The balance between differentiation and proliferation must be tightly regulated during tooth development. In a new study, Yuqing Zhang, Jiang Tao, Weiping Zhang, Zhifang Xie and colleagues investigate dental epithelial stem cell dynamics in mouse incisors to uncover a role for the transcription factor ZBTB20 in regulating the switch from proliferation to differentiation. To find out more, we spoke to first author Yuqing Zhang and co-corresponding authors Jiang Tao (Professor at Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital, China), Weiping Zhang (Professor at the Naval Medical University at Shanghai, China) and Zhifang Xie (Principal Investigator at Xinhua Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, China).
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