Finally, we tested if the AP-gastruloid model can model the neural tube defects by treating Rock inhibitor and Folic acid antagonist. Interestingly, those two treatments demonstrated distinct patterns of defects. (7/n)

Importantly, this “pattern-and-mix” strategy could robustly induce these self-organization processes with >90% efficiency. (6/n)

scRNA-seq revealed that the AP-gastruloid contained 26 cell types (CS 11 stage), including regionalized neural crest (cranial, vagal, trunk), head and paraxial mesoderm, cardiomyocytes, renal epithelium, and early neurons. (5/n)

The two aggregates immediately fused and began to self-organize as a single structure. Anterior (WNT-free) cells intercalated to the center of the posterior aggregate to form hindbrain, a continuous neural tube, and bilaterally segmented somites. (4/n)

We reasoned that homogeneous supplementation of the WNT signal, which activates the gastrulation programme, would simultaneously activate posterior embryonic fate. Therefore, we induced two populations (WNT-free and WNT-treated) and combined them, and we were surprised (3/n).

New paper from my lab and @jshendure.bsky.social lab! Led by the brilliant @zukailiu.bsky.social and @cxqiu.bsky.social. We tackled how anterior and posterior progenitor cells cooperate to self-organize into an embryonic structure (termed AP-gastruloid). (1/n) www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...