Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Karolina Punovuori, Mattias Malaguti, Sally Lowell
Summary: During early neural development, changes in signalling and transcription factor expression, as well as alterations in adhesion molecule expression, play crucial roles in defining cell identity and morphology. Cadherins, which can influence both morphogenesis and signalling, may help coordinate cell fate decisions between neighbouring cells to ensure patterning fidelity.
CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR LIFE SCIENCES
(2021)
Review
Cell Biology
Sara Mercurio, Linda Serra, Miriam Pagin, Silvia K. Nicolis
Summary: This article reviews the diverse phenotypes resulting from conditional Sox2 knockout in different regions of the developing and postnatal brain in mice. It is found that despite the widespread expression of Sox2 in neural stem/progenitor cells, some regions (such as the hippocampus and ventral forebrain) are more vulnerable to Sox2 deletion. The stage of Sox2 deletion also plays a critical role in the resulting defects, indicating a stage-specificity of SOX2 function.
Article
Cell Biology
Galym Ismagulov, Sofiane Hamidi, Guojun Sheng
Summary: During mammalian embryo development, cellular morphogenesis resembling EMT and MET transitions play a crucial role in shaping the three-dimensional structure. The integration of pluripotency regulation, morphogenetic signaling, and biomechanical force anisotropy drives the organization of the embryonic 3-D structure. Investigating the molecular regulation of epithelial cell polarity and partial EMT/MET is important for understanding mammalian early development.
FRONTIERS IN CELL AND DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2021)
Review
Immunology
Thomas Baranek, Carolina de Amat Herbozo, Thierry Mallevaey, Christophe Paget
Summary: Invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells are important biomarkers and targets for immunotherapy. Recent studies have revealed the heterogeneity of iNKT cells and challenged our understanding of their development and differentiation. A new model is proposed to explain the classification and differentiation of iNKT cells.
TRENDS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Yanhe Li, Caihong Zheng, Yingdong Liu, Jincan He, Qiang Zhang, Yalin Zhang, Xiaochen Kou, Yanhong Zhao, Kuisheng Liu, Dandan Bai, Yanping Jia, Xiaoxiao Han, Yifan Sheng, Jiqing Yin, Hong Wang, Shuai Gao, Wenqiang Liu, Shaorong Gao
Summary: Somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) can reprogram differentiated somatic cells into totipotency, but most SCNT blastocysts are arrested at the peri-implantation stage. In this study, a 3D in vitro culture system for SCNT peri-implantation embryos was developed, and it was found that persistent Wnt signals blocked the pluripotency transition of epiblasts, leading to defects in epiblast transformation events and implantation failure. Manipulating Wnt signals improved the cloning efficiency and enhanced the lineage developmental trajectories of SCNT blastocysts during peri-implantation development.
NATIONAL SCIENCE REVIEW
(2023)
Review
Clinical Neurology
Margherita Bertuccelli, Karen Verheyen, Ann Hallemans, Josemir W. Sander, Francesca Ragona, Patrizia Bisiacchi, Stefano Masiero, Alessandra Del Felice
Summary: Dravet syndrome is a rare severe epilepsy syndrome that affects cognitive functions and behaviors in affected individuals. Research has shown impairments in various cognitive functions such as visuospatial abilities, sensorimotor integration, and expressive language, as well as behavioral abnormalities including autistic-like traits and attention disorders. The need for a unified theoretical framework to better understand and address the cognitive and behavioral profiles in Dravet syndrome is highlighted.
Review
Cell Biology
Vera Garcia-Outeiral, Cristina de la Parte, Miguel Fidalgo, Diana Guallar
Summary: TET2 plays a crucial role in cell fate outcomes by catalyzing demethylation on DNA and potentially through RNA hydroxymethylation. It influences transcriptional regulation, normal development, and pluripotency contexts, showcasing its versatility in genome regulation and cellular phenotypes.
FRONTIERS IN CELL AND DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2021)
Review
Environmental Sciences
Maria Seton, Simon E. E. Williams, Mathew Domeier, Alan S. S. Collins, Karin Sigloch
Summary: The development of advanced plate tectonic reconstruction software has greatly increased its generation and use in the Earth science community. This Technical Review provides a guide for quantitative plate reconstructions and their applications. While plate reconstructions allow scientists to investigate Earth evolution, their limitations and simplification of reality should be considered.
NATURE REVIEWS EARTH & ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Review
Microbiology
Nora Lopez, Gabriela Camporeale, Mariano Salgueiro, Silvia Susana Borkosky, Araceli Visentin, Ramon Peralta-Martinez, Maria Eugenia Loureiro, Gonzalo de Prat-Gay
Summary: Viruses have evolved precise mechanisms to utilize cellular pathways for replication, forming liquid-like viral factories (VFs) through a biomolecular condensation process. During infection, a positive feedback cycle leads to an increase in transcription and translation within VFs. Understanding viral biomolecular condensation may lead to novel therapeutics and provide insights into cellular gene regulation through phase separation.
Article
Business, Finance
Emlyn Flint, Daniel Polakow
Summary: The Gerber Statistic is a conditional co-movement measure that differs from full-sample measures due to conditioning bias. This study uses a two-asset simulation framework to analyze the statistical behavior of the Gerber Statistic and explores its performance across various factors. The findings highlight the limitations and caveats of using the Gerber Statistic as a conditional dependence metric.
FINANCE RESEARCH LETTERS
(2023)
Review
Plant Sciences
Willian G. Viana, Johannes D. Scharwies, Jose R. Dinneny
Summary: Well-adapted root systems are crucial for plant growth and agricultural productivity. Staple crops like rice and maize have complex root systems, with the embryonic root system playing a key role in early seedling establishment and the nodal root system becoming more significant as the plant matures.
PLANT CELL AND ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Review
Cell Biology
Sruthy Manuraj Rajam, Pallavi Chinnu Varghese, Debasree Dutta
Summary: The dynamicity and flexibility of the chromatin landscape are crucial for DNA-dependent processes. Histone chaperones control the accessibility of chromatin by escorting nucleosomal and non-nucleosomal histones, and they play a role in various aspects of histone metabolism. The selectivity and specificity of histone chaperones determine the state of chromatin. This review emphasizes the functional implication of the network of histone chaperones in shaping chromatin function during organism development.
FRONTIERS IN CELL AND DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Cell & Tissue Engineering
Simon Suppinger, Marietta Zinner, Nadim Aizarani, Ilya Lukonin, Raphael Ortiz, Chiara Azzi, Michael B. Stadler, Stefano Vianello, Giovanni Palla, Hubertus Kohler, Alexandre Mayran, Matthias P. Lutolf, Prisca Liberali
Summary: In this study, gastruloids were generated from pluripotent stem cells and single-cell genomic analysis was used to map cell states and types during their development. The researchers also identified an early spatial variability in pluripotency that determined the response to Wnt activation. A compound screen was performed on thousands of gastruloids to derive a phenotypic landscape and infer genetic interactions. This study provides important insights into the development and generation of complex patterns in gastruloids.
Article
Astronomy & Astrophysics
Herbert Neuberger
Summary: In the UY reconfined phase on a lattice, the thermal trace transforms over all SU(N)/Z(N) irreducible representations instead of only SU(N) singlets in the standard formulation. As N tends to infinity on a finite lattice, the usual Hilbert space becomes orthogonal to the deformed one. Concerns are raised about the extended UY proposal for large N Eguchi-Kawai reduction.
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Filomena Amoroso, Eduardo Ibello, Federica Saracino, Federica Cermola, Giovanna Ponticelli, Enrica Scalera, Francesca Ricci, Gino Villetti, Gilda Cobellis, Gabriella Minchiotti, Eduardo Jorge Patriarca, Dario De Cesare, Cristina D'Aniello
Summary: Small molecules that can modulate or stabilize cell-cell interactions are valuable tools for investigating the impact of collective cell behavior on various biological processes. Budesonide, an anti-asthmatic drug, has been shown to be a potent regulator of stem cell pluripotency. In this study, a derivative of budesonide called CHD-030498 was identified as a more effective analogue that can prevent stem cell pluripotency exit in different cell-based models at lower doses compared to budesonide.