Dynamics of PAR proteins explain the oscillation and ratcheting mechanisms in dorsal closure by Durney et al.
Oscillations lead to commitment and union: modelling of PAR proteins and myosin recapitulates different dynamic features of dorsal closure in Drosophila
Selected by Yara E. Sanchez and Arnaud Monnard. Read the preLight here
The Histone H3-H4 Tetramer is a Copper Reductase Enzyme by Attar et al.
New study finds an unprecedented, but ancient, role for histones as enzymes. The histone H3-H4 tetramer is a copper reductase that may have facilitated the emergence of eukaryotes.
Selected by Lauren Neves. Read the preLight here
Maternal pluripotency factors prime the zygotic genome to respond to intercellular signals by Gentsch et al.
The pioneers of pluripotency: Sox3/Pou5f3 unlock the chromatin for Xenopus ZGA.
Selected by Claire Simon and Sophie Morgani. Read the preLight here
Nuclear pore density controls heterochromatin reorganization during senescence by Bickmore et al.
Lessons on chromatin architecture from senescent cells: Nuclear pore complex density drives internal heterochromatic focus formation.
Selected by Carmen Adriaens. Read the preLight here
The Ly6/uPAR protein Bouncer is necessary and sufficient for species-specific fertilization by Herberg et al.
Stranger danger: A small protein (Bouncer) guards the door at the fertilization club.
Selected by James Gagnon. Read the preLight here
The genomic basis of colour pattern polymorphism in the harlequin ladybird by Gautier et al.
How do ladybirds get their spots? A new study uses modern genomics to solve an old puzzle.
Selected by Fillip Port. Read the preLight here
An atlas of the aging lung mapped by single cell transcriptomics and deep tissue proteomics by Angelidis et al.
Ageing at single cell resolution: a combined single cell transcriptomic and bulk proteomic map of the mouse lung reveals epigenetic dysregulation and cell type-specific effects of ageing.
Timed collinear activation of Hox genes during gastrulation controls the avian forelimb position by Moreau et al.
Positioning of the limb field was long suspected to be dependent on Hox activity. Moreau et al. show for the first time that in avian species limb field positioning is dependent on Hox collinear activation during early gastrulation.
Selected by Wouter Masselink. Read the preLight here
An intrinsic cell cycle timer terminates limb bud outgrowth by Pickering et al.
How is the final size of a limb determined? Pickering et al. discover that chick limb buds have an intrinsic BMP signaling-dependent cell cycle regulator which slows down cell proliferation rates to restrict the size of the embryonic limb.
Selected by Ashrifia Adomako-Ankomah. Read the preLight here
TORC1 modulation in adipose tissue is required for organismal adaptation to hypoxia in Drosophila. by Lee et al.
Hypoxia is deadly to some organisms but well-tolerated by others. New preprint sheds light on how Drosophila larvae are able to survive in low oxygen.
Selected by Sarah Bowling. Read the preLight here
Widespread inter-individual gene expression variability in Arabidopsis thaliana by Cortijo et al.
What is the level of transcriptional noise among genetically identical individuals? In Arabidopsis, more than 1,300 genes are particularly noisy – a trait associated with gene length, transcription factor binding and the chromatin environment.
Selected by Martin Balcerowicz. Read the preLight here
Functional testing of a human PBX3 variant in zebrafish reveals a potential modifier role in congenital heart defects by Farr III et al.
Using zebrafish to model the effects of candidate disease gene variants in complex human genetic disorders.
Selected by Hannah Brunsdon. Read the preLight here
WNT signaling memory is required for ACTIVIN to function as a morphogen in human gastruloids by Yoney et al.
How can the same signalling pathway drive both pluripotency and differentiated state during development? A new study uses human gastruloids to unravel the pleiotropic nature of Activin signalling pathway.
Selected by Sundar Naganathan. Read the preLight here
A novel mechanism of gland formation in zebrafish involving transdifferentiation of renal epithelial cells and live cell extrusion by Naylor et al.
A change of identity drives organogenesis: a rare event of transdifferentiation in zebrafish.
Selected by Giuliana Clemente. Read the preLight here
Human macrophages survive and adopt activated genotypes in living zebrafish by Paul et al.
Establishment of a simplified physiological model system to investigate human immunity-metastasis crosstalk.
Selected by Giuliana Clemente. Read the preLight here
A robust method for transfection in choanoflagellates illuminates their cell biology and the ancestry of animal septins by Booth et al.
The development of transfection technologies in choanoflagellates sheds light on ancestral cell scaffolding machinery.
Selected by Maya Emmons-Bell. Read the preLight here
Fbxw7 is a critical regulator of Schwann cell myelinating potential by Harty et al.
What prevents Schwann cells from having relationships with multiple axons? A new study suggests that an E3 ubiquitin ligase might be the gatekeeper.
Selected by Yen-Chung Chen. Read the preLight here
Super-Mendelian inheritance mediated by CRISPR/Cas9 in the female mouse germline by Grunwald et al.
A CRISPR-mediated Selfish Gene? Grunwald and colleagues design a “CopyCat” element that drives its own inheritance in the female mouse germline.
Selected by Rebekah Tillotson. Read the preLight here
SWI/SNF remains localized to chromatin in the presence of SCHLAP1 by Raab et al.
A powerful call for reproduction studies: overexpression of a prostate cancer specific non-coding RNA does not function by depletion of SWI/SNF from chromatin to increase invasiveness.
Selected by Carmen Adriaens. Read the preLight here
Meet the preLighters: an interview with Erik Clark
Erik Clark, who is a postdoctoral researcher in the lab of Michael Akam at the University of Cambridge discusses his evo-devo research, his experience with preprints and preLights.
Read the interview here
Visit The Node to see the latest monthly round-up of preprints in the developmental biology field.
