Extracellular Signals in the Control of Gene Expression Regulating Cellular Survival, Death and Differentiation

Dear Colleagues,

Mammalian development and cell fate specification are controlled by various regulatory mechanisms that interact in a coordinated way to guarantee a correct regulation of gene expression. In particular, transcriptional networks can be regulated by extracellular signals, including changes in the microenvironment and mechanical stimuli, to control cell fate decision such as to escape or undergo apoptosis, or to differentiate.

How do cells “read” information from the environment and translate it into specific cell fate decisions? Recent findings suggest that cell fate is encoded in early signaling events and can be predicted from defined signal properties. Specifically, the time course of activated key signaling molecules can be related to cellular fate such as proliferation or differentiation. Nowadays, the identification of the key signal mediators and their linking to cell fate is also facilitated by transcriptomics and proteomics analyses, assisted by bioinformatics and mathematical modeling.

This Special Issue focuses on the recent progress in understanding the biochemical and molecular biology of cellular survival, death and differentiation, considering in particular changes coming from the cellular microenvironment that affect the transcriptional network. Specific changes in gene expression patterns and alterations in the protein expression in cellular or animal models will also be considered in this Special Issue.

Prof. Dr. Claudia Martini
Prof. Dr. Maria Letizia Trincavelli
Dr. Simona Daniele
Guest Editors

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