Cell Sorting and Noise-Induced Cell Plasticity Coordinate to Sharpen Boundaries between Gene Expression Domains.

ABSTRACT: A fundamental question in biology is how sharp boundaries of gene expression form precisely in spite of biological variation/noise. Numerous mechanisms position gene expression domains across fields of cells (e.g. morphogens), but how these domains are refined remains unclear. In some cases, domain boundaries sharpen through differential adhesion-mediated cell sorting. However, boundaries can also sharpen through cellular plasticity, with cell fate changes driven by up- or down-regulation of gene expression. In this context, we have argued that noise in gene expression can help cells transition to the correct fate. Here we investigate the efficacy of cell sorting, gene expression plasticity, and their combination in boundary sharpening using multi-scale, stochastic models. We focus on the

SUBMITTER: Wang Q 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5279720 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature