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Peng Huang

@penghuang031.bsky.social

500 followers 530 following 29 posts

Developmental biologist at University of Calgary Cell signaling, tissue patterning, fibroblast, regeneration, zebrafish

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Peng Huang @penghuang031.bsky.social · 29d

Thrilled to share our latest work from my fantastic postdoc fellow Dr. Emilio Méndez-Olivos: Pdgfab/Pdgfra-mediated chemoattraction guides the migration of sclerotome-derived fibroblast precursors in zebrafish, now published in @plosbiology.org! 1/8
dx.plos.org/10.1371/jour...

Pdgfab/Pdgfra-mediated chemoattraction guides the migration of sclerotome-derived fibroblast precursors in zebrafish

During vertebrate development, fibroblast precursors migrate from the sclerotome to specific tissues, but the mechanisms that guide these precursors remain unclear. This study shows that Pdgfab/Pdgfra...

dx.plos.org

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Peng Huang @penghuang031.bsky.social · 29d

Couldn’t have done this without Emilio’s hard work 🎉 Huge thanks to our amazing co-authors, collaborators, and @CIHR for supporting this fundamental research! #Zebrafish #Fibroblast #CellMigration #Chemoattraction #DevBiol 8/8

Peng Huang @penghuang031.bsky.social · 29d

Together, Emilio’s work demonstrates that Pdgfab/Pdgfra signaling-mediated chemoattraction guides the migration of fibroblast precursors to specific locations, where they diversify into distinct fibroblast subtypes. 7/8

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Peng Huang @penghuang031.bsky.social · 29d

Mosaic expression of Pdgfab is sufficient to restore fibroblast precursor migration locally, and can even redirect them to ectopic locations. These results suggest that Pdgfab functions as a chemoattractant. 6/8

Peng Huang @penghuang031.bsky.social · 29d

What is the ligand for Pdgfra? Interestingly, pdgfab is expressed in the medial somite, flanking the migratory path of fibroblast precursors. Loss of pdgfab specifically impairs medial migration of fibroblast precursors toward the notochord. 5/8

Peng Huang @penghuang031.bsky.social · 29d

Using a dominant-negative Pdgfra tool, we found that Pdgfra functions cell-autonomously to regulate fibroblast precursor migration. 4/8

Peng Huang @penghuang031.bsky.social · 29d

Platelet-derived growth factor receptor a (pdgfra) is specifically expressed in sclerotome progenitors. Loss of Pdgfra in a gene-trap mutant results in severe defects in the migration of sclerotome-derived fibroblast precursors in all directions. 3/8

Peng Huang @penghuang031.bsky.social · 29d

Fibroblasts are found in nearly all vertebrate organs. But how are fibroblast precursors instructed to migrate and populate diverse tissues during embryonic development? We previously showed that the sclerotome of the somite is an embryonic source of diverse fibroblast subtypes in zebrafish. 2/8

Peng Huang @penghuang031.bsky.social · 29d

Pdgfab/Pdgfra-mediated chemoattraction guides the migration of sclerotome-derived fibroblast precursors in zebrafish

dx.plos.org

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Peng Huang @penghuang031.bsky.social · Jun 26

Thank you Kevin! You rock!

Peng Huang @penghuang031.bsky.social · Jun 23

Thank you, Fred!

Peng Huang @penghuang031.bsky.social · Jun 23

Thanks, Ruben!

Peng Huang @penghuang031.bsky.social · Jun 23

Big thanks to all our co-authors for their contributions, and to #CIHR for supporting this fundamental research! #zebrafish #devbio 8/8

Peng Huang @penghuang031.bsky.social · Jun 23

Together, our findings highlight that dynamic regulation of BMP signaling is crucial for sclerotome induction and the diversification of its derivatives during zebrafish development. 7/8

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Peng Huang @penghuang031.bsky.social · Jun 23

Functionally, sustained BMP signaling prevents the differentiation of tenocytes (tendon fibroblasts) in the trunk, while BMP inhibition disrupts fin mesenchymal cell morphogenesis. 6/8

Peng Huang @penghuang031.bsky.social · Jun 23

Interestingly, BMP responsiveness differs among sclerotome-derived cell populations: notochord-associated cells in the medial trunk show no BMP response, whereas fin mesenchymal cells in the fin fold maintain high-level of BMP signaling. 5/8

Peng Huang @penghuang031.bsky.social · Jun 23

Using mosaic expression of a dominant-negative BMP receptor, we demonstrated that BMP signaling induces sclerotome fate in a cell-autonomous manner. 4/8

Peng Huang @penghuang031.bsky.social · Jun 23

Gain- and loss-of-function experiments show that BMP signaling is both necessary and sufficient for sclerotome induction. For example, activating BMP signaling induces sclerotome markers at the expense of dermomyotome markers. 3/8

Peng Huang @penghuang031.bsky.social · Jun 23

The sclerotome is an embryonic source of the axial skeleton and many tissue-supporting cells like fibroblasts. We found that several BMP ligands, including bmp4, are expressed in sclerotome progenitors and in cells adjacent to sclerotome-derived lineages such as fin mesenchymal cells. 2/8

Peng Huang @penghuang031.bsky.social · Jun 23

Excited to share our latest work led by my PhD student Linjun Xie on sclerotome development: Dynamic BMP signaling regulates sclerotome induction and lineage diversification in zebrafish, now published on @dev-journal.bsky.social! #zebrafish #devbio 1/8 doi.org/10.1242/dev....

Dynamic BMP signaling regulates sclerotome induction and lineage diversification in zebrafish

Summary: Loss- and gain-of-function manipulations reveal that dynamic regulation of BMP signaling is essential for the induction and diversification of the sclerotome lineage in zebrafish.

doi.org

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Peng Huang @penghuang031.bsky.social · Jun 23

Congrats! Well deserved!!

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Reposted by Peng Huang

Axel Visel @axelvisel.bsky.social · Jun 18

Textbooks: “Enhancers are just a bunch of TFBSs”

But how do they REALLY work?

New paper with many contributors here @berkeleylab.lbl.gov, @anshulkundaje.bsky.social, @anusri.bsky.social

A 🧵 (1/n)

Free access link: rdcu.be/erD22

A meme-style comic panel with three parts. Left: A stylized enhancer with a mutation, surrounded by colored blocks representing functional motifs, a neural network diagram, chromatin accessibility signal traces, and a sequence motif. Two cartoon mouse embryos below show different LacZ reporter activity patterns. Top right: A hand hovers anxiously between two red buttons labeled “Experiments” and “AI,” with the caption “HOW DO ENHANCERS REALLY WORK?” Bottom right: A sweating superhero wipes his forehead, looking stressed about the difficult choice.

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Reposted by Peng Huang

Pauli Group (posts by Andi Pauli) @pauligroup.bsky.social · Mar 8

Switching fields and/or wanting to become an expert in #zebrafish research?
The @mblscience.bsky.social 2025 Zebrafish Development & Genetics course offers a fantastic opportunity to learn from leaders in the field!

(New & final) Application deadline: March 28
www.mbl.edu/education/ad...

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Peng Huang @penghuang031.bsky.social · Feb 27

The 12th Canadian Developmental Biology Conference will take place in the beautiful city of Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada, in May 25-28, 2025. The registration is still open. event.fourwaves.com/12cdb/pages

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Peng Huang @penghuang031.bsky.social · Feb 12

Congratulations, well-deserved!!

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Peng Huang @penghuang031.bsky.social · Jan 2

Cool story. Congratulations, David!!

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