The community site for and by
developmental and stem cell biologists

Behind the paper stories

Behind the paper stories

Every paper has a story behind it, and we regularly commission scientists to tell theirs. In this collection you’ll discover the highs and the lows, the chance encounters and life changing discoveries from the breadth of developmental biology and stem cell research.

Recent posts

Traditional Embryology with Modern Imaging Approaches: Investigating Morphogenetic Feedback on Pattern Formation

Posted by , on 9 October 2020

Timothy Fulton, Vikas Trivedi, Andrea Attardi & Benjamin Steventon As developmental biologists, we often find ourselves carefully looking at developing embryos as they undertake a dramatic and fascinating task: making …

Forgotten filaments to the fore

Posted by , on 1 October 2020

The cytoskeletal filament network within our cells underpins the functionality of virtually all cellular processes. Apart from conferring a structural framework giving cells their unique shapes, the cytoskeleton also regulates …

The long road to understanding homeobox genes in the nervous system

Posted by , on 1 October 2020

Following the initial discovery of the homeobox in the 1980s in invertebrates and then vertebrates, it became quickly clear that homeobox genes come in two flavors – that of the …

From Image to Insight – Morphogenesis Meets Data Science

Posted by , on 26 September 2020

A wave of innovations is advancing data-driven computational analysis and machine learning – time for developmental biologists to hop on the surf board! This post, inspired by our recent data-driven …

From mysterious cysts to CSF-in-a-dish

Posted by , on 21 September 2020

Our brain is immersed in a clear, colourless, nutrient-rich fluid called the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), which provides mechanical support to the brain and helps to circulate important molecules for brain …

Delineating the making of an embryo

Posted by , on 15 September 2020

By Hanna L. Sladitschek and Pierre A. Neveu   Our body consists of a multitude of highly specialized tissues: the neurons in our retina seem to have little in common …

Mayflies: an emergent model to investigate the evolution of winged insects

Posted by , on 11 September 2020

Winged insects are the most diverse and numerous group of animals on Earth. This great diversity has been possible thanks to the acquisition of novel morphologies and lifestyles. How the …

Monotreme ears and the evolution of mammal jaws

Posted by , on 5 August 2020

Jaw joints, in most vertebrate animals that have them, form between a bone in the head called the quadrate and one in the mandible called the articular. The mandibles (lower …

“If you notice something unusual in your experiments, don’t just throw it away!”

Read Laura Pellegrini’s piece on choroid plexus organoids 

Do you have a story to tell? We can give comments on drafts and any level of editing you want, and we particularly encourage contributions from researchers for whom English is not their first language.

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Our full archive going back to 2010 is filterable by category, tag and date.

Updated on 21 August 2024