Issues
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Cover image
Cover Image
Cover: Posterior (left) and lateral (right) views of the squid Doryteuthis pealeii at hatching scanned using microCT. Segmented reconstructions of brain regions correspond to a fate map generated during early embryogenesis. Depicted are the pedal (purple), buccal (cyan), paliovisceral (green) and cerebral (pink) ganglia, the optic lobes (dark blue), the retina (red) and the lens/iris (yellow). See Research article by Koenig et al. on p. 3168.
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IN THIS ISSUE
EDITORIAL
Introducing cross-referee commenting in peer review
Summary: Following our recent community survey on priorities in peer review and online publishing, this Editorial announces some of the changes we are making to respond to your feedback.
DEVELOPMENT AT A GLANCE
Slit-Robo signaling
Summary: This Development at a Glance article summarizes new insights into Slit-Robo evolutionary and system-dependent diversity, receptor-ligand interactions, signaling crosstalk and receptor activation.
MEETING REVIEW
Metabolism meets development at Wiston House
Summary: A recent Company of Biologists' Workshop brought together experts from the metabolism field with developmental biologists interested in how metabolic pathways influence developmental decisions.
REVIEWS
Proliferation, survival and metabolism: the role of PI3K/AKT/mTOR signalling in pluripotency and cell fate determination
Summary: This Review highlights the important role of the PI3K/AKT/mTOR signalling pathway in stem cells and discusses its role in regulating important aspects of proliferation and differentiation.
The roles of microRNAs and siRNAs in mammalian spermatogenesis
Summary: This Review article summarizes the latest findings regarding roles for AGO proteins and their associated small RNAs in the male germline, with a particular focus on spermatogenesis.
STEM CELLS AND REGENERATION
Sall4 controls differentiation of pluripotent cells independently of the Nucleosome Remodelling and Deacetylation (NuRD) complex
Highlighted article: Sall4 and Sall1 inhibit neural differentiation in ESCs by acting at enhancer sequences independently of the NuRD complex, and are dispensable for the maintenance of pluripotency.
Epb41l5 competes with Delta as a substrate for Mib1 to coordinate specification and differentiation of neurons
Highlighted article: The FERM domain protein Epb41l5 competes with the Notch ligand Delta as a substrate for Mib1 E3 ligase to coordinate neuronal specification and differentiation at the post-translational level.
A role for post-transcriptional control of endoplasmic reticulum dynamics and function in C. elegans germline stem cell maintenance
Summary: PUF-8 promotes germline stem cell proliferation by promoting the expression of FARL-11, an ER protein that facilitates the membrane localization of GLP-1 /Notch.
The Ets protein Pointed prevents both premature differentiation and dedifferentiation of Drosophila intermediate neural progenitors
Summary: The Ets transcription factor Pointed maintains the balance between differentiation and dedifferentiation of intermediate neural progenitors by acting through two distinct pathways.
RESEARCH ARTICLES
Cyclin CYB-3 controls both S-phase and mitosis and is asymmetrically distributed in the early C. elegans embryo
Highlighted article: CYB-3 cyclin controls both mitotic entry and S-phase entry in the one-cell embryo, while variations in the level of CYB-3 at the two-cell stage regulates asynchronous cell cycling.
Wnt/β-catenin signaling via Axin2 is required for myogenesis and, together with YAP/Taz and Tead1, active in IIa/IIx muscle fibers
Summary: Axin2-dependent Wnt/β-catenin signaling is implicated in myotube formation and, together with YAP/Taz/Tead1, is associated with reduced muscle fiber diameter of a subset of fast fibers.
SARA regulates neuronal migration during neocortical development through L1 trafficking
Summary: Early endosome protein SARA regulates the surface distribution of L1, which, in turn, affects cell adhesion and migration of cortical neurons.
Splice variants of the SWR1-type nucleosome remodeling factor Domino have distinct functions during Drosophila melanogaster oogenesis
Summary: Domino transcripts encode two isoforms, each with distinct contributions to the faithful differentiation of germline and somatic cells during oocyte development.
Eye development and photoreceptor differentiation in the cephalopod Doryteuthis pealeii
Summary: A comprehensive analysis of eye development in the squid Doryteuthis pealeii reveals conserved and convergent mechanisms underlying the evolution of complex eye formation in the Lophotrochozoa.
Ror2 signaling is required for local upregulation of GDF6 and activation of BMP signaling at the neural plate border
Summary: The Wnt receptor Ror2 links planar cell polarity and cell movements during gastrulation via the upregulation of BMP signaling at the neural plate border and subsequent induction of the neural crest.
Minibrain drives the Dacapo-dependent cell cycle exit of neurons in the Drosophila brain by promoting asense and prospero expression
Summary: Minibrain regulates the birth of neurons in the Drosophila brain by driving a transcriptional network that coordinates neurogenesis, cell cycle and terminal differentiation.
The migrations of Drosophila muscle founders and primordial germ cells are interdependent
Summary: Distinct migrating cell types – muscle founder cells and primordial germ cells – coordinately influence each other to promote effective cell migration during development.
TECHNIQUES AND RESOURCES
Developing a de novo targeted knock-in method based on in utero electroporation into the mammalian brain
Summary: A novel targeted knock-in technique based on CRISPR/Cas9 and in utero electroporation enables detection of homozygous knock-in based on dual fluorescent reporters in both mouse and ferret.
ARTICLES OF INTEREST IN OUR OTHER JOURNALS
From Journal of Cell Science
Development Journal Meeting 2023
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We are delighted to announce that our 2023 Journal Meeting ‘Unconventional and Emerging Experimental Organisms in Cell and Developmental Biology’ will be held from 17-20 September 2023 at Wotton House, Surrey, UK. Find out more and register here.
Call for papers: Metabolic and Nutritional Control of Development and Regeneration

We are welcoming submissions for our next special issue, which will focus on metabolic and nutritional control of development and regeneration. Submission deadline: 15 May 2023.
preLights 5th Birthday webinar

preLights, our preprint highlighting service, is celebrating its 5th birthday this year. To mark the occasion, join us online on 14 March 2023 at 16:00 GMT for a discussion, led by four preLights alumni, on how to identify and navigate the challenges and opportunities while shaping your career as an early-career researcher.
Transitions in development: Daniel Grimes

Daniel Grimes’s lab studies the consequences of ciliary mutations, including left-right patterning defects and scoliosis. We interviewed Daniel to find out more about his career path, his experience of becoming a group leader and the influence of Jurassic Park.
Preprints in Development
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As part of our efforts to support the use of preprints and help curate the preprint literature, we are delighted to launch a new article type: ‘In preprints’. These pieces will discuss one or more recent preprints and place them in a broader context.