Role of Notch ligands DeltaC and DeltaD during zebrafish development : a transgenic approach

Autor: Ozturk, H. E.
Rok vydání: 2009
Předmět:
Druh dokumentu: Electronic Thesis or Dissertation
Popis: The Notch signalling pathway appears to be ubiquitous in metazoan animals, and is one of the most thoroughly studied signalling pathways. Notchmediated cell-cell communication is crucial for development: it governs the establishment of patterns of gene expression and differentiation and regulates binary cell fate choices and the maintenance of stem cell populations. In zebrafish, Notch signalling governs many aspects of embryonic and adult development and recent studies have identified the main players in different contexts. Interestingly, however, as we learn more about Notch signalling, we are starting to realize the complexity of this pathway that is put together in a relatively simple way. One source of complexity comes from the diversity of roles and functions of different Notch ligands. Among those, we are particularly interested in DeltaC and DeltaD, two major members of the Delta family of ligands, which are curiously expressed together in various contexts ranging from neurogenesis to formation of the gut epithelium and somitogenesis. Many questions remain as to the exact functions of the Notch ligands DeltaC and DeltaD in the somite segmentation process and elsewhere. To investigate temporal and other aspects of the role of these Notch ligands, I have created transgenic zebrafish lines in which we can provoke expression of either one with a heat shock, using either direct regulation by a heat-shock promoter or via GAL4-VP16. This thesis describes the work done during the creation, establishment and validation of these transgenic lines and discusses some of the applications that can reveal novel aspects of Notch signalling, focusing on somite segmentation. I believe that by using these transgenic fish lines, in coordination with other lines that we currently have, we will be able to answer important questions relevant to not only somite segmentation, but also Notch signalling in general.
Databáze: Networked Digital Library of Theses & Dissertations