POWRE: TGFB Signaling in the Egg-Laying System of C. elegans

这项POWRE研究增强奖将为研究者提供机会，在TGF β样信号通路的一个未研究的分支上进行试点工作。转化生长因子β（TGF β）超家族配体通过控制细胞生长、细胞死亡和分化在多种组织的发育和生理学中发挥重要作用。为了了解TGF β和相关生长因子如何发挥其作用，必须了解信号转导途径。该项目的长期目标是利用分子生物学和遗传学方法阐明线虫线虫中的TGF β信号通路。除了TGF β信号在C.在线虫的发育过程中，一些突变体在产卵系统中发挥了额外的作用。研究人员建议研究TGFb信号在产卵中的作用，并确定此功能的遗传途径。因此，研究人员建议，首先，将这些基因定位到一个精确的位置，为它们的分子克隆做准备。其次，研究人员将描述TGF β通路突变体的产卵缺陷表型及其对环境刺激的反应性。最后，研究人员将确定其他已知的产卵缺陷突变体是否代表在相同途径中起作用的基因。 虽然这些基因的分子克隆超出了本提案的范围，但本文描述的遗传表征将定义该信号传导途径的分支，并为未来的分子表征提供基础。此外，通过研究TGF β通路在其发育背景下的分支，研究者希望了解信号特异性和串扰的机制。

This POWRE Research Enhancement award willprovide the investigator the opportunity to do pilot work on an unstudied branch of a TGFb-like signaling pathway. Transforming growth factor beta (TGFb) superfamily ligands play important roles in the development and physiology of diverse tissues by controlling cell growth, cell death, and differentiation. To understand how TGFb and related growth factors exert their effects the signal transduction pathway must be known. The long-term objective of this project is the elucidation of TGFb signaling pathways in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, using molecular biological and genetic approaches. Besides several well-characterized roles of TGFb signaling in C. elegans development, some mutants reveal an additional role in the egg laying system. The investigator proposes to study the role of TGFb signaling in egg laying and identify a genetic pathway for this function. The investigator therefore proposes, first, to map these genes to a precise location in preparation for their molecular cloning. Second, the investigator will characterize the egg-laying defective phenotype of TGFb pathway mutants and its responsiveness to environmental stimuli. Finally, the investigator will determine whether other known egg-laying defective mutants represent genes that function in the same pathway. Although the molecular cloning of these genes is beyond the scope of this proposal, the genetic characterization described here will define a branch of this signaling pathway and provide the basis for future molecular characterization. Furthermore, by studying a branch of a TGFb pathway in its developmental context, the investigator hopes to understand the mechanisms of signaling specificity and crosstalk.