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Outputs (23)

Programming of pluripotency and the germ line co-evolved from a Nanog ancestor (2025)
Journal Article
Crowley, D., Simpson, L., Chatfield, J., Forey, T., Allegrucci, C., Sang, F., Holmes, N., Genikhovich, G., Technau, U., Cunningham, D., Silva, E., Mullin, N., Dixon, J. E., Loose, M., Alberio, R., & Johnson, A. D. (2025). Programming of pluripotency and the germ line co-evolved from a Nanog ancestor. Cell Reports, 44(3), Article 115396. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.celrep.2025.115396

Francois Jacob proposed that evolutionary novelty arises through incremental tinkering with pre-existing genetic mechanisms. Vertebrate evolution was predicated on pluripotency, the ability of embryonic cells to form somatic germ layers and primordia... Read More about Programming of pluripotency and the germ line co-evolved from a Nanog ancestor.

A single-cell atlas of pig gastrulation as a resource for comparative embryology (2024)
Journal Article
Simpson, L., Strange, A., Klisch, D., Kraunsoe, S., Azami, T., Goszczynski, D., Le Minh, T., Planells, B., Holmes, N., Sang, F., Henson, S., Loose, M., Nichols, J., & Alberio, R. (2024). A single-cell atlas of pig gastrulation as a resource for comparative embryology. Nature Communications, 15(1), Article 5210. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-49407-6

Cell-fate decisions during mammalian gastrulation are poorly understood outside of rodent embryos. The embryonic disc of pig embryos mirrors humans, making them a useful proxy for studying gastrulation. Here we present a single-cell transcriptomic at... Read More about A single-cell atlas of pig gastrulation as a resource for comparative embryology.

NANOG controls testicular germ cell tumour stemness through regulation of MIR9-2 (2024)
Journal Article
Cardenas, R. P., Zyoud, A., McIntyre, A., Alberio, R., Mongan, N. P., & Allegrucci, C. (2024). NANOG controls testicular germ cell tumour stemness through regulation of MIR9-2. Stem Cell Research and Therapy, 15(1), Article 128. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13287-024-03724-1

Background
Testicular germ cell tumours (TGCTs) represent a clinical challenge; they are most prevalent in young individuals and are triggered by molecular mechanisms that are not fully understood. The origin of TGCTs can be traced back to primordia... Read More about NANOG controls testicular germ cell tumour stemness through regulation of MIR9-2.

Interspecies control of development during mammalian gastrulation (2023)
Journal Article
Simpson, L., & Alberio, R. (2023). Interspecies control of development during mammalian gastrulation. Emerging Topics in Life Sciences, 7(4), 397-408. https://doi.org/10.1042/etls20230083

Gastrulation represents a pivotal phase of development and aberrations during this period can have major consequences, from minor anatomical deviations to severe congenital defects. Animal models are used to study gastrulation, however, there is cons... Read More about Interspecies control of development during mammalian gastrulation.

Understanding conceptus-maternal interactions: what tools do we need to develop? (2023)
Journal Article
Butt, Z., Tinning, H., O'Connell, M. J., Fenn, J., Alberio, R., & Forde, N. (2023). Understanding conceptus-maternal interactions: what tools do we need to develop?. Reproduction, Fertility and Development, 36(2), 81-92. https://doi.org/10.1071/RD23181

Communication between the maternal endometrium and developing embryo/conceptus is critical to support successful pregnancy to term. Studying the peri-implantation period of pregnancy is critical as this is when most pregnancy loss occurs in cattle. O... Read More about Understanding conceptus-maternal interactions: what tools do we need to develop?.

NANOG is required to establish the competence for germ-layer differentiation in the basal tetrapod axolotl (2023)
Journal Article
Simpson, L. A., Crowley, D., Forey, T., Acosta, H., Ferjentsik, Z., Chatfield, J., Payne, A., Simpson, B. S., Redwood, C., Dixon, J. E., Holmes, N., Sang, F., Alberio, R., Loose, M., & Johnson, A. D. (2023). NANOG is required to establish the competence for germ-layer differentiation in the basal tetrapod axolotl. PLoS Biology, 21(6), Article e3002121. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3002121

Pluripotency defines the unlimited potential of individual cells of vertebrate embryos, from which all adult somatic cells and germ cells are derived. Understanding how the programming of pluripotency evolved has been obscured in part by a lack of da... Read More about NANOG is required to establish the competence for germ-layer differentiation in the basal tetrapod axolotl.

Review: A barnyard in the lab: prospect of generating animal germ cells for breeding and conservation (2023)
Journal Article
Strange, A., & Alberio, R. (2023). Review: A barnyard in the lab: prospect of generating animal germ cells for breeding and conservation. Animal, 17, Article 100753. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.animal.2023.100753

In vitro gametogenesis (IVG) offers broad opportunities for gaining detailed new mechanistic knowledge of germ cell biology that will enable progress in the understanding of human infertility, as well as for applications in the conservation of endang... Read More about Review: A barnyard in the lab: prospect of generating animal germ cells for breeding and conservation.

In vitro culture of ovine embryos up to early gastrulating stages (2022)
Journal Article
Ramos-Ibeas, P., González-Brusi, L., Used, M. T., Cocero, M. J., Marigorta, P., Alberio, R., & Bermejo-Álvarez, P. (2022). In vitro culture of ovine embryos up to early gastrulating stages. Development, 149(6), Article dev199743. https://doi.org/10.1242/dev.199743

Developmental failures occurring shortly after blastocyst hatching from the zona pellucida constitute a major cause of pregnancy losses in both humans and farm ungulates. The developmental events occurring following hatching in ungulates include the... Read More about In vitro culture of ovine embryos up to early gastrulating stages.

Pluripotent stem cells related to embryonic disc exhibit common self-renewal requirements in diverse livestock species (2021)
Journal Article
Kinoshita, M., Kobayashi, T., Planells, B., Klisch, D., Spindlow, D., Masaki, H., Bornelöv, S., Stirparo, G. G., Matsunari, H., Uchikura, A., Lamas-Toranzo, I., Nichols, J., Nakauchi, H., Nagashima, H., Alberio, R., & Smith, A. (2021). Pluripotent stem cells related to embryonic disc exhibit common self-renewal requirements in diverse livestock species. Development, 148(23), Article dev199901. https://doi.org/10.1242/dev.199901

Despite four decades of effort, robust propagation of pluripotent stem cells from livestock animals remains challenging. The requirements for self-renewal are unclear and the relationship of cultured stem cells to pluripotent cells resident in the em... Read More about Pluripotent stem cells related to embryonic disc exhibit common self-renewal requirements in diverse livestock species.