Development and evolution of the vertebrate skeleton

Our group uses the mouse limb skeleton as an experimental system to study the molecular and cellular mechanisms that coordinate morphogenesis and cell differentiation. To do so, we combine the strengths of mouse genetic analysis (using next-generation tools such as CRISPR-Cas9) with functional genomics approaches (ChiP-seq, ATAC-seq, 4C-seq, etc). In addition to the mouse model, we also use pig, bovine and chicken embryos to gain insight into the regulatory alterations that underlie the evolutionary diversification of limb morphologies in tetrapods.