From the light-sensitive cones of the retina to the filtering cycle of the kidneys, the body is made up of hundreds of cells that are dedicated to doing their jobs precisely. However, this delicate work may seem complicated, but in fact each of the cells involved starts as a single primitive cell. How do these primitive, undifferentiated cells decide to do something themselves? This question has long been the focus of the biological community.
Now, scientists from the university of California medical center and other institutions have discovered new clues about the molecular logic of cells that could explain how this works. The findings, based on studies of neuronal tissue in mice, suggest that cells face multiple choices as they grow, and that they work together as a team until they reach their final target organ.
"A mother cell can be anything, but how does that selection work?"Sanne Boersma, a senior researcher in biomedical sciences at the university of California medical research center. "Our study represents an attempt to define the molecular logic behind cell selection. "We believe our results will help us understand how cells perform their specific roles and what may go wrong in the process of cell differentiation."
The researchers say their results are related only to neurons, and it is unclear whether other tissues, organs and organisms follow similar cellular differentiation mechanisms. But the same approach can be used to understand cell differentiation in other tissues.