Modulation of protein function is used to intervene in cellular processes but is often done
indirectly by means of introducing DNA or mRNA encoding the effector protein. Thus far, direct …

Egg and sperm cells (gametes) of the mouse are derived from a founder population of
primordial germ cells that are set aside early in embryogenesis. Primordial germ cells arise from …

The transcription factor Sox2 maintains the pluripotency of early embryonic cells and regulates
the formation of several epithelia during fetal development. Whether Sox2 continues to …

It is becoming increasingly clear that the shape of the genome importantly influences transcription
regulation. Pluripotent stem cells such as embryonic stem cells were recently shown to …

The blastocyst (the early mammalian embryo) forms all embryonic and extra-embryonic
tissues, including the placenta. It consists of a spherical thin-walled layer, known as the …

Speciation is associated with substantial rewiring of the regulatory circuitry underlying the
expression of genes. Determining which changes are relevant and underlie the emergence of …

At the blastocyst stage of mammalian pre-implantation development, three distinct cell lineages
have formed: trophectoderm, hypoblast (primitive endoderm) and epiblast. The inability …

Clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats-associated protein 9 (CRISPR–Cas)-mediated
genome editing has revolutionized biomedical research and will likely change …

Murine pluripotent stem cells can exist in two functionally distinct states, LIF-dependent
embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and bFGF-dependent epiblast stem cells (EpiSCs). However, …

Pluripotent stem cell lines can be derived from blastocyst embryos, which yield embryonic
stem cell lines (ES cells), as well as the postimplantation epiblast, which gives rise to epiblast …