Research Interests
Proper formation and growth of the calvaria is critical for the proper accommodation of the growing brain during embryonic and postnatal life. Sustained calvarial bone growth relies on fibrous joints called sutures, which simultaneously act as a barrier between neighboring bones and a source of stem cells to grow bones. In a common congenital abnormality called craniosynostosis, sutures are lost and neighboring bones prematurely fuse, limiting brain growth. In the Farmer lab, we integrate multiple animal models (i.e. mice and zebrafish) with cutting edge genomic, genetic and imaging technologies to decipher the molecular and cellular basis of calvaria development.
Selected Publications
Ting MC, Farmer DT, Teng CS, Crump JG. 2021. Maxson RE. Embryonic requirements of Tcf12 for development of the mouse coronal suture. Development. doi: 10.1242/dev.199575.
Farmer DT, Mlcochov, H, Zhou Y, Koelling N, Wang G, Ashley N, Bugacov H, Chen HJ, Parvez R, Tseng KC, Merrill A, Maxson RE, Crump JG, Wilie AOM. 2021. The developing mouse coronal suture at single-cell resolution. Nature Communications. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-24917-9.
Farmer DT, Patel P, Choi R, Liu CY, Crump JG. 2021. Widespread roles for Irx proteins in formation and individuation of cartilages in the facial and appendicular skeletons. Development. dev.197244. doi: 10.1242/dev.197244
Giovannone D, Paul S, Schindler S, Arata C, Farmer DT, Patel P, Smeeton J, Crump JG. 2019. Programmed conversion of hypertrophic chondrocytes into osteoblasts and marrow adipocytes within zebrafish bones. pii: e42736. doi: 10.7554/eLife.42736.
Teng CS, Ting MC, Farmer DT, Brockop M, Maxson RE, Crump JG. 2018. Altered bone growth dynamics prefigure craniosynostosis in a zebrafish model of Saethre-Chotzen syndrome. pii: e37024. doi: 10.7554/eLife.37024.
Jee, D., Yang JS, Park SM, Farmer DT, Wen J, Chou T, Chow A, McManus MT, Kharas MG, Lai EC. 2018. Dual strategies for Argonaute2 Slicer-dependent miRNA biogenesis regulate erythropoiesis. Molecular Cell. 69:1-14. doi: 10.1016/j.molcel.2017.12.027.
Farmer DT, Nathan S, Shengyang K, Emmerson E, Finely J, Byrnes L, Sneddon J, McManus MT, Tward A, Knox SM. 2017. Defining epithelial cell dynamics and lineage relationships in the developing lacrimal gland. Development. pii: dev.150789. doi: 10.1242/dev.150789.
Farmer DT, Finley JK, Chen FY, Tarifeño-Saldivia E, Knox SM, McNamara N, McManus MT. 2017. miR-205 is a critical regulator of lacrimal gland development. Dev Biol. pii: S0012-1606(17)30201-4. doi: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2017.05.012.
Farmer DT, McManus MT. 2017. MicroRNAs in ectodermal appendages. Curr Opin Genet Dev. 16;43:61-66. doi: 10.1016/j.gde.2016.12.006
Finley JK, Farmer D, Emmerson E, Cruz Pacheco N, Knox SM. 2014. Manipulating the Murine Lacrimal Gland. J. Vis. Exp. 201:93, e51970. doi: 10.3791/51970.
Farmer DT, Shariat N, Park CY, Liu HJ, Mavropoulos A, McManus MT. 2013. Partially Penetrant Postnatal Lethality of an Epithelial Specific MicroRNA in a Mouse Knockout. PLoS ONE 8:10, e76634. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0076634