GROWTH CONE GUIDANCE--INTERACTIONS AND SURFACE MOLECULES

大脑发育的探索者仍处于爆炸性时代 发现号。在神经发生过程中表达的新分子正在 以不断增长的速度被发现，并询问这些分子是如何 共同发挥作用，指定路径和目标将继续 是我们最难回答的问题。有多少不同的表面 分子在发育过程中对神经元的寻路做出贡献 每一项都对 胚胎神经元的动态能力？我们开始回答 通过使用单克隆抗体分离新的 在发育中的神经元和神经胶质细胞上表达的分子 蝗虫胚胎，并通过量化动态行为和 利用高分辨率时间推移研究胚胎神经元的能力 视频显微镜系统。我们目前正在描述两个新的 分子，一个已经被克隆，另一个蛋白质已经被克隆 部分测序，并打算与最近进行另外六个 分离的单抗。我们的目标是将这两者结合起来 发展一种新的细胞和分子分析方法 阻止表达或诱导异位的函数 新分子的表达，并观察动态的差异 单个神经元在其正常环境中的行为。

Explorers of brain development are still in the age of explosive discovery. New molecules expressed during neurogenesis are being found at an ever increasing rate, and asking how these molecules function together to specify pathways and targets will continue to be our most difficult question. How many different surface molecules contribute to neuronal pathfinding during development and what is the functional contribution that each makes to the dynamic abilities of embryonic neurons? We are beginning to answer these questions by using monoclonal antibodies to isolate new molecules expressed on developing neurons and glia in the grasshopper embryo, and by quantifying the dynamic behaviors and abilities of embryonic neurons using a high resolution time lapse video microscopy system. We are currently characterizing two new molecules, one has been cloned and the other protein has been partially sequenced, and intend to pursue six others with recently isolated monoclonal antibodies. Our goal is to combine these two approaches by developing a novel assay of cellular and molecular function in which we block the expression, or induce ectopic expression, of new molecules and observe differences in the dynamic behaviors of individual neurons in their normal environment.