TFAP2A+ embryonic progenitor cells undergo fate diversification to give rise to human amnion, germline, and mesoderm.

Amnion, germline and mesoderm specification at the posterior end of the human embryo occur around the same time . Similarly, generation of germline and amnion is associated with mesoderm induction regardless of differentiation platform. Yet, the lineage relationships between amnion, germline and mesoderm remains unresolved.

Reconstituted ovaries self-assemble without an ovarian surface epithelium.

Three-dimensional (3D) stem cell models of the ovary have the potential to benefit women's reproductive health research. One such model, the reconstituted ovary (rOvary) self-assembles with pluripotent stem cell-derived germ cells creating a 3D ovarian mimic competent to support the differentiation of functional oocytes inside follicles. In this study, we evaluated the cellular composition of the rOvary revealing the capacity to generate multiple follicles surrounded by NR2F2+ stroma cells.

Transposable elements in early human embryo development and embryo models.

Transposable elements (TEs), long discounted as 'selfish genomic elements,' are increasingly appreciated as the drivers of genomic evolution, genome organization, and gene regulation. TEs are particularly important in early embryo development, where advances in stem cell technologies, in tandem with improved computational and next-generation sequencing approaches, have provided an unprecedented opportunity to study the contribution of TEs to early mammalian development. Here, we summarize advances in our understanding of TEs in early human development and expand on how new stem cell-based embryo models can be leveraged to augment this understanding.

A phosphate-sensing organelle regulates phosphate and tissue homeostasis.

Inorganic phosphate (P) is one of the essential molecules for life. However, little is known about intracellular P metabolism and signalling in animal tissues. Following the observation that chronic P starvation causes hyperproliferation in the digestive epithelium of Drosophila melanogaster, we determined that P starvation triggers the downregulation of the P transporter PXo.