Molecular Genetics of Cell and Tissue Structure

所有细胞都有一个特征性的形状（形态学），这是细胞功能所固有的。血细胞被设计为在液体介质中移动，而肌肉细胞被优化为附着骨骼的物理运动。我们正在研究控制细胞形状的机制。我们专注于细胞骨架（细胞骨架）的组成部分，这些组成部分与形状的调节有关。特别地，我们研究了基于肌动蛋白的微丝系统。我们以前已经表明，细胞骨架的两种类型的这些组件能够控制细胞的结构。此外，我们发现这两种成分的变体（称为同种型）用于在细胞的不同部分构建结构。这使我们以一种新的方式思考细胞和组织的解剖学。在某种程度上，它就像一座城市。你创造了不同类型的建筑物来满足他们的目的。每栋建筑都使用了适合房间和整体建筑结构要求的积木组合。在这项研究中，我们建议解剖出基因或基因的一部分，它们提供特定类型的构建模块。为此，我们计划改变小鼠的这些基因，然后检查对细胞和组织解剖学的影响。这将有助于解剖学和病理学从描述性学科向实验机制学科的转变。

All cells have a characteristic shape (morphology), which is intrinsic to cellular function. A blood cell is designed to move in a liquid medium whereas a muscle cell is optimised for physical movement of attached bones. We are studying the mechanisms which control cell shape. We focus on the components of the cell skeleton (cytoskeleton) which are implicated in the regulation of shape. In particular, we study the actin based microfilament system. We have previously shown that two types of these components of the cytoskeleton are able to control the structure of cells. In addition, we have found that variants of these two components (called isoforms) are used to build structures in different parts of cells. This has led us to think about the anatomy of cells and tissues in a new way. In some ways its like building a city. You create different kinds of buildings to suit their purpose. Each building uses a combination of building blocks which suit the structural demands of rooms and the overall building. In this study, we are proposing to dissect out genes, or parts of genes, which supply specific types of building blocks. To do this, we plan to change these genes in mice and then examine the impact on cell and tissue anatomy. This promises to contribute to the conversion of anatomical science and pathology from descriptive to experimental-mechanistic disciplines.