Retinoic acid metabolism links the periodical differentiation of germ cells with the cycle of Sertoli cells in mouse seminiferous epithelium

► Undifferentiated spermatogonia differentiate periodically in mouse seminiferous tubules. ► Meiotic and haploid germ cells regulate the local retinoic acid (RA) metabolism. ► The increased RA triggers the differentiation of undifferentiated spermatogonia. ► RA also resets the functional cycle of somatic Sertoli cells. ► Thus, RA metabolism links the germ cell differentiation and Sertoli cell cycle.