====== Cell Differentiation ======

>__"The mechanisms that link cellular differentiation programs and dynamic gene regulation in complex eukaryotic systems remain mysterious.__ Such programs drive diverse and central biological processes including organismal development, immune function, disease progression, and meiosis."\\ \\ Source : [[http://www.unal-and-brar-labs.org/brar-research/|The Brar Lab]] at Berkeley

Although there has been extensive progress in the understanding of factors involved with  [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cellular_differentiation|cellular differentiation]], a full description of how stem cells differentiate into radically different forms (to generate the diverse structure of complex organisms) is elusive.

Each cell of a mammal  (for example) carries the //full genetic code// to form //any cell// within the body. As an embryo develops, multiple sets of genes are 'turned off' within a cell, leaving the only the correct set operating to form the target cell.

There are many theoretical proposals to explain how this occurs - including 'epigenetic' factors (i.e. outside the chromosomes)  e.g. hormones etc. - which might influence the growth and final destiny of a cell.

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Also see : [[content:life_sciences:life_itself:cell_proliferation]]