My research focuses on the embryonic development of the mammalian germline. In humans and mice, the germline segregates from somatic cell linages within the early post-implantation embryo and undergoes epigenetic resetting as part of a “rejuvenation” process laying the foundation for the subsequent life cycle. In my research, I employ human and murine embryonic stem cell-based in vitro systems recapitulating the germline-soma segregation in vivo as well as transcriptional and epigenetic analysis of in vivo primordial germ cells to understand the molecular mechanism driving germline specification and development.
