GIS Scientists Gain Understanding on Mammalian Development

Scientists at the Genome Institute of Singapore (GIS) have generated significant single cell expression data crucial for a detailed molecular understanding of mammalian development from fertilization to embryo implantation – a process known as the preimplantation period. The knowledge gained has a direct impact on clinical applications in the areas of regenerative medicine and assisted reproduction.

Using the Fluidigm BioMark microfluidic technology and the mouse preimplantation embryo as a model, the scientists were able to study the expression of 48 genes from individual cells and applied this to analyze over 600 individual cells from the 1-cell to the 64-cell stage of preimplantation development. This high throughput single cell research methodology provides the scientists with the ability to detect dynamic patterns in cellular behaviour, which is unprecedented in the field. Significantly, the findings of the study resolves some of the arguments pertaining to cellular differentiation events and places fibroblast growth factor signalling as the primary event in the later cell fate decisions.

Executive director, Professor Edison Liu said, This work by Guoji Guo, Mikael Huss, Paul Robson and colleagues uses microgenomic technologies to map, over time, how a single cell decides to permanently become different parts of an embryo. Within one division, cells commit to specific developmental lineages by expressing defined sets of genes. This research now opens the possibility of assessing the genetic triggers for fate determination of individual cells in developmental time. On another level, this work highlights the importance of microtechnologies in advancing the understanding of early embryonic events. "

Professor Davor Solter, senior principal investigator of the Institute of Medical Biology, A*STAR, added, "The authors investigated changes in expression of multiple genes on the single cell level during preimplantation mouse development. They demonstrated gradual and stochastic lineage allocation and absence of predetermination. These results conclusively resolved one of the hotly debated issues in mammalian development and provided important insight into the mechanism which regulates early development in mammals."