Abstract: Mammalian life starts from zygote, which the oocyte is fertilized by the sperm. Subsequentmaternal-to-zygotic transition(MZT)is a crucial process in preimplantation embryo development.Pioneer transcription factors play a crucial role in the establishment of chromatin accessibility and zygotic genome activation initiation in early embryos through binding to specific sequences of target genes. However, the regulatory networks of pioneer transcription factor in human embryos remain unclear. Using the model of human embryonic stem cells, it has been found DUX4(double homeobox 4, DUX4) protein is the pivotal initiating factor for zygotic genome activation.The progress of human DUX4 in cell models and early embryo genome activation was summarized. Understanding the mechanism of zygotic genome activation in human preimplantation embryos may be helpful to optimize the in vitro culture system and to increase the success rate of assisted reproduction.

Key words: human embryos, preimplantation embryo development, zygotic genome activation, pioneer transcription factor, DUX4