Cellular and Molecular Processes that Regulate the Neural Crest EMT

调节神经嵴 EMT 的细胞和分子过程

• 批准号: 1146480
• 负责人: Carol Erickson
• 金额: $ 46.31万
• 依托单位: University of California-Davis
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2012
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2012-06-01 至 2016-05-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1146480&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Cellular; Molecular; Processes; Regulate; Neural

How various cell types migrate to the appropriate sites during embryonic development is a critical question for the field of developmental biology. The neural crest is a population of cells that is generated from the dorsal neural tube by an epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). The goal of this project is to elucidate the molecular mechanisms that control cell behavior during the EMT. The PI has developed novel technology that will allow visualization of cell behavior in the living embryo. As a result of live-cell imaging, it is now possible to analyze the cellular behavior that occurs during the EMT and more importantly to perturb the process molecularly using electroporation of expression plasmids. This approach will enable an understanding of the cell signaling events that control cellular events in the EMT. The EMT is a remarkable example of an organized process whereby one tissue type, the epithelium, is transformed into a new tissue type, the mesenchyme. This process is a necessary step in the development of the vertebrate body plan, providing an unprecedented opportunity to study not only organ development, but also re-programming of cell types to allow them to take on novel roles in a highly coordinated fashion. This EMT occurs throughout development in many species and is crucial for numerous processes. These studies are expected to elucidate the molecular basis for these cell behaviors, because for the first time they can be observed in real time.Undergraduate students and graduate students from underserved minority populations will be primarily involved in doing this research.

在胚胎发育过程中，各种类型的细胞如何迁移到适当的部位是发育生物学领域的一个关键问题。神经嵴是通过上皮-间充质转化（EMT）从背侧神经管产生的细胞群。这个项目的目标是阐明在EMT过程中控制细胞行为的分子机制。 PI开发了一种新技术，可以可视化活胚胎中的细胞行为。作为活细胞成像的结果，现在可以分析EMT期间发生的细胞行为，更重要的是使用表达质粒的电穿孔在分子上干扰该过程。这种方法将能够理解控制EMT中细胞事件的细胞信号事件。 EMT是一个有组织的过程的一个显著例子，其中一种组织类型，上皮，转化为一种新的组织类型，间充质。 这个过程是脊椎动物身体计划发展的必要步骤，提供了一个前所未有的机会，不仅可以研究器官发育，还可以研究细胞类型的重新编程，使它们以高度协调的方式发挥新的作用。 这种EMT发生在许多物种的整个发育过程中，对许多过程至关重要。这些研究有望阐明这些细胞行为的分子基础，因为它们首次可以在真实的时间内被观察到。来自服务不足的少数民族人口的本科生和研究生将主要参与做这项研究。