Development

Development is pleased to sponsor the upcoming Weinstein Cardiovascular Development & Regeneration Conference, taking place in New York, USA, 6-8 May 2026.

Register now: weinstein-conference.oa-event.com

In preprints: shedding light – chemogenetic induction of menstruation in mice

Aishwarya V. Bhurke and Ripla Arora from @aroralab.bsky.social discuss the recent preprint by @cagricevrim.bsky.social, @karalmckinley.bsky.social and colleagues on the X-mens menstruation model.

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First author Longwei Bai (left) and corresponding author François Leulier (right)

To learn more about how this paper developed and the people behind it, we talked to first author Longwei Bai and corresponding author François Leulier, Director and Group Leader at Institut de Génomique Fonctionnelle de Lyon (@igflyon.bsky.social) in France.

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Read the Research Report ‘Ecdysone-mediated intestinal growth contributes to microbiota-driven developmental plasticity under malnutrition’ here:

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Supp. Fig. 1 - LpWJL mediates midgut growth through cell area increase. Representative images of anterior and posterior midguts from size-matched LpWJL-associated (D7) and GF (D11) yw larvae. Midguts were dissected and stained for Discs large (Dlg, red), a septate junction marker, and DAPI (blue) to mark nuclei. Scale bar represents 100μm.

Bacteria-dependent ecdysone lengthens hungry stomachs

This Research Highlight showcases work from Longwei Bai (@longweibai.bsky.social), François Leulier (@francoisleulier.bsky.social) and colleagues at @igflyon.bsky.social

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Figure 1 - Development of blood–brain barrier properties and control by extrinsic factors. Panel B: Time course of central nervous system (CNS) angiogenesis and BBB development in mice and zebrafish. Schematics of retina vasculature represent the superficial layer and are based on the development of the superficial vascular plexus in mouse retinas shown in Stahl et al. (2010). E, embryonic day; P, postnatal day; hpf, hours post-fertilization.

Development of the blood–brain barrier

In this Review, Benjamin D. Gastfriend and Richard Daneman discuss recent advances in understanding blood-brain barrier development, as well as unanswered questions in the field.

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Anna Bigas Associate Editor, Development Hospital del Mar Research Institute (HMRIB) and Josep Carreras Leukaemia Research Institute (IJC), Spain “I look forward to handling papers on developmental haematopoiesis and haematopoietic stem cells. I can also handle Notch signalling papers in different systems, as well as papers on cancer and leukaemia mechanisms.” Key topics: development and disease haematopoiesis signalling stem cells

The most recent addition to our academic team, Associate Editor Anna Bigas, will be speaking at the Dubai Stem Cell Congress that starts next week on Saturday 7 February.

Chat with Anna about publishing #haematopoiesis in Development.

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Congratulations to @rashmi-priya.bsky.social on winning the 2026 Women in Cell Biology Model from @bscb-official.bsky.social.

Rashmi is a Guest Editor of our current special issue on the extracellular environment: journals.biologists.com/dev/pages/ex...

We also interviewed Rashmi in 2022⬇️

Congratulations to @giuliapaci.bsky.social, one of our latest Pathway to Independence (PI) fellows, on winning the @bscb-official.bsky.social 2026 Postdoc Medal.

You can learn more about Giulia's research in her interview doi.org/10.1242/dev....

James Wells Editor, Development Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, USA “Most exciting discoveries happen at the junction between two disciplines, and two disciplines that I think really are a marriage made in heaven are developmental biology and biomedical engineering. I'd love to see more engineering-based principles applied to studying concepts in developmental biology.” Key topics: development and disease, organogenesis, patterning, stem cells, tissue engineering and organoids

Development Editor Jim Wells is attending the Takeda Science Foundation symposium, 'ORGANOID 4D: Development, Disease, Diversity and Discovery', starting on Friday 23 January.

Use the opportunity to meet Jim and speak about publishing in Development.

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James Briscoe Editor-in-Chief , Development The Francis Crick Institute, UK “Community journals such as Development play a crucial role. Every issue of Development has papers handled by academic editors who are leaders in the field, so it offers a curated collection of the latest developmental biology research selected by experts.” Key topics: cell fate control and differentiation computational biology and modelling gene regulation and stem cells neural development and patterning tissue engineering and organoids

Our Editor-in-Chief, @jamesbriscoe.bsky.social, will be attending the St. Anna CCRI Symposium on Cell Fate in Cancer and Development meeting, starting on Friday 23 January.

Please speak to James about publishing your research in Development.

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📢Call for papers. Submit your latest research to our upcoming special issue – The Extracellular Environment in Development, Regeneration and Stem Cells

Guest Editors: Alex Hughes and Rashmi Priya

📅 Deadline: 1 March 2026

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#DevBio

Also in Issue 1:
▪️2 Research Highlights on germ line meiosis and metamorphosis evolution
▪️2 ‘People behind the papers’ interviews
▪️In Preprints’ Perspective on Cajal-Retzius cell evolution
▪️Editorial about publishing in Development

See full issue here: journals.biologists.com/dev/issue/15...

3D image of the apical Drosophila pupal eye with depth-coding applied and a pronounced dome-like appearance of ommatidia, owing to the highly organized network of apical rib-like actin filaments (ARAFs)

Our first issue of Vol 153 (2026) is complete!

On the cover: 3D image of the apical Drosophila pupal eye with depth-coding applied, showing a dome-like ommatidia.

See the Research Article by Bhattarai ( @abhibhattarai.bsky.social) et al. from @ruthjohnsonlab.bsky.social

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First author Hana Nagata (right) and corresponding author Yui Suzuki (left).

To learn more about this paper and the people behind it, we talked to first author Hana Nagata and corresponding author Yuichiro (Yui) Suzuki, Dorothy and Charles Jenkins, Jr. Distinguished Chair in Science and Professor of Biological Sciences, @wellesley.edu, USA.

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Read the #OpenAccess Research Article “Evolution of complete metamorphosis through temporal shifts in Chronologically inappropriate morphogenesis (Chinmo) and Broad” here:

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 Summary and implications for the evolution of metamorphosis. (A) Summary of results obtained from knockdown of chinmo in the first nymphal instar of O. fasciatus. chinmo knockdown results in a reduction in the number of nymphal instars, and enhanced rate of wing pad growth and morphogenesis. Gray lines highlight proposed equivalent instars based on the nymphal and adult patterns. (B) Antagonistic roles of Chinmo and Br in regulating the rate of nymphal wing pad growth. Br promotes allometric growth, while Chinmo expression in the absence of Br leads to isometric growth. (C) Model for the interactions between Chinmo, Br and E93 on nymphal maturation and adult development. (D) The separation of Chinmo and Broad function may have led to the separation of isometric growth during the larval stage and allometric growth and differentiation during metamorphosis in holometabolous insects.

chinmo provides insights into the evolution of insect metamorphosis

This Research Highlight showcases work by Hana Nagata and Yuichiro Suzuki from @wellesley.edu.

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Our Pathway to Independence (PI) programme is open.

Apply by 2 February 2026 for support in transitioning from a postdoc to a independent group leader, including:
▪️mentoring
▪️leadership training
▪️profile raising
▪️peer–peer network

➡️ www.biologists.com/grants/devel...

Excited for @keystonesymposia.bsky.social's "Stem Cell Models in Embryology" meeting next month?

Our Reviews Editor @ingridtsang.bsky.social al will also be attending - feel free to talk to them about our journal and other @biologists.bsky.social activities there!

First author Esther Ushuhuda (left) and corresponding author Maria Mikedis (right)

To learn more about this work and the people behind it, we talked to first author Esther Ushuhuda and corresponding author Maria Mikedis @mariamikedis.bsky.social, Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital @cincychildrens.bsky.social, USA.

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Read the #OpenAccess Research Article "MEIOC prevents continued mitotic cycling and promotes meiotic entry during mouse oogenesis" here:

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Figure 3: CCNA2 protein expression is downregulated during the transition from mitosis to meiosis by MEIOC and STRA8. (C) Labeling of CCNA2 in DDX4-positive oogenic cells from wild-type, Stra8 knockout, Meioc knockout and Meioc Stra8 double knockout (dKO) ovaries at E16.5. Arrows and arrowheads mark EdU-positive and -negative oogenic cells, respectively. Meioc Stra8 double knockout panel also appears in Fig. 1B. Scale bar: 20 µm. (D) Quantification of CCNA2 intensity in EdU-positive and -negative oogenic cells. Data for EdU-positive cells represents 190 cells from five wild-type embryos, 35 cells from five Stra8 knockout embryos, 144 cells from three Meioc knockout embryos and 124 cells from three Meioc Stra8 double knockout embryos. Data for EdU-negative cells represents 2492 cells from five wild-type embryos, 579 cells from five Stra8 knockout embryos, 909 cells from three Meioc knockout embryos and 296 cells from three Meioc Stra8 double knockout embryos. Dot represents the median; whiskers represent the interquartile range. *adj. P<0.05; **adj. P<0.01; ****adj. P<0.0001. See Table S4 for statistical details.

MEIOC facilitates meiotic entry in the mammalian female germ line

This Research Highlight showcases work by Esther G. Ushuhuda, Maria M. Mikedis (@mariamikedis.bsky.social) and colleagues:

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Please join us tomorrow for #DevPres

We are pleased to be a media partner for the @embl.org @embo.org Symposium - Biological oscillators: rhythms and synchronisation across scales #EESBioOsc
Abstract submission: 14 Jan 2026
Registration (On-site): 10 Feb 2026
Registration (Virtual): 17 Mar 2026
bit.ly/49mgD2Q

In preprints: the deep evolutionary roots of Cajal-Retzius cells

Juliette S. Morel and Frederic Causeret (@fredcauseret.bsky.social) discuss two preprint articles on the evolution of Cajal-Retzius cells and how this might have shaped vertebrate brain morphogenesis.

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A screenshot of the 'The hard truth about how hard it is to publish in Development' article PDF.

The hard truth about how hard it is to publish in Development

Editor-in-Chief @jamesbriscoe.bsky.social leads our team of Academic Editors in addressing the perception that Development is ‘too hard to publish in’ by discussing the journal's review process.

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In preprints: the deep evolutionary roots of Cajal-Retzius cells Vertebrates show a striking diversity of brain size and morphology. Mammals, in particular, have an especially large cerebral cortex, presenting with a characteristic six-layered structure that is bel...

We're happy to highlight two very exciting preprints from @idoiaeu.bsky.social and @matosches.bsky.social about the evolution of Cajal-Retzius cells. Find our perspective in @dev-journal.bsky.social here:
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I’ve been so lucky to be part of the PI Programme by @biologists.bsky.social this past year and met so many incredible people! Come hear us talk about what keeps us up at night this Wednesday!

I’d like to highlight @felicityhsu.bsky.social ‘s recently publish work in @dev-journal.bsky.social ! She showed that the regeneration blastema consists of concentric zones of differential growth and translation driven by Myc and Tor. journals.biologists.com/dev/article/...

Also in Issue 23:
▪️5 Research Highlights
▪️Editorial from @biologists.bsky.social
▪️In preprints article
▪️5 ‘The people behind the papers’ interviews
▪️'Transitions in development interview' w/ @torres-sanchez.bsky.social
▪️Hedgehog germ cell migration Review

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