Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Cellular Differentiation00:57

Cellular Differentiation

4.7K
How does a complex organism such as a human develop from a single cell? It all starts from a single fertilized egg which gives rise to a vast array of cell types, such as nerve cells, muscle cells, and epithelial cells that characterize the adult? Throughout development and adulthood, cellular differentiation leads cells to assume their final morphology and physiology. Differentiation is the process by which unspecialized cells become specialized to carry out distinct functions.
A zygote is a...
4.7K
Determination01:51

Determination

20.4K
During embryogenesis, cells become progressively committed to different fates through a two-step process: specification followed by determination. Specification is demonstrated by removing a segment of an early embryo, “neutrally” culturing the tissue in vitro—for example, in a petri dish with simple medium—and then observing the derivatives. If the cultured region gives rise to cell types that it would normally generate in the embryo, this means that it is specified. In...
20.4K
Eukaryotic Evolution01:24

Eukaryotic Evolution

39.8K
The endosymbiont theory is the most widely accepted theory of eukaryotic evolution; however, its progression is still somewhat debated. According to the nucleus-first hypothesis, the ancestral prokaryote first evolved a membrane to enclose DNA and form the nucleus. Conversely, the mitochondria-first hypothesis suggests that the nucleus was formed after endosymbiosis of mitochondria.
Contrary to the endosymbiont theory, the eukaryote-first hypothesis proposes that the simpler prokaryotic and...
39.8K
Synteny and Evolution02:31

Synteny and Evolution

3.6K
John H. Renwick first coined the term “synteny” in 1971, which refers to the genes present on the same chromosomes, even if they are not genetically linked. The species with common ancestry tend to show conserved syntenic regions. Therefore, the concept of synteny is nowadays used to describe the evolutionary relationship between species.
Around 80 million years ago, the human and mice lineages diverged from the common ancestor. During the course of evolution, the ancestral...
3.6K
Cell Diversity01:13

Cell Diversity

4.5K
The concept of a cell started with microscopic observations of dead cork tissue by Robert Hooke in 1665. Hooke coined the term "cell" based on the resemblance of the small subdivisions in the cork to the rooms that monks inhabited, called cells. About ten years later, Antonie van Leeuwenhoek became the first person to observe the living and moving cells under a microscope. In the century that followed, the theory that cells represented the basic unit of life developed.
Multicellular...
4.5K
The Evidence for Evolution02:55

The Evidence for Evolution

47.1K
Genetic variations accumulating within populations over generations give rise to biological evolution. Evolutionary changes can result in the formation of novel varieties and entire new species. These changes are responsible for the diverse forms of life inhabiting the planet. The evidence for evolution suggests that all living organisms descended from common ancestors.
47.1K

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

When does additional information improve accuracy of RNA secondary structure prediction?

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026
Same author

Cell division timing shapes the morphology and size of nascent multicellular organisms.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026
Same author

Genomic ancestry predicts rapid responses to drought across spatiotemporal scales.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2026
Same author

Gene expression dynamics in wound healing: Comparative analysis between the wound edge and center.

PloS one·2026
Same author

Towards adaptive bioelectronic wound therapy with integrated real-time diagnostics and machine learning-driven closed-loop control.

npj biomedical innovations·2026
Same author

Correction: A data-driven approach to establishing cell motility patterns as predictors of macrophage subtypes and their relation to cell morphology.

PloS one·2026

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Dec 11, 2025

Finite Element Modelling of a Cellular Electric Microenvironment
08:23

Finite Element Modelling of a Cellular Electric Microenvironment

Published on: May 18, 2021

3.8K

Evolution of Cellular Differentiation: From Hypotheses to Models.

Pedro Márquez-Zacarías1, Rozenn M Pineau1, Marcella Gomez2

  • 1Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Quantitative Biosciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA; School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA.

Trends in Ecology & Evolution
|August 25, 2020
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Cellular differentiation is key to multicellular life, enabling functional diversity among cells. Boolean networks offer a framework to understand how cell types arise and function within complex organisms.

Keywords:
Boolean networkscellular differentiationdynamical systemsmulticellularity

More Related Videos

In vitro Modeling for Neurological Diseases using Direct Conversion from Fibroblasts to Neuronal Progenitor Cells and Differentiation into Astrocytes
11:42

In vitro Modeling for Neurological Diseases using Direct Conversion from Fibroblasts to Neuronal Progenitor Cells and Differentiation into Astrocytes

Published on: June 10, 2021

5.3K
Differentiation of Mouse Breast Epithelial HC11 and EpH4 Cells
09:32

Differentiation of Mouse Breast Epithelial HC11 and EpH4 Cells

Published on: February 27, 2020

9.4K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Dec 11, 2025

Finite Element Modelling of a Cellular Electric Microenvironment
08:23

Finite Element Modelling of a Cellular Electric Microenvironment

Published on: May 18, 2021

3.8K
In vitro Modeling for Neurological Diseases using Direct Conversion from Fibroblasts to Neuronal Progenitor Cells and Differentiation into Astrocytes
11:42

In vitro Modeling for Neurological Diseases using Direct Conversion from Fibroblasts to Neuronal Progenitor Cells and Differentiation into Astrocytes

Published on: June 10, 2021

5.3K
Differentiation of Mouse Breast Epithelial HC11 and EpH4 Cells
09:32

Differentiation of Mouse Breast Epithelial HC11 and EpH4 Cells

Published on: February 27, 2020

9.4K

Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary biology
  • Developmental biology
  • Systems biology

Background:

  • Cellular differentiation is crucial for the evolution of complex multicellular organisms.
  • Understanding the origins and distinctiveness of cell types remains a challenge.
  • Existing hypotheses lack a unifying conceptual framework.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To introduce Boolean networks (BNs) as a tool for studying cellular differentiation.
  • To integrate empirical findings into a coherent theoretical model.
  • To highlight challenges in interpreting data and model behavior.

Main Methods:

  • Application of Boolean networks (BNs) to model gene regulatory interactions.
  • Conceptual framework development for analyzing cell-type distinctiveness.
  • Analysis of model behavior in the context of empirical data.

Main Results:

  • Boolean networks provide a framework for understanding cell-type specification.
  • The study identifies key challenges in interpreting models of differentiation.
  • A conceptual approach is proposed to bridge empirical data and theoretical models.

Conclusions:

  • Boolean networks can aid in understanding the evolution of cellular differentiation.
  • Further research is needed to refine models and interpret their behavior.
  • A unified framework is essential for advancing the study of multicellularity.