The type of cytoplasmic male-sterility, cytoplasmic male-sterility related mitochondrial factors, and nuclear restored gene-regulated mitochondrial factors in higher plants are reviewed in this paper. Based on gene regulation network for cytoplasmic male-sterility occurrence, we discussed and hypothesized that the interactions between nucleus and mitochondria determine cytoplasmic male-sterility occurrence modulated by mitochondrial retrograde regulation through possible mitochondrial retrograde signaling.