Overview

• Researchers at UAB and UIC report a bistable molecular switch that directs divergent progenitor fates and organizes transient cellular neighborhoods in the olfactory epithelium.
• High-resolution imaging of live zebrafish embryos with quantitative fate tracking and single-cell RNA sequencing resolved signaling dynamics in real time.
• The work shows how stochastic cues are funneled across cells and tissues to maintain a balance between progenitors and derivatives for sustained neuron production.
• The peer-reviewed findings appear in Stem Cell Reports as a featured cover article in a Neural Stem Cells special issue.
• The team plans comparative tests across vertebrates to assess generality and explore long-term therapeutic potential, with lead author Sriivatsan Govinda Rajan now at Memorial Sloan Kettering.