In stem cell populations, proliferation and differentiation are finely balanced to ensure that the stem cells are maintained but do not overgrow and that non-renewable tissues are generated as required. On p. 93, Hansen et al. report that in the C. elegans germline, the accumulation pattern of GLD-1, an RNA-binding protein, controls the spatially determined balance between proliferation and meiosis. They show that at the distal end of the gonad, a low GLD-1 concentration allows stem cell proliferation; whereas, at more proximal regions, a high GLD-1 concentration promotes the entry of stem cells into meiosis and, ultimately, differentiation into gametes. To explain the accumulation pattern of GLD-1, the researchers propose that GLP-1/Notch signalling and FBF (a homologue of the Drosophila RNA-binding protein Pumilio) inhibit GLD-1 accumulation distally, while NOS-3 (a homologue of the Drosophila translational regulator Nanos) and the poly(A)polymerase GLD-2 act redundantly to promote GLD-1 accumulation proximally.
How C. elegans maintains its germline
How C. elegans maintains its germline. Development 1 January 2004; 131 (1): e101. doi:
Download citation file:
Sign in
Client Account
Sign in via your institution
Sign in via ShibbolethAdvertisement
Cited by
About us

Our publisher, The Company of Biologists, turns 100 this year. Read about the history of the Company and find out what Sarah Bray, our Chair of the Board of Directors, has to say.
Biologists @ 100 - join us in Liverpool in March 2025

We are excited to invite you to a unique scientific conference, celebrating the 100-year anniversary of The Company of Biologists, and bringing together our different communities. The conference will incorporate the Spring Meetings of the BSCB and the BSDB, the JEB Symposium Sensory Perception in a Changing World and a DMM programme on antimicrobial resistance. Find out more and register by 28 February 2025 to join us in March 2025 in Liverpool, UK.
Call for papers – Lifelong Development: the Maintenance, Regeneration and Plasticity of Tissues

Development invites you to submit your latest research to our upcoming special issue – Lifelong Development: the Maintenance, Regeneration and Plasticity of Tissues. This issue will be coordinated by Guest Editors Meritxell Huch (Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, Germany) and Mansi Srivastava (Harvard University and Museum of Comparative Zoology, USA), working alongside our team of academic Editors. Submit your articles by 15 May 2025.
A case for broadening our view of mechanism in developmental biology

In this Perspective, B. Duygu Özpolat and colleagues survey researchers on their views on what it takes to infer mechanism in developmental biology. They examine what factors shape our idea of what we mean by ‘mechanism’ and suggest a path forward that embraces a broad outlook on the diversity of studies that advance knowledge in our field.
In preprints
Did you know that Development publishes perspectives on recent preprints? These articles help our readers navigate the ever-growing preprint literature. We welcome proposals for ‘In preprints’ articles, so please do get in touch if you’d like to contribute.