Molecular and cellular biology of voltage-operated Ca2+ entry in planaria

该奖项是根据2009年美国复苏和再投资法案（公法111-5）资助的。许多生物体表现出非凡的组织再生能力。最引人注目的是被称为涡虫的自由生活的扁虫能够从切除的小块组织中再生出一个全新的身体结构。这种再生能力是由称为新生细胞的特化干细胞驱动的。了解这些细胞的特性，以及它们在再生过程中的行为，是解开这些生物体中再生生物学秘密的关键，因此，为什么其他动物缺乏这种能力。具体来说，该项目将试图了解细胞内钙和Wnt信号通路在控制新生细胞如何在再生过程中产生具有适当位置身份的离散细胞类型中的作用。更广泛的影响。该项目的更广泛影响包括为高中教师提供年度拓展课程，提供再培训和“动手”机会，以获得基本分子和遗传方法的实验室经验。nsf支持的本科生参与这些活动，以及与PI实验室对涡虫再生生物学的兴趣相关的研究项目。因此，受训者获得了适合未来作为研究人员和科学教育者的职业的技能。

This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).Many organisms exhibit a remarkable capacity for tissue regeneration. Most dramatic is the ability of free-living flatworms known as planarians to regenerate an entire new body plan from small excised pieces of tissue. This regenerative ability is driven by specialized stem cells known as neoblasts. Understanding the properties of these cells, and their behavior during regeneration is key to unlocking the secrets of regenerative biology in these organisms, and consequently why this ability is lacking in other animals. Specifically, this project will seek to understand the role of intracellular calcium and Wnt signaling pathways in controlling how neoblasts generate discrete cell types with appropriate positional identity during regeneration. Broader Impacts. Broader impacts of the project encompass an annual outreach course to High School Teachers that provides a retraining and "hands-on" opportunity to gain lab experience in basic molecular and genetic methods. NSF-supported undergraduates participate in these activities, and in research projects relating to the interest of the PI's laboratory in planarian regenerative biology. Consequently, trainees gain skill sets appropriate for future careers as both researchers and scientific educators.