Nature:細胞龕位置決定幹細胞命運

通過將活體成像與在活小鼠身上進行的單幹細胞/後代標記相結合。

Valentina Greco及同事發現，位於毛囊幹細胞龕不同腔室中的細胞具有不同的細胞命運。雷射消融顯示，對毛囊發育至關重要的多能隆突幹細胞並不是毛髮再生所必需的，因為上皮細胞能重新佔據丟失的幹細胞腔室。

這些發現表明，一個幹細胞在其延伸的小環境（細胞龕）內的位置控制它的長期命運和行為。

這也許是其他成年幹細胞的調控的一個普遍機制。（生物谷Bioon.com）

生物谷推薦的英文摘要

Nature         doi:10.1038/nature12602

Spatial organization within a niche as a determinant of stem-cell fate

Panteleimon Rompolas，Kailin R. Mesa& Valentina Greco

Stem-cell niches in mammalian tissues are often heterogeneous and compartmentalized； however， whether distinct niche locations determine different stem-cell fates remains unclear. To test this hypothesis， here we use the mouse hair follicle niche and combine intravital microscopy with genetic lineage tracing to re-visit the same stem-cell lineages， from their exact place of origin， throughout regeneration in live mice. Using this method， we show directly that the position of a stem cell within the hair follicle niche can predict whether it is likely to remain uncommitted， generate precursors or commit to a differentiated fate. Furthermore， using laser ablation we demonstrate that hair follicle stem cells are dispensable for regeneration， and that epithelial cells， which do not normally participate in hair growth， re-populate the lost stem-cell compartment and sustain hair regeneration. This study provides a general model for niche-induced fate determination in adult tissues.