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Stefano Di Talia

Professor of Cell Biology
Cell Biology

Current Appointments & Affiliations


Professor of Cell Biology · 2024 - Present Cell Biology, Basic Science Departments
Professor in Orthopaedic Surgery · 2024 - Present Orthopaedic Surgery, Clinical Science Departments
Affiliate of the Duke Regeneration Center · 2021 - Present Duke Regeneration Center, Basic Science Departments

In the News


Published February 3, 2025
Celebrating Duke’s New Full Professors
Published May 2, 2019
Developing Cells Do Synchronized Swimming Inside the Embryo

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Recent Publications


Phased ERK responsiveness and developmental robustness regulate teleost skin morphogenesis.

Journal Article Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A · March 11, 2025 Elongation of the vertebrate embryonic axis necessitates rapid expansion of the epidermis to accommodate the growth of underlying tissues. Here, we generated a toolkit to visualize and quantify signaling in entire cell populations of the periderm, the oute ... Full text Link to item Cite

Developmental Control of Cell Cycle and Signaling.

Journal Article Cold Spring Harb Perspect Biol · February 3, 2025 In most species, the earliest stages of embryogenesis are characterized by rapid proliferation, which must be tightly controlled with other cellular processes across the large scale of the embryo. The study of this coordination has recently revealed new me ... Full text Link to item Cite

The cell cycle oscillator and spindle length set the speed of chromosome separation in Drosophila embryos.

Journal Article Curr Biol · February 3, 2025 Anaphase is tightly controlled spatiotemporally to ensure proper separation of chromosomes.1,2,3 The mitotic spindle, the self-organized microtubule structure driving chromosome segregation, scales in size with the available cytoplasm.4,5,6,7 Yet, the rela ... Full text Link to item Cite
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Recent Grants


Physical principles of early Drosophila embryogenesis

ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Institutes of Health · 2024 - 2029

Mechanism of epidermal coordination during development and regeneration in zebrafish

ResearchMentor · Awarded by National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases · 2023 - 2028

Training Program in Developmental and Stem Cell Biology

Inst. Training Prgm or CMEMentor · Awarded by National Institutes of Health · 2001 - 2027

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Education, Training & Certifications


Rockefeller University · 2009 Ph.D.