Lineage decision between liver and pancreas
Our work has contributed to the understanding of hepato-pancreatic development by defining transcriptional and signaling signatures underlining the lineage divergence of liver and pancreas (Rodriguez-Seguel et al. Genes Dev 2013; Kofent et al. Development 2016; Escot et al. Nat Comms 2018).
Recently, using computational modelling, genetic lineage tracing and scRNASeq we have uncovered sustained plasticity in hepato-pancreato-biliary development. We discovered that a multipotent progenitor subpopulation persists in the pancreato-biliary organ rudiment, contributing cells not only to the pancreas and gallbladder but also to the liver (Willnow et al. Nature 2021).