Single-cell RNA sequencing reveals developmental heterogeneity of blastomeres during major genome activation in bovine embryos.

Embryonic development is initially controlled by maternal RNAs and proteins stored in the oocyte, until gene products gradually generated by the embryo itself take over. Major embryonic genome activation (EGA) in bovine embryos occurs at the eight- to 16-cell stage. Morphological observations, such as size of blastomeres and distribution of microvilli, suggested heterogeneity among individual cells already at this developmental stage.

Comparing effects of perfusion and hydrostatic pressure on gene profiles of human chondrocyte.

Hydrostatic pressure and perfusion have been shown to regulate the chondrogenic potential of articular chondrocytes. In order to compare the effects of hydrostatic pressure plus perfusion (HPP) and perfusion (P) we investigated the complete gene expression profiles of human chondrocytes under HPP and P. A simplified bioreactor was constructed to apply loading (0.

Spatial control of plasma membrane domains: ROP GTPase-based symmetry breaking.

Breaking of the cell membrane symmetry to form polarized or localized domains/regions of the plasma membrane (PM) is a fundamental cellular process that occurs in essentially all cellular organisms, and is required for a wide variety of cellular functions/behaviors including cell morphogenesis, cell division and cell differentiation. In plants, the development of localized or polarized PM domains has been linked to a vast array of cellular and developmental processes such as polar cell expansion, asymmetric cell division, cell morphogenesis, the polarization of auxin transporters (and thus auxin polar transport), secondary cell wall patterning, cell type specification, and tissue pattern formation. Rho GTPases from plants (ROPs) are known to be involved in many of these processes.