{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,22]],"date-time":"2026-09-22T17:08:04Z","timestamp":1790096884613,"version":"4.0.1"},"reference-count":35,"publisher":"National Academy of Sciences","issue":"39","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,22]],"date-time":"2026-09-22T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1790035200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-nd\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100012166","name":"MOST | National Key Research and Development Program of China","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["2021YFA1101100"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2021YFA1101100"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100012166","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100001809","name":"MOST | National Natural Science Foundation of China","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["32070816"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["32070816"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100001809","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["www.pnas.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A."],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,29]]},"abstract":"<jats:p>\n                    Merkel cells (MCs) are specialized mechanosensory receptor cells essential for touch sensation, exhibiting both epithelial and neuroendocrine characteristics. However, the regulatory processes that shape MC fate remain poorly defined. Using single-cell RNA sequencing, we construct a conserved, triphasic atlas of MC ontogeny comprising an epithelial-like stage, a transitional intermediate phase, and a terminal neuroendocrine state. Importantly, we identify\n                    <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">JunB<\/jats:italic>\n                    as a priming factor essential for initiating MC differentiation, while\n                    <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Pou4f1<\/jats:italic>\n                    acts as a driver of epithelial-neuroendocrine conversion and subsequent functional integration. Moreover, the gene regulatory network analysis further reveals that TUBB3\n                    <jats:sup>+<\/jats:sup>\n                    primed cells could differentiate into the MC lineage under the regulation of\n                    <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Barhl1<\/jats:italic>\n                    and\n                    <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Atoh1<\/jats:italic>\n                    . Genetic lineage tracing and cross-species analyses validate these mechanisms. Together, our work delineates the transcriptional network orchestrating MC fate determination and mechanosensory differentiation, providing not only mechanistic insights but also highlighting actionable targets relevant to MC carcinoma and sensory restoration.\n                  <\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1073\/pnas.2603770123","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,22]],"date-time":"2026-09-22T16:12:31Z","timestamp":1790093551000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1073\/pnas.cm10313","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Dynamic remodeling of the transcriptional landscape drives Merkel cell specification and mechanosensory differentiation"],"prefix":"10.1073","volume":"123","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0004-3936-4001","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Yajun","family":"Zhang","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/00a2xv884","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"Department of Plastic Surgery, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University","place":["Hangzhou, China"]},{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/00a2xv884","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"Department of Gynecology, The Second Affiliated Hospital; 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