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DEVELOPMENTAL SIGNALING PATHWAYS: Wnt, Notch & Hedgehog

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  "𝔾𝕖𝕟𝕖𝕤 𝕕𝕖𝕥𝕖𝕣𝕞𝕚𝕟𝕖 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕓𝕠𝕕𝕪 𝕡𝕝𝕒𝕟 𝕓𝕪 𝕔𝕠𝕟𝕥𝕣𝕠𝕝𝕝𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕕𝕖𝕧𝕖𝕝𝕠𝕡𝕞𝕖𝕟𝕥𝕒𝕝 𝕡𝕣𝕠𝕔𝕖𝕤𝕤𝕖𝕤." - Dr. Edward B. Lewis  Embryonic development depends on highly conserved signaling pathways that coordinate how cells communicate, differentiate, and organize into functional tissues and organs. Among the most influential are Wnt, Notch, & Hedgehog, which regulate cell fate, tissue patterning, stem cell maintenance, & organogenesis. Their precise spatial and temporal regulation is essential for normal development, while their dysregulation contributes to congenital disorders & cancer.  The Wnt pathway regulates embryonic axis formation, stem cell maintenance, proliferation, & differentiation. In the canonical pathway, Wnt ligands stabilize β-catenin, enabling it to activate developmental genes in the nucleus. Wnt signaling is indispensable for the formation of the nervous system, limbs, skeleton, & gastrointestinal tract...
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PRINCIPLES OF DEVELOPMENTAL GENETICS

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"𝓔𝓿𝓮𝓻𝔂 𝓬𝓮𝓵𝓵 𝓱𝓪𝓼 𝓪 𝓱𝓲𝓼𝓽𝓸𝓻𝔂, 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓽 𝓱𝓲𝓼𝓽𝓸𝓻𝔂 𝓲𝓼 𝔀𝓻𝓲𝓽𝓽𝓮𝓷 𝓲𝓷 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓪𝓬𝓽𝓲𝓿𝓲𝓽𝔂 𝓸𝓯 𝓰𝓮𝓷𝓮𝓼."- Sir. John Edward Sulston 🧬 Developmental genetics explores how a single fertilized cell develops into a complex multicellular organism through precisely regulated gene activity. Development is orchestrated by interactions among genes, cells, and environmental cues that direct growth, differentiation, and organ formation. 🔹 Nearly every cell contains the same genome, yet selective activation and repression of genes generate specialized cell types, forming the basis of tissue and organ development.        🔹 Stem cells progressively commit to specific developmental fates before acquiring distinct structural and functional characteristics under the control of transcription factors and epigenetic regulation.        🔹 Conserved signaling pathways (including Wnt, Notch, H...
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WEEKEND READS 📚

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CODONS AND ANTICODONS: THE LANGUAGE OF PROTEIN SYNTHESIS

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"𝓒𝓸𝓻𝓻𝓮𝓬𝓽 𝓬𝓸𝓭𝓸𝓷 𝓻𝓮𝓬𝓸𝓰𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓲𝓸𝓷 𝓫𝔂 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓽𝓡𝓝𝓐 𝓪𝓷𝓽𝓲𝓬𝓸𝓭𝓸𝓷 𝓲𝓼 𝓮𝓼𝓼𝓮𝓷𝓽𝓲𝓪𝓵 𝓯𝓸𝓻 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓪𝓬𝓬𝓾𝓻𝓪𝓬𝔂 𝓸𝓯 𝓹𝓻𝓸𝓽𝓮𝓲𝓷 𝓼𝔂𝓷𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓼𝓲𝓼." - Prof. Marina V. Rodnina 🧬 Every protein in our body (from enzymes and hormones to antibodies) begins with a remarkable molecular conversation between codons and anticodons.        🔹 A codon is a sequence of three nucleotides on messenger RNA (mRNA). Each codon specifies a particular amino acid or a translation stop signal. For example, AUG encodes methionine and serves as the universal start codon, initiating protein synthesis.        🔹 An anticodon is a complementary three-nucleotide sequence on transfer RNA (tRNA). Each tRNA carries a specific amino acid, and its anticodon recognizes the matching mRNA codon, ensuring the correct amino acid is incorporated into the growing polypeptide chain.        🔹 Inside the ribosome, codons on mRNA ar...
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WEEKEND READS 📚

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Recommended book of the weekend: 🍃 ☕ ➡️ "BIOHACK" By J.D Lasica   🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁
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PCR, QPCR, AND RT-PCR 🎗️

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“𝓘 𝓭𝓸𝓷’𝓽 𝓯𝓲𝓷𝓭 𝓲𝓽 𝓯𝓻𝓾𝓲𝓽𝓯𝓾𝓵 𝓽𝓸 𝓽𝓻𝔂 𝓽𝓸 𝓬𝓸𝓷𝓿𝓲𝓷𝓬𝓮 𝓼𝓸𝓶𝓮𝓸𝓷𝓮 𝓽𝓸 𝓬𝓪𝓻𝓮 𝓪𝓫𝓸𝓾𝓽 𝔀𝓱𝓪𝓽 𝓘 𝓬𝓪𝓻𝓮 𝓪𝓫𝓸𝓾𝓽.” - Dr. Cassandra Extavour 🧬 Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR), quantitative PCR (qPCR), and reverse transcription PCR (RT-PCR) are closely related molecular techniques used to amplify & analyze nucleic acids. They are fundamental tools in genetics, diagnostics, forensic science, & biomedical research. While they share the core principle of nucleic acid amplification, each technique differs in purpose, input material, & level of quantification.       🔹 The basic principle of PCR is the exponential amplification of a specific DNA segment using repeated thermal cycling. It involves three main steps: denaturation, where double-stranded DNA is separated; annealing, where primers bind to complementary sequences; & extension, where a DNA polymerase synthesizes new strands. Through repeated cycles, a si...
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WEEKEND READS 📚

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Recommended book of the weekend: 🍃 ☕ ➡️ "CLOUD ATLAS" By David Mitchell    🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁🍁
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