Neurotransmitter Specification and Regulation in Caenorhabditis Elegans

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IBN 98-08861 LI (Christine). Different components of the nervous system communicate with each other through the use of chemical messengers. These chemicals, known as neurotransmitters, are strictly regulated within the body. Imbalances in the levels of neurotransmitters can have severe effects on the behavior of an animal. For instance, decreased levels of the neurotransmitter dopamine is the basis of the behavioral deficits seen in patients with Parkinson's Disease. The laboratory of Dr. Christine Li has been examining the regulation of neurotransmitters in a simple model system, the roundworm Caenorhabditis elegans. C. elegans offers many experimental advantages, such as ease of genetic manipulations and generation of transgenic animals. Dr. Li has been examining a specific family of neurotransmitters, the "FLP neuropeptides", in C. elegans. There are over 50 similar, but distinct members of the FLP family in C. elegans. The goal of her lab is to elucidate the function of these different transmitters and to determine how these chemicals signal to other parts of the nervous system. Thus far, it appears that despite the structural similarities between different FLP transmitters, they have different roles in C. elegans, and are present in different parts of the nervous system. This research may give insights into the function of homologous transmitters in mammals, such as humans, and reveal how these chemicals are used for communication among different parts of the mammalian nervous system.