Rena N. D’Souza

The paper identifies tendon-associated gene expression as a key factor in mid-palatal suture establishment and shows similarities with cranial suture biology.

The paper identifies Filamin A's role in palatal fusion by linking mechanotransduction with β-Catenin/Smad2 signaling, showing its impact on cleft palate risk through parental physical activity.

This study investigates the role of Dkk2 in palatogenesis using Pax9-/- mouse models and spatial multiomics data, revealing its spatial relationship with osteogenic populations.

The paper uses integrated bulk, single-cell, and spatial RNA-seq to uncover the timeline of osteogenic transcriptional programming in embryonic palate development, identifying novel genes and spatial expression patterns involved in palatal fusion.

This study shows that the Pax9/Wnt pathway regulates mouse palate formation, with Wnt agonist therapy correcting cleft palate defects in Pax9-deficient mice.