Grow Your Vision
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Research Projects
1. Understanding the role of cytoskeletal regulation in the formation and maintenance of neuronal cytoarchitecture and connections
The generation of form during development is dependent upon a tightly choreographed series of events including cell migration, interaction, and shape changes. The cytoskeleton, composed of actin and microtubule filaments and associated proteins, plays a key role in orchestrating tissue morphogenesis and regulating the polarization of cells. The cytoskeleton itself is highly dynamic, composed of a growing end that remodels the shape of cells during their migration in response to cues from the environment. For example, the actin dynamics in the neuronal growth cone responds to chemoattractive cues to extend growing neurites during the wiring up of the nervous system. And the cytoskeleton plays an essential role in the migration of newborn neurons during the creation of laminated structures such as the retina, cerebral cortex, and cerebellum. Yet we have an incomplete understanding of how the neuronal cytoskeleton is regulated in time and space to achieve such remarkably efficient and beautiful neuroanatomies.
Recent efforts in the lab have been focused at identifying interactors of the neuronal cytoskeleton, and the consequences of their loss and gain of function for the laminar organization of neural structures, cellular morphologies, and behaviour. This work sheds light on possible cellular mechanisms that lead to neurodevelopmental disorders as well as neurodegeneration.
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2. Uncovering the role of developmental signaling in the scaling of nervous systems
Tissue formation and patterning requires the coordination of two fundamental cellular processes: growth and death. Within the nervous system the initial driver of growth and patterning are signaling factors called morphogens. They activate gene regulatory networks to specify distinct cell fates within the developing central nervous system (CNS) and sculpt the size and boundaries to tissues and organs during development. Thus, a clear understanding of how morphogens can accomplish these feats of tissue engineering is of central importance to developmental biology. Work from our group and our collaborators revealed that appropriate levels of Sonic Hedgehog (Shh) signaling is required to ensure a balance of growth promoting and apoptotic signals in developing tissues. It is however unclear how Shh levels act to achieve this balance. Answering this question will shed light on how neural specification can scale according to divergent body sizes in vertebrates. Using both tissue culture and mouse transgenic models, we are investigating how morphogen signaling, like Shh, can regulate the scaling of growth and patterning in vertebrates, which is a key evolutionary-developmental mechanism that has yet to be elucidated.
Using both tissue culture and mouse transgenic models, we are investigating how morphogen signaling, like Shh, can regulate the scaling of growth and patterning in vertebrates, which is a key evolutionary-developmental mechanism that has yet to be elucidated.
The lab is funded by the following organizations...
