The recent intersection of enteroendocrine cell biology with single-cell technologies and novel in vitro model systems has generated a tremendous amount of new data. Here we highlight these recent developments and explore how these findings contribute to the understanding of endocrine lineages in the gut. In particular, the concept of hormonal plasticity, the ability of endocrine cells to produce different hormones over the course of their lifetime, challenges the classic notion of cell types. Enteroendocrine cells travel in the course of their life through different signaling environments that directly influence their hormonal repertoire. In this context, we examine how enteroendocrine cell fate is determined and modulated by signaling molecules such as bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) or location along the gastrointestinal tract. We analyze advantages and disadvantages of novel in vitro tools, adult stem cell or iPS-derived intestinal organoids, that have been crucial for recent findings on enteroendocrine development and plasticity. Finally, we illuminate the future perspectives of the field and discuss how understanding enteroendocrine plasticity can lead to new therapeutic approaches.

中文翻译：

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肠内分泌动力学——新工具揭示肠道内的激素可塑性。

最近肠内分泌细胞生物学与单细胞技术和新型体外模型系统的交叉产生了大量的新数据。在这里，我们重点介绍了这些最新进展，并探讨了这些发现如何有助于了解肠道内分泌谱系。特别是激素可塑性的概念，即内分泌细胞在其一生中产生不同激素的能力，挑战了细胞类型的经典概念。肠内分泌细胞在其生命过程中通过直接影响其激素库的不同信号环境传播。在这种情况下，我们研究了肠内分泌细胞的命运是如何通过骨形态发生蛋白 (BMP) 或胃肠道位置等信号分子来确定和调节的。我们分析了新型体外工具、成体干细胞或 iPS 衍生的肠道类器官的优缺点，这些对最近关于肠内分泌发育和可塑性的发现至关重要。最后，我们阐明了该领域的未来前景，并讨论了了解肠内分泌可塑性如何导致新的治疗方法。