| Budget Amount *help |
¥4,110,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,600,000、Indirect Cost: ¥510,000)
Fiscal Year 2007: ¥2,210,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,700,000、Indirect Cost: ¥510,000)
Fiscal Year 2006: ¥1,900,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,900,000)
|
|---|
| Research Abstract |
Vertebrate's semicircular canals in inner ear are intriguing model systems to study the mechanism of morphogenesis, Because their function and conserved among vertebrates.
In the semicircular canals of chick embryo, we made a precise immunohistochemical analysis, and got results suggesting that epithelial-mesenchymal transition plays a roll though it had been thought to be the least plausible mechanism.
By screening zebrafish mutants, we have isolated a mutant line named gallery that has disorganized semicircular canal. In the wild-type, the formation of semicircular canals begins with the development of protrusions that extend inward form the wall of otic vesicle into the lumen. While in gallery, only one protrusion is formed. We are mapping the responsible gene in genome and will be able to clone the gene in coning year.
To study semicircular canal morphogenesis with the resolution of cellular level, we have attempted isolate the fish that specifically express GFP in the otic vesicle. By screening Gal4 gene trap lines, we have identified the line that expresses GFP at the tip of the growing protrusions. We made three-dimensional time-lapse analysis, along with the identification of Gal4 insertion point and cloning the neighboring gene. The cloned gene is a know gene, although it consist of upstream exons. This splicing form might have different expression pattern form conventional splicing form, and we now comparing their expression patterns. We are planning to knock down this specific splicing form and study its function in inner ear morphogenesis.
|
