title: Removing the brakes on cell identity.
abstract: In this issue of Developmental Cell, Dhawan et al. (2011) show that deletion of the Dnmt1 DNA methyltransferase gene in pancreatic insulin-producing cells makes these cells convert into glucagon-producing cells. This suggests that manipulation of a general epigenetic mechanism may be used to redirect cell fates.
authors.affiliation: Genomic Programming of Beta Cells Laboratory, Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi Sunyer, Barcelona 08036, Spain.
authors.forename: Ildem
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Akerman
authors.forename: Joris
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: van Arensbergen
authors.forename: Jorge
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ferrer