Zernicka-Goetz Lab

PGCs form very efficiently in this model, in their natural niche, driven by BMP signaling from the extra-embryonic tissues that develop here. Check out our paper for detailed insights on how to establish this model in your lab and areas for improvement. #PGC

We also show how the formation of ourhiembryoid relies on the right concentrations of BMP, NODAL, and mTOR pathways, allowing us to track their dynamics in this human embryo model. #DevelopmentalBiology #CellSignaling

As a bonus, our protocol reveals that the SOX2 domain gradually starts to express amnion markers. We can now track this differentiation of the epiblast into the amnion through time-lapse movies, adding a dynamic view to the process. #TimeLapse #CellBiology

Our protocol shows that the efficiency and size of the embryo-like structures, or “hiembryoids,” depend on the initial number of cells seeded from each of the three types. The models develop a SOX2 epiblast-like central domain that opens up a lumen. #Science

@_carlosgantner_ @BailWeatherbee @wellcometrust @PDN_Cambridge @Cambridge_Uni @SidneySussex If you have any questions or need guidance on setting up this model in your lab, feel free to reach out. We’re happy to help and provide advice.

Special thanks to the first author- wonderful & generous @_carlosgantner_ for leading putting our efforts here together; to @BailWeatherbee and Yuntao Wang for help; generous funders @wellcometrust & as always supporting @PDN_Cambridge @Cambridge_Uni @SidneySussex

I’ve been presenting our human stem cell embryo model, derived from programmed human ESCs, at conferences for a few years and last year, we finally published it. Now we’re excited to share a detailed protocol how to create these models #StemCellResearch nature.com/articles/s4159…

Very exciting paper!!! Congratulations!!!

6. I’m deeply grateful for my incredible students, post-docs and collaborators, whose enthusiasm, spark, and brilliance keep driving us forward. They remind me daily why I love this work. They push the boundaries of what’s possible. #Gratitude

4. Thanks to advances in single-cell RNA sequencing and proteomics, we’ve propelled our research forward. It’s an exciting era as other groups are now also validating these early asymmetries as real and impactful.

5. 👩‍🔬Enter Lisa, our fearless PhD student who, despite the controversy, tackled the problem head-on with single-cell proteomics in collaboration with Aleks & Nikolai @slavov_n . Their unwavering determination was key to advancing this challenging work. #WomenInSTEM #PhDSuperstars

3. The pushback was intense; comments at conferences were often harsh. But we didn’t give up. It took a decade of persistence and new technologies to reveal the mechanisms behind these early asymmetries. #ResilienceInScience

2. Our early findings suggested that the first cellular differences in the mammalian embryo arise much sooner than expected—defying the established dogma. As a young group leader and woman, facing fierce criticism wasn’t easy but fueled us to test each step, hundreds of times.

LSE is incredible so apply for a JEDI to help you with your first or even second paper or grant - don’t miss this remarkable opportunity.

1. One of my favorite lab projects: uncovering when and how cells begin to differ from each other as they first form. A long journey of discovery that dared to challenge the norms of the field. #StemCellResearch

Listening to @doristsao & @seanmcarroll while swimming was a pure treat for my birthday. This conversation reminds me of conversations with my father - the same deep passion for consciousness and how the brain shapes who we are. I miss you Doris @caltech

Our paper attempts to link different ideas into one model for the first cell fate decision, although unanswered questions still remain! This is a topic of long-standing interest in the @MZG_Lab, and you can read our review on the field here: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37100517/

What I don't get about academia is the chronic lack of celebration. It is hard to get & maintain grant funding, hard to get papers accepted without Faustian bargains, hard to be a great mentor, & hard to maximize trainee success. All of it is hard. We should celebrate everything.

Narcissists/psychopaths/predators have an extreme sense of ENTITLEMENT. Fairness is not important to them. They will find loopholes to get what they want. They will break laws, rules, agreements to have what they believe is rightfully theirs. If they disadvantage or hurt someone in the process of getting what they want, they get an even greater sense of satisfaction. They are motivated entirely DIFFERENTLY to the rest of the population because of brain anomalies. They are not motivated by love or affinity. They are motivated by control, winning, their own agenda, at the cost of all others.