students in reproductive biology, chromosome and chromatin biology, developmental biology, and epigenetics.

Kei-ichiro Ishiguro is Professor at the Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba University, Japan, where he works in the Department of Biomedical Science. His research focuses on the molecular mechanisms that regulate germ cell development and meiosis, with particular emphasis on chromosome dynamics, cohesin function, and transcriptional control during reproductive development. He has contributed to the understanding of meiotic initiation, chromosome organization, and genome regulation in mammalian germ cells. Through his work, he aims to clarify how chromatin and nuclear architecture govern developmental transitions in the germ line. His broader academic interests include reproductive biology, chromosome biology, and epigenetic regulation.