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Yu-Chiun Wang

@yuchiunwang.bsky.social
250 followers 295 following 45 posts

Developmental biology fascinated about the many (sur)faces/phases of epithelial morphogenesis: from mechanics to evolution. www.bdr.riken.jp/en/research/labs/w…

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Reposted by Yu-Chiun Wang
Fumiaki Obata @obataf-lab.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Our new study just out @nature.com Together with Koshi Imami @RIKEN IMS, Hina Kosakamoto found out the key molecule mediating lifespan extension by early life dietary restriction! www.nature.com/articles/s41...
nature.com
Lsp2 links early-life diet to adult translation and lifespan in Drosophila - Nature
Isotope tracing is used to determine the fate of larval dietary amino acids in adult flies, and identifies Lsp2 as a key regulator of translation and lifespan that forms the molecular basis of the eff...
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Floris BOSVELD @florisbosveld.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Join us for the symposium Morphogenesis: Where Form Takes Shape Oct. 27-28 Institute Curie Paris Free attendance, but registration is required. Short talks and posters will be selected from submitted abstracts. Abstract submission deadline: Oct. 10, 2026.
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Yu-Chiun Wang @yuchiunwang.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Congrats! Honored and excited to be call neighbors of your Kobe group. Looking forward to interacting with those who will come to occupy the rooms next door.
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myosinactncrazy.bsky.social @myosinactncrazy.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
Actin and myosin dynamics during epithelial remodeling in avian gastrulation journals.biologists.com/dev/article-...
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The EMBO Journal @embojournal.org · 07/09/2026
Dynamic control of cell state transitions during tissue morphogenesis Elias Barriga et al @eliasbarrigalab.bsky.social review how gene expression, chromatin modifications & microenvironmental biophysical factors contribute to robust coordination of morphogenesis link.springer.com/article/10.1...
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eLife @elife.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
This study addresses a 'fundamental' question about the establishment of Polycomb domains during Drosophila embryogenesis. The 'compelling' findings advance our understanding of how Polycomb domains are established during early embryogenesis. elifesciences.org/articles/108...
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Thibaut Brunet @thibautbrunet.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
🚨 New preprint alert! 🚨 Choanoflagellates reorganize their global cytoskeletal architecture within seconds to explore confined microspaces. This is the main PhD work of the amazing @maitefreired.bsky.social www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... A tread 🧵⬇️
biorxiv.org
Rapid repurposing of microvillar content drives a flagellate-to-amoeboid switch in the closest relative of animals
Animal cells extensively remodel their cytoskeleton during differentiation and can notably switch between two major motility modes: flagellum-based swimming and actin-based crawling. We previously sho...
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Laura Bianchi @laurafbianchi.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
Ever wondered how epithelial cells clear apoptotic cells while maintaining tissue cohesion?🍝🔗 Check our new paper in which we show that E-cadherin plays a dual role in regulating basal cortex dynamics upon phagocytosis while maintaining connected tissue organization www.nature.com/articles/s41...
nature.com
De novo E-cadherin/catenin complex formation controls basal epithelial mechanics and force transmission for apoptotic cell clearance - Nature Communications
Epithelial cells remodel their shape during phagocytosis while preserving tissue cohesion. Here, authors show that the E-cadherin/catenin adhesion complex is repurposed at phagocytic contacts, where i...
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Stefano Di Talia @ditalialab.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
We would like to add one or two postdocs to our lab in the next couple of years. If you are close to finishing your PhD and interested in the science we do, feel free to reach out to discuss opportunities.
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Stefano Di Talia @ditalialab.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
Happy to see Ashley's paper out @natphys.nature.com www.nature.com/articles/s41...
nature.com
Decaying and expanding Erk gradients process memory of skeletal size during zebrafish fin regeneration
Nature Physics - Zebrafish can regenerate amputated fins back to their original size. It is now shown that gradients in extracellular signal-regulated kinase activity act as rulers during fin bone...
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PLOS Biology @plosbiology.org · 21/08/2026
Erebosis is a non-apoptotic, non-autophagic & non-necrotic #CellDeath process in the #Drosophila gut. This study shows that a decrease in cytoplasmic heme is a critical step in initiating #enterocyte erebosis & coordinating cell proliferation @plosbiology.org 🧪 plos.io/4hFGl72
This image shows the Drosophila gut. Green indicates GFP, yellow indicates nuclear RFP, and magenta indicates phosphorylated Mad. Mad phosphorylation is reduced in GFP-negative erebotic cells compared with GFP-positive normal enterocytes. Image credit: Motohiro Morikawa.
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Noah Mitchell @npmitchell.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
Morphogenesis has a memory problem. A tissue must form reproducible shape while remaining robust to noise arising across scales. How does the target geometry survive? New work led by Nico Romeo, with @davidbruckner.bsky.social: arxiv.org/abs/2607.23907
arxiv.org
Growth and remodeling control shape memory in morphogenetic rods
Mechanical instabilities provide a general design principle for shaping developing organs and engineering soft materials. However, in slender structures, simple elastic buckling tends to erase rather ...
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Irene Miguel-Aliaga @irenemiguel-aliaga.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
Read about our latest work here www.cell.com/cell/fulltex... or let Alessandro tell you all about it (link below)!
cell.com
The sex and reproductive plasticity of intestinal muscles instruct gut size
Adult intestinal size plasticity is driven not only by epithelial stem cells but also by remodeling of the surrounding visceral musculature. Sex- and reproduction-dependent muscle remodeling controls ...
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David Green @greenbaron.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
Really excited to finally show off our work on the specification of neuroblasts. While it has been a long-standing model for lateral inhibition, we show that Notch does not select the NB, but instead reinforces fate decisions. www.cell.com/current-biol... @currentbiology.bsky.social
cell.com
Positional cues, not Notch, direct neuroblast selection during early neurogenesis in the Drosophila embryo
Using quantitative live imaging, Green et al. show that proneural gene expression is biased by positional cues and that Notch is activated only after neuroblast selection in the Drosophila embryo. Thi...
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latinxdb.bsky.social @latinxdb.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
✨ New LatinXDB interview! 🇧🇷 Meet Dr. Bruno Vellutini and learn about his passion for evo-devo, his research on mechanical forces during epithelial folding, and his commitment to science beyond the lab. Thanks, @bruvellu.bsky.social ! Read the full interview 👇 sites.google.com/view/latinxi...
sites.google.com
LatinxDB - Bruno Vellutini
Dr. Bruno Vellutini Federal University of Minas Gerais
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PLOS Biology @plosbiology.org · 10/08/2026
During #embryogenesis, anterior-posterior axis formation depends on #chromatin accessibility, but axis determinants are species-specific. This study reveals complex temporal patterns of chromatin accessibility during axis specification in the moth fly. 🧪 #AcademicSky #development plos.io/4hewogE
An image of a moth fly embryo with different patterning determinants creating a color gradient along the anterior-posterior axis.
Flies (Diptera) have evolved many kinds of anterior determinants to specify the primary body axis but so far only the mechanism of action of one, Bicoid, has been characterized in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster. Ezra Amiri, Muzi Li, Shelby Blythe, Urs Schmidt-Ott and co-workers find that the anterior determinant of the moth fly Clogmia albipunctata, which is encoded by the zic family member odd-paired, initiates anterior patterning by opening chromatin and activating transcription at Clogmia’s homeobrain (blue) and sloppy-paired (purple and yellow) loci.
Image credit: Maxwell Devine

The authors confirm that this image can be used under the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
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Ankita Jha @ankita13jha.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
😀
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Cell Biology J-Club @cellclub.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
Reconstitution of actomyosin networks in cell-sized liposomes dissects distinct mechanisms of membrane blebbing and symmetry breaking | Science Advances www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
science.org
Reconstitution of actomyosin networks in cell-sized liposomes dissects distinct mechanisms of membrane blebbing and symmetry breaking
Actin network organization dictates how and where membrane blebs form, revealed through reconstitution and simulations.
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Marina B. Cuenca @cuencam15.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
Sad to be saying goodbye to Drosophila, but excited to get this work out on bioRxiv! If you are interested in the interplay of tissue flows and cool ways to mess them up, this read is for you :) Thanks to colleagues and co-authors! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
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Robert Arkowitz @robertarkowitz.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
science.org
Reconstitution of actomyosin networks in cell-sized liposomes dissects distinct mechanisms of membrane blebbing and symmetry breaking
Actin network organization dictates how and where membrane blebs form, revealed through reconstitution and simulations.
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Yanlan Mao @yanlanmao.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
This epic paper, which has been a heroic 10 year journey for the lead author, Ricardo Barrientos, is finally out in Cell today! Many thanks to all co-authors, especially Billie Meadowcroft and Andela Saric for their beautiful MD simulations www.cell.com/cell/fulltex...
cell.com
Basement membrane turnover controls cell shape
Basement membranes are scaffolds of proteins, like collagen, that give organs shape. During development, basement membranes must adapt to the growing organ. We infer how fast the basement membrane ada...
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Joël Lemière @joellemiere.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
New preprint! How does a cell "know" how big to make its nucleus? This has puzzled biologists since the 1800’s. We show the answer is physics: colloid osmotic pressure. 🧵1/5
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Akankshi Munjal @akankshi.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
Excited to share our latest! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... This was a highly collaborative endeavor– the best way to do science. We asked how a developing tissue achieves the right shape despite all the variability along the way. Short answer: Hydrostatic pressure. Read on for the long answer!
3D-rendered confocal image of the embryonic zebrafish inner ear (otic vesicle) showing fluorescently labeled cell membranes. Three translumenal epithelial pillars span the lumen, partitioning it into the three semicircular canals (purple arrow: anterior canal; yellow arrow: posterior canal; white arrow: lateral canal)3D rendering of the segmented otic vesicle lumen at 3 days post-fertilization, showing the three connected fluid-filled compartments corresponding to the anterior, posterior, and lateral semicircular canals. The segmentation shows the characteristic geometry of the canals and the spaces partitioned by the transluminal epithelial pillars.
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Akankshi Munjal @akankshi.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
One of my favorite findings is that pressure canalizes geometric variability. Although pillars begin with substantial differences in shape, sustained pressure-driven inflation drives them toward a common, straight configuration, revealing a physical mechanism for developmental robustness.
Time-lapse sequence of confocal images showing remodeling of a single epithelial pillar in the embryonic zebrafish inner ear over 4 hours. The pillar boundaries are outlined in yellow, and the angle between the two pillar arms (white lines) is measured in each frame. As the otic vesicle lumen volume increases, the pillar progressively straightens, with its angle increasing from 143.1° to 175.2°, approaching a straight configuration. Corresponding otic vesicle lumen volumes (634–828 pL) are shown below each time point.
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myosinactncrazy.bsky.social @myosinactncrazy.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
www.cell.com/current-biol...
cell.com
CLASP-dependent microtubule stabilization generates microtubule-based protrusive forces during Drosophila epithelial morphogenesis
Sarkar et al. show that the CLASP protein Orbit stabilizes non-centrosomal microtubule plus ends in vivo, suppressing catastrophe and enabling persistent polymerization-based pushing forces. This stab...
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myosinactncrazy.bsky.social @myosinactncrazy.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
RhoGAP54D promotes cell size asymmetry and inhibits pulsatile myosin activity in Drosophila neural stem cells: Current Biology www.cell.com/current-biol...
cell.com
RhoGAP54D promotes cell size asymmetry and inhibits pulsatile myosin activity in Drosophila neural stem cells
Loyer et al. examine the subcellular localization of the actomyosin regulators RhoGAPs and RhoGEFs throughout the cell cycle of asymmetrically dividing Drosophila neural stem cells. They uncover a dua...
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Juan Manuel Gomez Elliff @gomezjm-devmech.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
📢 🎉Oral presentation at the International Mechanobiology Symposium in Glasgow: Wednesday, Alsh 2 room, 15:30. Come and learn how do epithelial cells mechanically adjust to dramatically stretch using Brillouin microscopy. #ISMB2026 #Mechanobiology #BrillouinMicroscopy #Cytoskeleton @embl.org
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Margherita Battistara @mbattistara.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
🪲🪰 Our preprint is out! This was a team effort with @wolframponisch.bsky.social, @matthewabenton.bsky.social and Ewa Paluch. We asked whether Drosophila and Tribolium use the same cell behaviours to fold their embryos during gastrulation. 🧵👇 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
biorxiv.org
Morphospace analysis reveals divergent cellular behaviours driving tissue internalisation during insect gastrulation
During gastrulation, embryonic epithelia undergo large-scale remodelling to internalise the mesoderm. Whether the cellular mechanisms underlying these tissue deformations are conserved across species ...
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myosinactncrazy.bsky.social @myosinactncrazy.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
Planar cell polarity-directed cell crawling drives polarized epithelial morphogenesis: Current Biology www.cell.com/current-biol...
cell.com
Planar cell polarity-directed cell crawling drives polarized epithelial morphogenesis
Sharan et al. investigate how planar cell polarity (PCP) directs counter-rotational cell flows during hair placode morphogenesis by coordinating cell crawling at the basal surface. 3D imaging and comp...
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Nicoletta Petridou @nicolettapetridou.bsky.social · 23/06/2026
Double preprint! 👇 Check out our latest studies on timing, heterogeneity and collective behaviour (with a fun tiny bonus on evolution!) 1. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6... 2. arxiv.org/abs/2605.13234
biorxiv.org
Cellular timing heterogeneity regulates phase transitions in living matter
Rigidity transitions govern tissue organization in ways reminiscent of inert materials. Yet, living tissues are composed of active units with autonomous timing mechanisms, raising the question whether...
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Yu-Chiun Wang @yuchiunwang.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
Wow! Congrats and so well deserved!
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Lena Schindler @lena-schindler.bsky.social · 23/06/2026
I am thrilled to share my PhD work with @nicolettapetridou.bsky.social @embl.org: www.biorxiv.org/cgi/content/... A fun collaboration with Bernat Corominas-Murtra, Adrián Aguirre-Tamaral, @bart-smeets.bsky.social , Jef Vanghel and Tom Belpaire! Read the story in the comments below ⤵️
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Nature @nature.com · 22/06/2026
Nature research paper: Confined migration induces non-lethal DNA damage in developing neurons go.nature.com/4adERwm
go.nature.com
Confined migration induces non-lethal DNA damage in developing neurons - Nature
The migration of neurons in developing cerebral and cerebellar cortices is accompanied by massive DNA double-strand breaks due to mechanostress during passage through narrow interstitial spaces.
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Yu-Chiun Wang @yuchiunwang.bsky.social · 29/05/2026
Congrats @drsusanna.bsky.social @ditalialab.bsky.social for solving the puzzle of how evolving gradient turns into spatial threshold responses. A beauty and quantitative tour de force. Full of nostalgia reading it. Did propose a temporal model ~20 yrs ago in thesis w/o data. Was quite wrong, tho 😂
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Yu-Chiun Wang @yuchiunwang.bsky.social · 29/05/2026
Fantastic to see this out. Possibly a harbinger for a new field to come: thermal cell biology? Congrats!
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Nicoletta Petridou @nicolettapetridou.bsky.social · 15/05/2026
Glad to see this out in its final form! www.nature.com/articles/s41... What changed since the preprint? Wonderful experiments disentangling the effect of receptor binding vs tissue porosity on Nodal diffusion, plus one of the smoothest review experiences! Thanks @natcellbio.nature.com & reviewers 🙏
nature.com
Tissue rigidity phase transition shapes morphogen gradients - Nature Cell Biology
Autorino et al. report a feedback loop between Nodal signalling and tissue phase transitions in zebrafish embryos. Nodal alters adhesion, triggering tissue rigidification and reduced porosity, which l...
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myosinactncrazy.bsky.social @myosinactncrazy.bsky.social · 12/05/2026
An aPKC rheostat induces apical contraction in response to epithelial stretching www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
biorxiv.org
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Yanlan Mao @yanlanmao.bsky.social · 06/05/2026
This exciting paper is now out in PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
pnas.org
3D epithelial cell topology tunes signaling range to promote precise patterning | PNAS
Cell behaviors in multicellular organisms are coordinated via both diffusible molecules and by signals based on direct cell–cell contacts. The mode...
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paveltomancak.bsky.social @paveltomancak.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
Apply by May 20th to do research @mpi-cbg.de or @biohub.org. For example, my lab is open to your #ideas that loosely align with the theme of the #evolution of #morphogenesis. The name of the game is #freedom. Join us to develop an independent research line. I provide support, mentoring & technology
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Ali Seleit @aliseleit.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
(1/15) Thrilled to share new Evo-Devo work where we address the molecular, cellular & morphometric basis of an extreme axis segmentation program in the Japanese eel — an animal that forms 120 vertebrae.
biorxiv.org
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Berta Verd @bertaverd.bsky.social · 21/04/2026
New Pre-Print Alert! Evolving initial conditions: an alternative developmental route to morphological diversity with Shannon Taylor and @jamesehammond.bsky.social www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
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Daniel MK Lee @dannimklee.bsky.social · 24/04/2026
New Preprint alert!🚨 Super excited to share my postdoc work now on BioRxiv. How does PRC2 loss lead to developmental failures? We combined rapid protein degradation with TLS embryoid models to uncover temporal and lineage-specific dependencies 🧬. Preprint: doi.org/10.64898/2026.04.18.719361
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Stefan Luschnig @luschnig.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
We´re hiring a #PhD student - if you´re interested in combining genetics, cell biology and state-of-the-art imaging to study #epithelial tissue dynamics in #Drosophila, apply to the CiM-IMPRS PhD program by May 1st (see below) Please RT @uni-muenster.de @sfb1348.bsky.social
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Michalis Averof @michalis-averof.bsky.social · 19/04/2026
These images show live embryos of animals (jellyfish, crustacean, worm, sea urchin, sea squirt, beetle) and one of animals closest single-celled relatives. They were captured taking advantage of fluorescent proteins localised on the outer membrane of cells, allowing us to observe cell outlines. 1/9
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Aissam Ikmi @aikmi.bsky.social · 18/04/2026
Now published. Congrats to Soham and all co-authors! www.science.org/doi/10.1126/.... @embl.org
science.org
Science | AAAS
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Denis Duboule @denisduboule.bsky.social · 16/04/2026
This year, the annual symposium of my Chaire @college-de-france.fr will be on The Evolution of Developmental Mechanisms. An impressive lineup of speakers and weirds animals, including humans. Free entrance and coffee breaks. Come, have a seat, relax and enjoy the best possible basic science🤘RT🙏
Pictures from Fanny Martinez Real and Stefan Mundlos🙏
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Xavier Trepat @xaviertrepat.bsky.social · 17/04/2026
Our latest work on shape-programmable tissues is out in @science.org. By positioning topological defects in cellular nematics, we encode frustrated 2D force fields that relax into predictable 3D shapes. Collaboration with Marino Arroyo’s lab, led by @pauguillamat.bsky.social at @ibecbarcelona.eu.
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sebastianrumpf.bsky.social @sebastianrumpf.bsky.social · 16/04/2026
New paper out! Looking at RNA-related pathways in neuronal remodeling, we found UAP56, an mRNA export factor. Actin disassembly is a likely target, both in dendrites and at presynapses. Also: cofilin is required for presynapse pruning. Please check out - journals.biologists.com/jcs/article/...
journals.biologists.com
The mRNA export factor UAP56 is required for dendrite and synapse pruning via actin regulation in drosophila
Neurite and synapse pruning are conserved mechanisms that adapt neuronal circuitry to different developmental stages. Drosophila sensory c4da neurons prune their larval dendrites and their presynaptic...
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Eurico Morais-de-Sá @polarityi3s.bsky.social · 15/04/2026
Drosophila border cells are beautiful to watch… but far from easy to image. Kudos to the brave and skilled @vitoryang.bsky.social, who took on the challenge of establishing border cell migration imaging in the lab! His movies are astonishing, and now our first-ever study on #cell #migration is out!
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Li-Kun Phng @phnglab.bsky.social · 14/04/2026
Latest preprint from @phnglab.bsky.social @riken-bdr.bsky.social ! We show cellular hydraulics as a determinant of hemogenic endothelial cell (HEC) survival during endothelial-to-hematopoietic (EHT) transition. www.biorxiv.org/cgi/content/... #mechanobiology #zebrafish #endothelialcells
biorxiv.org
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