Issues

Summary: In this Editorial, we discuss the results of a recent community survey on the current state and future directions of the journal.

Summary: This Review presents the latest advances in our understanding of stem cell aging in multiple tissues, and discusses their implications for lifespan, disease and potential therapies.

Highlighted article: The generation of a stable human intermediately reprogrammed stem cell line reveals differences in the mechanisms of reprogramming between mouse and human.

Summary: Following injection of mouse embryonic stem cells into host embryos, there is preferential and rapid elimination of unwanted differentiating cells by apoptosis.

Summary: Basal localisation of Miranda, essential for asymmetric neuroblast division in Drosophila, is regulated during mitosis via a two-step process involving PTPA/PP4 and aPKC.

Summary: Radial glia in the larval zebrafish hypothalamus exhibit stem cell-like properties. Their self-renewal is Wnt independent, although Wnt signalling does regulate their differentiation.

Highlighted article: Mouse lung alveolar type 1 cells form expansive thin cellular extensions via a non-proliferative two-step process, while retaining cellular plasticity.

Highlighted article: In the developing chick pallium, a basal progenitor population resembles mammalian cortical basal radial glia, suggesting a more ancient evolutionary origin for this cell type.

Highlighted article: A precise balance of matrix metalloproteinase activity at the Drosophila neuromuscular junction is required to regulate trans-synaptic Wingless signalling.

Summary: Neural crest-derived fibronectin signals through integrin α5β1 to regulate Notch activity and differentiation of neural crest cells into vascular smooth muscle.

Summary: Mouse Pdx1 depletion in the pancreas leads to aberrant cell shape, impaired ductal tubulogenesis and loss of the epithelial multipotent progenitor cell population.

Summary: Early embryonic heart muscle differentiates in phases from two progenitor populations. AP-1 promotes the progenitor-to-cardiomyocyte transition specifically during the second phase.

Summary: In the zebrafish olfactory system, Sema3D-mediated repulsion and Netrin-mediated attraction act in parallel to direct a specific subset of sensory axons to their initial targets.

Summary: Mouse Pals1 mutants show defects in cerebellar organogenesis, with disrupted laminar organisation and impaired proliferation of cerebellar progenitors.

Summary: A zebrafish screen identifies reck as a key modulator of Wnt signaling required in the brain endothelium for intracerebral vascularisation and proper expression of barriergenesis markers.

Summary: During C. elegans embryonic elongation, microtubules nucleate at adjerens junctions and hemidesmosomes, and are important for the transport of junctional proteins.

Summary: A quantitative dual-colour reporter system can be used to measure protein turnover, signalling activity and gene expression kinetics in living zebrafish embryos.