Cell Fate

Understanding the molecular events that regulate how cells that contain the same genetic information can generate non-equivalent states or different cell fates has been a topic of fascination for biologists for over 100 years. Recent Nobel Prize winning work has shown that cell fate can be dramatically re-programmed – raising questions of how cell fate decisions are controlled, why some cells retain the ability to adopt multiple different fates and to what degree are cell fates mutable and reversible. These issues also lie at the heart of regenerative medicine and questions about the mis-regulation of cell fate are central to new theories about the cell of origin for many diseases, such as cancer. Therefore, the section of Frontiers in Cell Fate aims to publish leading edge research articles, reviews, and commentaries on topics related to cell fate that span from important basic scientific discoveries through to applied therapeutic studies. Given the impact of cell fate determination and maintenance in stem cell biology, lineage differentiation, regenerative medicine, as well as disease progression, Frontiers in Cell Fate encourages the submission of manuscripts whose scope bridges these broad fields of research. In addition, studies using model organisms to furnish mechanistic insight into the fine-tuning of cell fate transitions are welcome.
Frontiers in Cell Fate covers:
- Adult stem cells - Cancer initiating cells - Development
- Genetic and epigenetic mechanisms in cell fate transition
- Embryonic stem cells - Lineage differentiation - Lineage-specific precursor cells - Reprogramming of cell fate
- Stem cell niche