Tissue regeneration relies on the ability of cells to undergo de novo patterning. While tissue patterning has been viewed as the transition from initially identical un-patterned cells to an arrangemen...

Transcription inhibitors also disrupt nuclear export. Here, Williams et al. reveal that mRNA export factors sense transcription inhibition and adapt by storing mature export-competent mRNA in nuclear speckles. This enables rapid release when transcription resumes and ensures retention of cellular identity and viability during a transient global transcription insult.