Characterizing a Target Locus of a Behavioral Genetic Hierarchy

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GINGER E. CARNEY 0321473LAY ABSTRACTAnimals display a suite of behaviors necessary for their existence and reproductive success. Many researchers have attempted to correlate specific human genes with behaviors, but the complexity of genetic and environmental interactions, as well as the multiple functions of these genes, makes it difficult to definitively identify them. Determining the genetic basis of behaviors is an important intellectual challenge because our current knowledge does not allow us to understand how gene expression results in particular behavioral outcomes.Reproduction in Drosophila melanogaster is an excellent system for the study of complex behaviors. One recently identified locus necessary for egg-laying behavior, logjam (loj), is expressed in the female Drosophila central nervous system and ovaries. This gene's predicted protein product shares homology with a family of important intracellular trafficking proteins that are evolutionarily conserved across a variety of taxa, including mammals, yeasts, and plants. The objective of this proposal is to characterize loj and its role in egg-laying behavior. The proposed experiments use a combination of molecular, genetic and cellular techniques to arrive at answers to these questions and to further general understanding of principles governing genetic and molecular networks that must function to specify a behavioral outcome.This research program will enhance research at the Georgia Institute of Technology because the Principle Investigator will provide expertise in genetic model systems and developmental biology. One important goal of this research plan is to contribute to the training of undergraduate and graduate scientists. The genetic control of behavior is an interesting topic to the public at large, so the PI will use this focus as a means to engage non-scientists, particularly children and teachers, in scientific issues by talking at elementary schools and opening my lab to summer projects for K-12 teachers.