Siim Pauklin studies the molecular mechanisms that govern human pluripotent stem cell self-renewal and differentiation, particularly their specification to endoderm and to pancreatic insulin-producing beta-cells. He is interested in the function of TGFß / Activin / Nodal signalling pathway in these processes, since this pathway is essential for pluripotent stem cell self-renewal and early embryonic development but is also involved in human pathologies such as pancreatic cancer and diabetes. His talk will focus on his recent discoveries on the regulation of human pluripotent stem cell differentiation (Pauklin 2013 Cell; Pauklin 2015 Genes Dev; Bertero 2015 Genes Dev). This research has uncovered important mechanisms how stem cell differentiation is orchestrated by the cell cycle.