The Cdk4-E2f1 pathway regulates early pancreas development by targeting Pdx1+ progenitors and Ngn3+ endocrine precursors.

ABSTRACT: Cell division and cell differentiation are intricately regulated processes vital to organ development. Cyclin-dependent kinases (Cdks) are master regulators of the cell cycle that orchestrate the cell division and differentiation programs. Cdk1 is essential to drive cell division and is required for the first embryonic divisions, whereas Cdks 2, 4 and 6 are dispensable for organogenesis but vital for tissue-specific cell development. Here, we illustrate an important role for Cdk4 in regulating early pancreas development. Pancreatic development involves extensive morphogenesis, proliferation and differentiation of the epithelium to give rise to the distinct cell lineages of the adult pancreas. The cell cycle molecules that specify lineage commitment within the early pancreas are unknown. We

SUBMITTER: Kim SY 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3082297 | biostudies-literature | 2011 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature