The isolation of human embryonic stem (ES) cells in 1998 advanced the dream of replacement tissues on demand but we still need to learn how to turn ES cells efficiently into different cell types. On p. 2749, Park and colleagues describe a temporal sequence of factors that turns murine ES cells into FLK1- and SCL-expressing haematopoietic and endothelial progenitors. The researchers show that BMP4 is required for the sequential generation of FLK+ and SCL+ cells from ES cells in serum-free conditions. Expansion of the SCL+ cells is mediated by VEGF, and,they report, TGFβ1 and activin A inhibit and augment, respectively, the effects of VEGF. These and other results presented by Park et al. bring tissue engineering a step closer, at least for haematopoietic and endothelial cells.
Interviews with Biologists @ 100 conference speakers
Explore our interviews with keynote speakers from the Biologists @ 100 conference, hosted to celebrate our publisher’s 100th anniversary, where we discuss climate change and biodiversity with Hans-Otto Pörtner and Jane Francis, health and disease with Charles Swanton and emerging technologies with Manu Prakash and Jennifer Lippincott-Schwartz.
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
How to build a community site for developmental biologists
Our community site, the Node, has been serving the developmental and stem cell biology community for 15 years. In this post, our Community Manager, Joyce Yu, shares how the Node was born and describes how to build a community site from scratch.
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