Jenaid M. Rees

The paper analyzes single-cell RNA sequencing data from chick midbrain development to uncover gene regulatory networks and signaling interactions shaping ectodermal patterning.

The paper traces the embryonic origin of calcitonin-producing cells across vertebrates and finds they derive from pharyngeal endoderm, not neural crest, and identifies homologues in invertebrate chordates.

This study shows that Fgf signalling is required for epithelial remodelling and gill slit perforation in skate embryos, highlighting an ancestral role in vertebrate pharyngeal pouch development.

This study shows that ectodermal Wnt signalling restricts Shh signal transduction and chondrogenesis to the posterior gill arch environment in skates, establishing skeletal polarity.