Differentiation articles from across Nature Portfolio

Cell fate choices, including developmental cell death, are often driven by asymmetric cell division, though what determinants drive these choices remain unclear. Here they show that the evolutionarily conserved CMG complex, best known for its role in unwinding DNA during chromosome replication, is also required for cell fate divergence during asymmetric cell divisions in C. elegans development.

Understanding gene expression patterns that underlie developmental programs can inform engineering efforts for new or optimized forms. Here, the authors engineer a four-state history-dependent integrase-based recorder of gene expression in Arabidopsis and show its application in two developmental programs.

Genome-wide analysis of miRNA co-expression and co-targeting networks at distinct developmental stages sheds light into the regulatory role of miRNAs in shaping the development of the embryonic cerebral cortex.

The role of androgen signalling in avian sexual development is still unclear. This study generated androgen receptor knockout chickens and find that, despite developing typical gonads, the males and females are infertile and many sexual ornaments and behaviors remain underdeveloped in both sexes.

The endocardium is activated immediately after injury and promotes cardiac muscle regeneration by producing growth factors. Research now shows that innate immune signaling is crucial for the regenerative function of the endocardium.

Motivated by a CRISPR screen, in vitro and in vivo studies identified an essential role for the bromodomain and extraterminal domain (BET) family member BRD4 in the differentiation of second heart field progenitors into cardiomyocytes. Single-cell transcriptomic studies showed that BRD4 deficiency affects a specific subset of cardiac progenitor cells.

sc-SPORT offers a way to probe RNA structure at the single-cell level. It reveals cell-to-cell heterogeneity in RNA folding.

β-adrenergic signalling induces thermogenesis in mature brown adipocytes through a well-known cAMP–protein kinase A (PKA) pathway and also promotes the growth and differentiation of new thermogenic adipocytes. A study now demonstrates that β-adrenergic agonists drive this pathway through a PKA-independent mechanism involving cAMP–EPAC1.