

Primordial germ cells are the undifferentiated precursors of the gametes and the sole mechanism by which animals transmit genetic information across generations. They appear shortly after the embryo implants in the uterus, in a region of high BMP signalling activity. While the cell-intrinsic mechanisms that control primordial germ cell specification are becoming increasingly apparent, how embryo morphogenesis regulates the bifurcation between soma and germline is not understood.
This project aims at elucidating how changes in tissue organisation affect germline entry. In particular, we would like to understand the cellular and tissue changes that accompany the specification of primordial germ cells and establish functional connections. To achieve this aim, we will use different methodologies, including time-lapse microscopy, classical embryology techniques, and stem cell embryo models.
The results of this project will decipher how the embryo ensures that the right number of primordial germ cells become specified at the right place and time.
References
Shahbazi MN., et al. (2018) Deconstructing and reconstructing the mouse and human early embryo. Nat Cell Biol, 20 (8): 878-887.
Shahbazi, M. N., et al. (2016) Self-organization of the human embryo in the absence of maternal tissues. Nat Cell Biol, 18 (6): 700–708.