Kirsty Uttley
@kirstyuttley.bsky.social
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Postdoc in the Long lab @IGC University of Edinburgh π©πΌβπ¬
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Kirsty Uttley
Ewa
4 days ago
π£ Preprint alert! I am happy to share that our neural crest manuscript is now available on BioRxiv!
www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
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Array-CNCC: precise aggregation and arrayed plating facilitate quantitative phenotyping of human cranial neural crest cells and craniofacial disease modelling
Facial development is highly sensitive to genetic and environmental perturbation, with craniofacial malformation associated with over one-third of congenital birth defects. The face arises during an early and largely inaccessible window of embryonic development, with a large contribution from transient and multipotent cranial neural crest cells (CNCCs). Assessment of the molecular and cellular mechanisms driving normal and disordered human facial development therefore relies greatly on the use of in vitro cellular models. Here, we adapted a neurosphere-based CNCC differentiation protocol to facilitate robust quantification of early specification and migration events. Introduction of single-cell aggregation with arrayed plating enabled standardisation of neurosphere size, growth and patterning. Inclusion of fibronectin coating enhanced the efficiency of neurosphere attachment and synchronicity of CNCC migration timing. To demonstrate application of the Array-CNCC method, we developed a strategy for mosaic co-culture, which can facilitate differentiation of wildtype untreated cells directly alongside cells exposed to distinct drug treatments or genetic alterations. Finally, we present a screening approach which we use to test the impact of distinct extracellular matrix components on neurosphere morphology, CNCC migration and gene expression. Together, the Array-CNCC method is highly amenable to quantitative phenotyping and screening approaches, enabling enhanced craniofacial disease modelling with both cellular and molecular readouts. ### Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest. Medical Research Council, MC\_UU\_00035/12, MC\_ST\_00035 Wellcome Trust, https://ror.org/029chgv08, 227712/Z/23/Z
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.01.18.696654v1
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A very nice highlight of our recent work
@hannahjuellig.bsky.social
@hannahlong.bsky.social
add a skeleton here at some point
2 months ago
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reposted by
Kirsty Uttley
Development
2 months ago
To learn more about how this story developed and the researchers behind it, we talked to co-first authors Kirsty Uttley and Hannah JΓΌllig, as well as corresponding author, Hannah Long
doi.org/10.1242/dev....
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Really pleased to see our paper now online! Check out Hannah's excellent thread for a summary of the findings π¬
add a skeleton here at some point
2 months ago
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reposted by
Kirsty Uttley
Institute of Genetics and Cancer
2 months ago
Find out how the dark genome holds clues to Neanderthal face shape and how this could help in future research into human disease in this new study from IGC researchers π
edin.ac/443d1j4
@hannahlong.bsky.social
@kirstyuttley.bsky.social
@hannahjuellig.bsky.social
@cmvm-edinburghuni.bsky.social
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Dark genome holds clues to Neanderthal face shape | Institute of Genetics and Cancer | Institute of Genetics and Cancer
Differences in a specific region of the Neanderthal genetic code may have contributed to their distinctive protruding jawline, a study suggests.
https://edin.ac/443d1j4
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