In the intricate sequence of steps that transform a fertilized egg into an adult animal or plant, no cell is an island.
Cells have to receive signals to carry out their proper roles.
While scientists have not decoded the blueprints for building an adult animal, Soriano's lab has characterized some of the key players in the development of both the mammalian vascular system, the network of vessels that transports blood throughout the body, and the skeleton. The lab's studies on two important receptor proteins have implications for understanding vascular diseases that affect the kidney and the retina, as well as birth defects such as spina bifida. One foot in, one foot out Receptors with a role in developmental signaling are large proteins perched on cell surfaces that keep one foot inside the cell and one foot outside. The balancing act allows them to receive information from the outside, typically in the form of substances called growth factors, and transmit signals to the machinery inside the cell that turns subsets of genes on or off. Receptors are like busy telephone operators - processing multiple incoming calls and having to decide quickly where to transfer them.