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The 2013 Southeast Regional Society for Developmental Biology meeting will feature keynote talks from the following researchers:
| KEYNOTE SPEAKERS | |
FRANK COSTANTINI, PH.D. Monday Keynote Talk The general interest of the Costantini laboratory is in the role of cell-cell signaling and signal transduction in renal organogenesis, with emphasis on the Ret receptor tyrosine kinase. Since discovering that Ret is required for kidney development, we have focused on understanding the role of Ret, its ligand GDNF, and downstream signaling pathways and target genes in branching morphogenesis.
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LYNN RIDDIFORD, PH.D. Tuesday Keynote Talk |
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| SESSION CHAIRS | |
CRAIG PIKAARD, PH.D. Session 1 Chair The Pikaard lab studies how genes are turned on or off, using techniques of genetics, genomics, biochemistry, cell biology and molecular biology. Their current research projects are focused on the roles of chromatin modifying enzymes and noncoding RNAs in gene silencing and epigenetic phenomena. |
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SUSAN C. CHAPMAN, PH.D. Session 2 Chair The Chapman lab is interested in mechanisms of tissue specification, morphogenesis and patterning of specific regional identity during vertebrate head development, particularly within the hearing apparatus. Morphogenesis and identification of molecular mechanisms involved in patterning the middle ear from induction to complete organogenesis is an exciting, developing research area. |
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MICHAEL A MILLER, PH.D. Session 3 Chair The Miller lab uses the nematode C. elegans to study two hormone classes critical for reproduction, lipid hormones, called prostaglandins, and protein hormones, called MSPs. These two hormones mediate communication between sperm and egg that controls sperm motility and oocyte meiotic maturation, respectively. Current research projects address how these hormones function, and to investigate their evolutionary origins. |
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KRISTEN KROLL, PH.D. Session 4 Chair The Kroll lab is interested in understanding how embryonic and embryonic stem (ES) cells regulate self-renewal, lineage commitment, and differentiation in the context of vertebrate neural development. A major focus is on chromatin regulatory proteins, including the SWI-SNF and Polycomb complexes and the novel protein Geminin, which regulate transcription to control self-renewal and differentiation in multiple cell contexts. |
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KENNETH POSS, PH.D. Session 5 Chair The Poss lab is investigating the biology of spectacular regenerative events in zebrafish to discover new cellular mechanisms. At the same time, the lab is developing new tools to interrogate regeneration deeply at the molecular level. They are also pursuing fundamental aspects of organ regeneration—most importantly, how tissue renewal is stimulated by injury, and how newly created cells recognize position and functionally incorporate into existing tissue. |
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| JUNIOR FACULTY SESSION SPEAKERS | |
ROGER DEAL, PH.D. Session 1 Speaker |
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Doug Menke, PH.D. Session 2 Speaker The Menke lab uses a combination of comparative genomics and functional assays to identify key cis-regulatory elements that control the expression of developmentally important limb genes. Current work is focused on the Tbx4 gene, which encodes a T-box transcription factor critical for the formation of the hindlimb. Future research will address the functional significance of Tbx4 hindlimb control elements during normal mouse development and the biological effects of sequence changes seen in other species. |
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ELIZABETH ABLES, PH.D. Session 3 Speaker The Ables lab seeks to understand how steroid hormone signaling downstream of ecdysone signaling, or in parallel to ecdysone signaling, coordinates stem cell activity with the physiological status of the organism. Research projects hope to answer: 1) What targets of ecdysone signaling mediate GSC proliferation and maintenance? 2) Do the different EcR isoforms mediate regulation of different transcriptional targets? and 3) Do other nuclear hormone receptors regulate stem cell activity independent of EcR signaling? |
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REBECCA IHRIE, PH.D. Session 4 Speaker The Ihrie Lab is interested in how extracellular signals are integrated within stem cells to direct self-renewal, proliferation, and the generation of committed progeny. The lab focuses on a unique germinal niche in the brain: the subventricular zone (SVZ), which generates thousands of young neurons every week – a remarkable process in a largely quiescent tissue. Understanding how long-lived neural stem cells survive, proliferate and differentiate throughout life will provide significant insight into the properties of progenitor-like cells in brain tumors. |
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SARAH KUCENAS, PH.D. Session 5 Speaker The Kucenas lab explores how the nervous system is assembled and maintained. They are investigating the role of glial cells in the formation of the nervous system early in development, and nervous system preservation during disease and injury. The long-term goal is to understand the development of spinal motor nerve components and how cell-cell interactions result in coordinated differentiation, myelination, maintenance and regeneration of nerves. |
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Last modified: Saturday, February 16, 2013 by kim.kane@vanderbilt.edu