Flexibility or commitment: choosing between division and differentiation

As cells move from acquiring a specific identity to gaining cell type-specific functions during differentiation, their properties and programs need to be adjusted. Initially, most newly specified cells show high division potential and properties that confer them qualities reminiscent of stem cells. During maturation, however, cells exit or change division programs and gain differentiation characteristics. Factors that regulate this progression have often been described to control either division or differentiation, but are now more often being linked to both sides of this trade-off. In this review, we provide an overview of recent publications that identify some of the factors balancing division and differentiation. We discuss these in the context of the tissues and cell types they act in, and note connections to cell cycle regulation. Recent advances are now allowing for a better understanding of how division and differentiation programs intertwine to shape cell trajectories.