Maternal factors in fish oogenesis and embryonic development

Maternal factors are essential for early animal development, including fish species. The teleost fish Danio rerio, commonly known as zebrafish, has become a valuable model system to study fish (and vertebrate) biological processes due to its potential to combine genetic, embryological and molecular methods. This chapter attempts to summarize current knowledge on the role of maternal factors in this organism, although studies on the subject carried out in other fish species, when available, are also included.