Kevin R. Francis

Macrophage signaling and function are regulated by distinct sterol biochemistries

This study shows that altered sterol content in macrophages affects membrane dynamics and immune signaling, leading to impaired macropinocytosis and dysregulated vesicular sorting.

MLC1 alteration in iPSCs give rise to disease-like cellular vacuolation phenotype in the astrocyte lineage

This study generates iPSC models of MLC by reprogramming patient-derived cells and gene editing, revealing disease-specific vacuolation in astrocytes and differentially expressed genes related to neurological disorders.

Cholesterol deficiency directs autophagy-dependent secretion of extracellular vesicles

The paper shows that cholesterol deficiency leads to autophagy-dependent secretion of extracellular vesicles, with potential pathological implications in cholesterol-related diseases.

Dishevelled localization and function are differentially regulated by structurally distinct sterols

This study shows that different sterols affect DVL2 localization and function through specific structural interactions, impacting cell signaling and homeostasis.

Lipidomics Reveals Cell Specific Changes During Pluripotent Differentiation to Neural and Mesodermal Lineages

The paper uses lipidomics to analyze changes in lipid composition during pluripotent stem cell differentiation toward neural and mesodermal lineages, identifying shared and unique lipid fluctuations.

Living Neural Networks: Dynamic Network Analysis of Developing Neural Progenitor Cells

This paper introduces a method to analyze the dynamic network formation of human neural progenitor cells using graph theory and long-term imaging, revealing key transitions in network efficiency and electrical activity during differentiation.