The Morris Lab has a new preprint, “Single-Cell Analysis Reveals Regional Reprogramming during Adaptation to Massive Small Bowel Resection in Mice.” The study, which was carried out in collaboration with the Warner Lab at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, uses single-cell profiling to elucidate transcriptional changes in a mouse model of short gut syndrome (SGS), a condition that can arise after the removal of the small intestine. The study shows that following the removal of the proximal small intestine, enterocytes of the remaining distal small intestine undergo ‘regional reprogramming’ to adopt a more proximal identity.
“These findings are exciting as interventions to boost the endogenous reprogramming capacity of small intestine enterocytes, conceivably by engaging the retinoid metabolism pathway, may potentially overcome intestinal failure in SGS,” said Samantha Morris, Ph.D., Assistant Professor in Developmental Biology and Genetics at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and senior author on the preprint.
Sarah Waye and Wenjun Kong, graduate students in the Morris lab, and Kenji Kamimoto, Ph.D., a postdoctoral fellow in the Morris Lab, are also authors on the preprint. Congratulations, all!