Jason Stein and Hyejung Won recently published an article in Cell on the dynamic landscape of open chromatin during human neurogenesis.

An antenna-like structure on cells, once considered a useless vestige, appears to be important for proper brain development in mammals and when impaired can cause defects in the brain’s wiring similar to what’s seen in autism, schizophrenia, and other neuropsychiatric disorders. In lab experiments, UNC School of Medicine scientists prevented these wiring defects by restoring signaling though these antenna-like structures called primary cilia.

The study was published on August 7, 2017 in Developmental Cell.

An article from Tim Gershon’s lab is featured on the cover of this month’s issue of Development.