Developmental cellPub Date : 2026-07-08DOI: 10.1016/j.devcel.2026.06.011
Athanasios Kournoutis, Harald Stenmark
{"title":"Sealing and healing: A two-step model for plasma membrane repair.","authors":"Athanasios Kournoutis, Harald Stenmark","doi":"10.1016/j.devcel.2026.06.011","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.devcel.2026.06.011","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Plasma membrane damage can cause cell death and is associated with neurodegeneration. In this issue of Developmental Cell, Heffner et al. show that annexin A11 (ANXA11) first plugs membrane lesions, before ESCRT-III is recruited to extrude the damaged patch-a two-step repair mechanism compromised by ALS- and FTD-linked mutations.</p>","PeriodicalId":11157,"journal":{"name":"Developmental cell","volume":"61 7","pages":"1345-1346"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2026-07-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148410923","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Developmental cellPub Date : 2026-07-08Epub Date: 2026-06-15DOI: 10.1016/j.devcel.2026.05.010
Sarah E W Light, John Dennen, Anna Barry-Wolbers, Natália Araújo do Carmo, Antonio Dolojan, O Amandhi Mathews, Grace Waddell, Khang Chau, Cara Cavanaugh, Quinn Deitch, Cody J Smith
{"title":"Genetic interrogation reveals mechanisms regulating nexus glia development and shaping heart physiology.","authors":"Sarah E W Light, John Dennen, Anna Barry-Wolbers, Natália Araújo do Carmo, Antonio Dolojan, O Amandhi Mathews, Grace Waddell, Khang Chau, Cara Cavanaugh, Quinn Deitch, Cody J Smith","doi":"10.1016/j.devcel.2026.05.010","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.devcel.2026.05.010","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Functional organs require precise cellular organization to engage in bidirectional communication with the nervous system. However, the cellular specialization underlying this vital communication remains incompletely understood. Here, we investigated zebrafish cardiac nexus glia and found that they are post-mitotic and exhibit dynamic Ca<sup>2+</sup> transients that mature throughout development and coordinate with cardiomyocyte activity. We demonstrate that mechanical cues are dispensable for nexus glia abundance. Using a large-scale CRISPR screen of genes identified from single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) analysis of embryonic human cardiac cells, we identify nexus glia genetic modifiers. Specifically, perturbation of cdh6 expands the nexus glia population, enhances glial calcium activity, and disrupts cardiomyocyte calcium handling. Crucially, this glial overexpansion protects against cardiac exhaustion via a potassium channel-dependent mechanism. These findings reveal the genetic architecture of neuro-cardiac communication and highlight the role of nexus glia in cardiac resilience.</p>","PeriodicalId":11157,"journal":{"name":"Developmental cell","volume":" ","pages":"1555-1571.e7"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2026-07-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13360737/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148257847","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Developmental cellPub Date : 2026-07-08DOI: 10.1016/j.devcel.2026.06.008
Kristina Sakers, Patrick W Sheehan, Wendy Xin, Dorothy P Schafer, Cagla Eroglu
{"title":"Glia orchestrate neural circuit development.","authors":"Kristina Sakers, Patrick W Sheehan, Wendy Xin, Dorothy P Schafer, Cagla Eroglu","doi":"10.1016/j.devcel.2026.06.008","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.devcel.2026.06.008","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Over the past ∼25 years, our understanding of neural circuit development in the central nervous system has shifted. Once considered passive supporters, glial cells, namely, astrocytes, oligodendrocyte lineage cells, and microglia, are increasingly recognized as active regulators of developmental circuit formation and maturation. In this review, we synthesize evidence for the multifaceted functions by which glial cells instruct neuronal circuit establishment and maturation across developmental stages and in both vertebrate and invertebrate nervous systems. We describe the programs deployed to guide successive phases of synapse formation, refinement, plasticity, and stabilization in a circuit- and experience-dependent manner. We also highlight how an extensive glia-glia communication repertoire provides another critical layer of control over development. In summary, glia cooperatively shape circuit development by instructing, stabilizing, or eliminating specific wiring programs. Disruption of this coordinated logic, beyond dysfunction of any single glial or neuronal process, underlies vulnerability to neurodevelopmental and neuropsychiatric disease.</p>","PeriodicalId":11157,"journal":{"name":"Developmental cell","volume":"61 7","pages":"1407-1430"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2026-07-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148410744","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Developmental cellPub Date : 2026-07-08DOI: 10.1016/j.devcel.2026.06.005
Thomas Greb, Jan U Lohmann
{"title":"Plant stem cell systems: Robust by design.","authors":"Thomas Greb, Jan U Lohmann","doi":"10.1016/j.devcel.2026.06.005","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.devcel.2026.06.005","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Plants maintain active stem cell populations throughout their lives, yet these systems are remarkably resilient to genetic, environmental, and mechanical perturbations. Synthesizing evidence from the shoot apical meristem, root apical meristem, and vascular cambium of Arabidopsis thaliana, we argue that this robustness is not primarily a consequence of genetic redundancy but an emergent property of distributed regulatory architectures. Multiple mechanisms contribute distinct buffering layers to plant stem cell systems, including negative feedback loops, mobile transcription factors, antagonistic hormonal fields, mechanical constraints, chromatin-level noise filtering, and regenerative self-organization. Across all three major plant stem cell systems, cell identity is imposed by position rather than lineage, and fast environmental responses are temporally decoupled from slow patterning dynamics. We propose that these recurring design principles underlying plant stem cell systems constitute a conserved and evolvable toolkit that enables indeterminate plant growth.</p>","PeriodicalId":11157,"journal":{"name":"Developmental cell","volume":"61 7","pages":"1431-1445"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2026-07-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148410769","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Noncanonical caps, m<sup>6</sup>A, and Ψ RNA modifications in plant and animal development.","authors":"Xuemei Chen, Hao Hu, Guifang Jia, Chengqi Yi, Danmeng Zhu","doi":"10.1016/j.devcel.2026.05.013","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.devcel.2026.05.013","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>RNA modifications constitute a dynamic layer of gene regulation during development. Among them, noncanonical caps, N<sup>6</sup>-methyladenosine (m<sup>6</sup>A), and pseudouridine (Ψ) represent three major classes of chemical marks. Noncanonical caps diversify the 5' end of RNA, whereas m<sup>6</sup>A and Ψ act as internal modifications that modulate RNA structure and RNA-protein interactions. Through these molecular effects, noncanonical caps, m<sup>6</sup>A, and Ψ influence RNA processing, localization, and function, thereby governing RNA fate in response to developmental and environmental cues. Advances in detection, quantification, and transcriptome-wide profiling have greatly expanded our understanding of these modifications, while revealing important technical challenges. In this review, we discuss how these three major RNA modifications regulate developmental programs in plants and animals, with emphasis on their molecular mechanisms and biological functions. We further highlight their potential relevance for therapeutic strategies in human diseases and agricultural approaches for crop improvement under climate change.</p>","PeriodicalId":11157,"journal":{"name":"Developmental cell","volume":"61 7","pages":"1446-1470"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2026-07-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148410780","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Developmental cellPub Date : 2026-07-08Epub Date: 2026-06-25DOI: 10.1016/j.devcel.2026.06.010
Harriet C Fitzgerald, Caroline E Gargett
{"title":"Menstruation: Once unspoken but now uncovered, one cell type at a time.","authors":"Harriet C Fitzgerald, Caroline E Gargett","doi":"10.1016/j.devcel.2026.06.010","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.devcel.2026.06.010","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Despite the burden of menstrual disorders, menstruation is intractable for mechanistic studies because few species menstruate. A paper by Nikolakopoulou et al.<sup>1</sup> in Cell Stem Cell introduces an in vitro menstrual cycle model based on human endometrial epithelial organoids as a starting point to reveal insights into the menstrual process.</p>","PeriodicalId":11157,"journal":{"name":"Developmental cell","volume":" ","pages":"1350-1351"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2026-07-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148327541","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Developmental cellPub Date : 2026-07-08DOI: 10.1016/j.devcel.2026.06.007
Jee-Eun Choi, Helen H N Yan, Suet Yi Leung
{"title":"From regeneration to tumorigenesis: ARID1A as an epigenetic guardian of gastric identity.","authors":"Jee-Eun Choi, Helen H N Yan, Suet Yi Leung","doi":"10.1016/j.devcel.2026.06.007","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.devcel.2026.06.007","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The stomach regenerates its glands after environmental insults by reconstructing diverse cell types. In this issue of Developmental Cell, Loe et al.<sup>1</sup> show that ARID1A safeguards regeneration and recovery by maintaining cell lineage identity, whereas compromised lineage integrity following Arid1a loss, together with Trp53, can promote aggressive gastric cancer.</p>","PeriodicalId":11157,"journal":{"name":"Developmental cell","volume":"61 7","pages":"1342-1344"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2026-07-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148410746","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"P5CS represses tumor progression via inhibiting assembly of 48S pre-translation initiation complex.","authors":"Qingqing Zhang, Shuwen Cheng, Yinmin Gu, Yongbo Pan, Xiaofeng Zhu, Jinghan Sun, Ya Wen, Shan Gao","doi":"10.1016/j.devcel.2026.05.011","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.devcel.2026.05.011","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Δ1-Pyrroline-5-carboxylate synthase (P5CS), therate-limiting enzyme in the proline biosynthesis, has been implicated in diverse physiology and pathology, including cancer. However, whether P5CS exerts functions beyond its enzymatic activity has remained unclear. Here, we identify P5CS as a non-canonical RNA-binding protein that inhibits cancer cell growth and metastasis by inhibiting translation initiation in an enzyme-activity-independent manner in human cancer cells and cell-derived xenograft mouse models. Mechanistically, P5CS binds to the 5' untranslated region (UTR) of oncogenic mRNAs and disrupts the recruitment of eukaryotic translation initiation factor (eIF) 3a/3d-containing 43S preinitiation complex to cap-binding complex eIF4F, thereby blocking 48S assembly and subsequent global protein synthesis. Loss of P5CS accelerates the translational efficiency of IGF1R and promotes tumor progression. Collectively, our study highlights a non-canonical function of P5CS in translational regulation and the emerging non-metabolic functions of metabolic enzymes in tumorigenesis.</p>","PeriodicalId":11157,"journal":{"name":"Developmental cell","volume":" ","pages":"1521-1534.e7"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2026-07-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148263682","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Developmental cellPub Date : 2026-07-08DOI: 10.1016/j.devcel.2026.06.012
Vivian Lobo, Kathrin Leppek
{"title":"A moonlighting metabolic enzyme shines light on translation initiation.","authors":"Vivian Lobo, Kathrin Leppek","doi":"10.1016/j.devcel.2026.06.012","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.devcel.2026.06.012","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Metabolic enzymes can moonlight as gene regulators by binding RNA, but the functions of most enzyme-RNA interactions remain unclear. In this issue of Developmental Cell, Zhang et al. reveal that the proline biosynthesis enzyme Δ1-pyrroline-5-carboxylate synthase (P5CS) inhibits oncogene translation by blocking the assembly of the pre-initiation complex.</p>","PeriodicalId":11157,"journal":{"name":"Developmental cell","volume":"61 7","pages":"1347-1349"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2026-07-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148410774","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Organoid modeling of lung branching morphogenesis and epithelial lineage specification.","authors":"Mengjie Pan, Baomei Cai, Guanlie Li, Ruifang Zhang, Chuncao Deng, Huan Chen, Yingxiu Chen, Sihao Chen, Ziyu Feng, Xiongzhi Quan, Yunjing Du, Wei He, Yiyi Cheng, Chunhua Zhou, Yudong Fu, Shujuan Liu, Dafeng Tao, Yangqing Tian, Jiajun Hou, Yongchang Huang, Yiwei Li, Shengyong Yu, Dajiang Qin, An Gong, Duanqing Pei, Jiekai Chen, Man Zhang, Mingwei Min, Shangtao Cao","doi":"10.1016/j.devcel.2026.05.012","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.devcel.2026.05.012","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Branching morphogenesis is a fundamental process governing pulmonary development, epithelial differentiation, and functional maturation. Here, we report a multilevel branching lung organoid (BLO) model generated from primary tip epithelial cells using a robust, chemically defined protocol. These BLOs exhibit characteristic dendritic architectures with proximodistal patterning and alveolar-sac-like structures. Time-resolved single-cell RNA sequencing reveals that BLOs comprise both proximal airway and distal alveolar epithelial populations and recapitulate the developmental trajectories of lung epithelial lineages in vitro. Live-cell imaging further demonstrates that the spatial organization and branching dynamics of BLOs closely resemble those of native murine pulmonary epithelium in vivo. Upon transplantation into bleomycin-injured murine models, BLO-derived cells further mature and ameliorate pulmonary fibrosis. Together, these findings establish BLOs as a powerful platform for investigating lung branching morphogenesis, epithelial lineage specification and regeneration.</p>","PeriodicalId":11157,"journal":{"name":"Developmental cell","volume":" ","pages":"1504-1520.e8"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2026-07-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148276375","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}