ABSTRACT
The fi eld of stem cell biology has gained momentum over the past decade and half due to its potential to cure damaged and diseased tissues and shed light on the processes by which a single fertilized egg gives rise to the remarkable complexity of the embryonic body. Hopes for biomedical applications are fueled by the detection of resident adult stem cell populations in almost all tissues, including the central nervous system. The majority of efforts to understand and control the cues that regulate embryonic stem cell differentiation into various tissues have focused on biochemical signals and transcriptional networks. However, bioelectric signals mediated by slow changes in ion fl ows and transmembrane voltage gradients encode patterning information in physiological networks that guide embryonic morphogenesis, regeneration, and cancer suppression. Recent molecular work has begun to unravel the mechanisms of endogenous bioelectric infl uences on stem cell function. Here, we discuss fundamental
Department of Biology and Center for Regenerative and Developmental Biology Tufts University 200 Boston Ave. Medford, MA 02155 USA. *Corresponding author: michael.levin@tufts.edu
List of abbreviations after the text.
