Final Report Summary - ZEBRATECTUM (Anatomical and Functional Dissection of Neural Circuits in the Zebrafish Optic Tectum)
Our work has uncovered a gradient of the secreted protein Reelin that acts in the optic tectum to provide positional information to the developing axons and dendrites to regulate synaptic lamination. Our study paves the way for the in vivo investigation of mechanisms of neural circuit establishment and maintenance potentially affected in human diseases such as autism, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia, where Reelin misexpression has been reported.
In parallel our team has pioneered the use of CRISPR/Cas9 nucleases to manipulate the zebrafish and to induce exogenous DNA insertion at precise genomic locations and cell specific Knock-out genetic models.