Loss and rescue of regeneration in naidine annelids

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。动物在替换失去的身体部位的能力上差异很大。有些动物，如人类，不能再生大部分身体部位，而有些动物，如一些分段蠕虫，可以从原始动物的一小部分重新长出整个身体。这项研究的最终目标是了解这种变异的根本原因，并确定可能导致再生（身体部分替换的过程）失败或继续的因素。具体来说，这项工作集中在两种密切相关的分节蠕虫上，一种可以再生其头部，另一种除非在发育非常年轻的组织内发生切割，否则不能再生。对这两个物种的研究将确定基因和发育过程，这些基因和发育过程可能使动物能够再生，即使它们通常不能再生。确定在非再生物种中诱导再生的特定条件将进一步理解成功再生的自然障碍，并提出绕过这些障碍的途径。这项工作将在一个高度支持强有力的指导的环境中培养一个多样化的本科生、研究生和研究生研究人员群体。这个实验室已经并将继续为不同的学生提供机会，包括少数民族等代表性不足的群体。实验室人员积极参与研究成果的传播，使研究成果得到广泛、及时的传播。遗传资源将在获得后不久通过一个免费的序列资源库提供给研究界。

This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5). Animals vary tremendously in their ability to replace lost body parts. While some animals, such as humans, cannot re-grow most body parts, others, such as some segmented worms, can re-grow an entire body from a small fragment of the original animal. The ultimate goal of this research is to understand the root causes of this variation and to identify factors that can cause regeneration, the process of body part replacement, to fail or proceed. Specifically, this work focuses on two closely related species of segmented worms, one that can regenerate its head and the other that cannot do so except when the cut occurs within developmentally very young tissue. Investigations in these two species will identify genes and developmental processes that may allow an animal to regenerate even when it usually cannot do so. Determining the specific conditions under which regeneration can be elicited in an otherwise non-regenerating species will further understanding of the natural blocks to successful regeneration and suggest paths to circumventing these blocks. This work will foster the training of a diverse group of undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate researchers within an environment highly supportive of strong mentoring. This laboratory has provided and will continue to provide opportunities to diverse students including underrepresented groups such as minorities. Lab personnel will actively participate in disseminating research results, and research findings will be disseminated broadly and in a timely manner. Genetic resources will be made available to the research community through a freely available sequence repository shortly after acquisition.