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Transcriptional regulation of neural and immune development

Transcriptional regulation of neural and immune development

DEPARTMENT

Functional genomics and cancer

TEAM LEADER

Angela GIANGRANDE

A major challenge in developmental biology is to understand how cell diversity is generated and how cells interact to build the sophisticated metazoan architecture. In humans, defects in such events lead to severe pathologies, from mental retardation to cancer. Evolutionary conservation, sophisticated genetics and simple organization make the fly an ideal tool to study these events in vivo and in vitro, at cellular resolution. The nervous system constitutes one of the most complex tissues, made of neurons and glia of different types. These cells arise from multipotent precursors or stem cells. The analysis of the signals controlling stem cell differentiation and reprogramming has recently drawn much attention, due to potential medical applications. Our goal is to study the molecular and the epigenetic events controlling cell differentiation and reprogramming. During development, many cells move as cohorts to attain their final destination and shape both tissues and organs. Distinct homeostatic cell interactions control directionality, coordination and integrity of the migratory unit. This dynamic event can hardly be tackled in vivo in large animals. We have developed a simple model to analyze the cellular and molecular features of this collective behavior.

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News

Drosophila uncovers a novel transcriptional cascade that combats inflammation and is conserved in evolution

In a study published in the journal Cell Reports, IGBMC scientists discover an evolutionarily conserved anti-inflammatory transcriptional cascade from…

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