SoftBio Theory Seminar: Cell identity dynamics

Animal cells can differentiate into various cell types, each with distinct properties. These cell types can be stably maintained throughout the life of the organism. Cells can also transition between identities, as occurs in self-renewing tissues. In this talk I will present a mathematical/theoretical approach for studying cell identity dynamics. I will present a model for gene regulation in animals and show that a motif in the molecular network that controls cell identity imposes a constraint on the model, resulting in simplified dynamics that can be parameterized from observed cell identities. Despite its simplicity, the model can explain a broad range of experimental observations on cell identity dynamics, including on reprogramming between distinct identities and on hierarchical differentiation, recapitulating the complex differentiation landscape of blood formation. The approach outlines how robust control of cell identity may emerge in molecular feedback networks.