The lab

The long-term aim of our lab is to understand the regulatory control systems that guide neuron differentiation and morphogenesis. With this plan, we aim to reveal fundamental molecular mechanisms that create form and function in the nervous system. Our research will also contribute to explaining the dysregulated mechanisms that cause neurodevelopmental disorders, and it can suggest ways we can reawaken the neuron differentiation program for neuronal repair.

As neurons differentiate and assemble into circuits, they form among the most complex and diverse structures of any cell type. They construct complex dendrite arbors that connect them to their partners and which must be patterned to support the precise connectivity and computational requirements of each neuron. The differentiation programs that create this pattern and connectivity are genetically programmed, and when they fail, this leads to neurodevelopmental disorders. To reveal the molecular control processes of neuron differentiation, my lab is using multidisciplinary approaches in Drosophila, mouse, and human experimental systems. Our work connects from transcriptional and genomic level controls, through cell biological cytoskeleton effector interaction networks, to in vivo mapping of neuron structural differentiation and arbor pattern formation over time.

Our research will also contribute to explaining the dysregulated mechanisms that cause neurodevelopmental disorders, and it can suggest ways we can reawaken the neuron differentiation program for neuronal repair. Our aim requires that we not only identify the components of the neuron differentiation process but also understand the control mechanisms that direct and shape their usage (by analogy—not only do we want to know the parts of a bicycle, but also how to ride it).