Molecular Biology & EvolutionSong et al. discover and characterize three co-opted/captured ERV envelope gene clades, revealing that each plays a distinct and critical role in neural regulation, reproductive maturation, and viviparity in vertebrates.
Sally LowellI love the cover of the latest issue of Development @Co_Biologists
As Alex Eve posted over on Bluesky: "the latest cover helps to remind us that Development is not just a faceless brand of a journal eager to line shareholder pockets - it's a group of people who share a love for #devbio and, in my experience, really are trying to do their best for their community."
Xenbase25 years of Xenbase. https://www.xenbase.org/xenbase/doNewsRead.do?id=1042 #science #devbio #xenopus #frogs
NXR Bioinformatics Workshop: April 18-26, 2026. The workshop format will be a wet-dry-hybrid exercise, specifically emphasizing single-cell analysis. https://www.xenbase.org/xenbase/doNewsRead.do?id=1041 #science #devbio #xenopus #frogs
Daniel MacPhee 🔬🧬🧫🇨🇦And the open access article in Genes and Development
#Science #DevBio #EmbryonicDiapause #Reproduction
https://genesdev.cshlp.org/content/early/2025/12/11/gad.353143.125.abstract
#Science #DevBio #EmbryonicDiapause #Reproduction
https://genesdev.cshlp.org/content/early/2025/12/11/gad.353143.125.abstract
“cells switched on a set of genes that act as natural brakes on the MAP kinase pathway, which normally pushes stem cells to commit to specific fates. When the researchers turned off these "brakes," the cells quickly lost their pluripotency and began showing signs of becoming specialized cell types, confirming that this braking system is essential for maintaining the diapause-like state.”
#EmbryonicDiapause #Science #DevBio
https://www.rockefeller.edu/news/38808-some-mammals-can-hit-pause-on-a-pregnancy-understanding-how-that-happens-could-help-us-treat-cancer/
#EmbryonicDiapause #Science #DevBio
https://www.rockefeller.edu/news/38808-some-mammals-can-hit-pause-on-a-pregnancy-understanding-how-that-happens-could-help-us-treat-cancer/
Some mammals can hit pause on a pregnancy. Understanding how that happens could help us treat cancer. - News
Seals give birth only when conditions are right. After mating, a female seal can delay implantation of the embryo in the uterine wall—pausing pregnancy until she senses that her fat reserves are aligned with the season. This strategy, known as embryonic diapause, is practiced by hundreds of mammals, from mice to moose. But how does […]
“present an extensive single-cell and spatial multi-omic atlas of the human reproductive tract during prenatal development”
Very nice.
#Science #Development #DevBio #ReproductiveTract #ReproSky
Spatiotemporal cellular map of the developing human reproductive tract - Nature
A detailed spatiotemporal roadmap of the human female and male reproductive tracts during key periods of sexual differentiation provides new cellular and molecular insights into how early axial gradients lead to specific cell lineages and tissue structures.
Drs. Halley-Stott, Hörmanseder, Jullien, and Pasque wrote a perspective on Sir John Gurdon about his mentorship and impact. Published in Nature Communications. https://www.xenbase.org/xenbase/doNewsRead.do?id=1040 #science #devbio #xenopus #frogs
Hello, here is a review I wrote about how cells sometimes try to synchronise with surrounding cells so that they can do a good job of building tissues during development. It is called "Keeping up with the neighbours"
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1038/s44319-025-00662-8
Keeping up with the neighbours: local synchronisation of cell fate decisions during development - EMBO Reports
Even before the advent of multicellular life, unicellular creatures would communicate with their neighbours to coordinate their behaviours. Multicellular organisms have the particular challenge of orchestrating the differentiation of stem and progenitor cells to generate and maintain coherent functional tissues. However, stem and progenitor cells face a problem: their differentiation response can be buffeted by oscillations or stochastic fluctuations in intrinsic regulators. This generates cell-to-cell variability, which can be further compounded when extrinsic cues don’t provide clear unambiguous instructions. So, left to their own devices, cells may differentiate at different rates or different directions even in response to the same cues. Fortunately, cells in multicellular organisms are not left to their own devices: they continually sense and respond to the behaviours of their neighbours. Here I discuss when, where, and how stem and progenitor cells communicate to synchronise their response to differentiation cues. I highlight technical challenges in identifying such synchronisation mechanisms, and survey emerging technologies that may help overcome these challenges.
@Co_BiologistsApply for Development's Pathway to Independence (PI) programme, supporting postdocs in #devbio and #stemcell research during the transition to their first group leader position: https://www.biologists.com/grants/development-pathway-independence
Application deadline: 2 February 2026.
