RUI: Determination of the Dorsal-Ventral Neural Axis in Xenopus

脊椎动物神经元细胞类型的多样性源于发育中的神经系统前后轴（A/P）和背腹轴（D/V）的区域差异。以前的研究表明，在区划的初始阶段，A/P属性是非常不稳定的。为了研究D/V轴上神经区域化的相应阶段，本研究以两栖动物爪蟾为模型系统，开展了一系列研究D/V神经区域化早期阶段的实验。初步数据表明，在该模型中，前侧脊髓区域的D/V模式在相对早期阶段是固定的，而前侧脑区域的D/V模式在较长一段时间内保持不稳定。利用组织操作与分子方法相结合，本提案将通过系统地检查控制D/V神经模式早期阶段的组织相互作用来测试和扩展该模型。这些实验不仅将为基因表达与介导D/V模式事件的生物过程联系起来提供一个框架，而且还将有助于了解胚胎神经元组织的独特特性，特别是其巨大的可塑性。

The diversity of neuronal cell types in vertebrates derives from regional differences along the anterior-posterior (A/P) as well as the dorsal-ventral (D/V) axes of the developing nervous system. Previous work has shown that A/P properties are extremely labile during the initial phases of regionalization. In order to investigate the corresponding stages of neural regionalization along the D/V axis, this investigator initiated a series of experiments examining the early phases of D/V neural patterning using the amphibian Xenopus as a model system. Preliminary data suggest a model in which D/V pattern in the prospective spinal cord region is fixed at relatively early stages in contrast to the anterior brain region in which D/V pattern remains labile for a prolonged period of time. Using tissue manipulations in conjunction with molecular approaches, this proposal will test and extend this model by systematically examining the tissue interactions governing the early stages of D/V neural patterning. These experiments will not only provide a framework for linking gene expression with biological processes mediating D/V patterning events but will also contribute to an understanding of the unique properties of embryonic neuronal tissue, particularly its enormous plasticity.