Skip to main content
Vai all'homepage della Commissione europea (si apre in una nuova finestra)
italiano it
CORDIS - Risultati della ricerca dell’UE
CORDIS

Addressing the impact of surface ectoderm and somitic mesoderm development on neural tube morphogenesis.

Descrizione del progetto

Individuare gli agenti alla base dello sviluppo del sistema nervoso

Durante lo sviluppo, il sistema nervoso si forma dalla piastra neurale, una struttura complessa che richiede il coordinamento di diversi tessuti. Tale piastra si piega formando un tubo neurale che infine si chiude dando origine al cervello e al midollo spinale. In caso contrario, insorgono difetti del tubo stesso. Il progetto Neural Tube, finanziato dall’UE, è interessato a studiare il processo di chiusura del tubo neurale da una prospettiva meccanica. Attraverso l’impiego di embrioni murini e di xenopo liscio, il gruppo di ricercatori si propone di approfondire il contributo di altri tessuti alla chiusura di questa struttura. I risultati del progetto forniranno informazioni fondamentali sull’origine dello sviluppo umano e dei difetti del tubo neurale.

Obiettivo

Neural tube closure (NTC) is a fundamental process during vertebrate embryogenesis, which leads to the formation of the central nervous system. Defective NTC leads to neural tube defects (NTDs), which are one of the most common human birth defects. During NTC Convergent Extension (CE) leads to the narrowing and elongation of the neural plate (NP) and Apical Constriction (AC) drives the bending of the tissue. While the role of the aforementioned morphogenetic events for NTC has been studied extensively how the development of tissues mechanically coupled with the NP affects NTC remains poorly understood. Here, we aim to elucidate the influence of surface ectoderm (SE) and somitic mesoderm (SM) morphogenesis on NTC. To achieve our goals, we will employ an interdisciplinary research plan using Xenopus laevis and mouse embryos as model systems. First, to understand the contribution of SE and SM morphogenesis on NTC (AC and CE) we will specifically inhibit these processes using morpholino mediated protein knock-down in Xenopus embryos and tissue-specific knock-out and knock-in models in mice embryos. Subsequently, we will directly assess the impact of SE and SM tissue tension on NTC by modulating tissue tension in Xenopus embryos through optogenetic tools and mutant constructs in conjunction with live imaging. We will go on to examine how SE and SM influence the mechanical landscape of the NP using force inference techniques in Xenopus and mouse embryos in conjunction with loss of function approaches described above. Finally, we will examine how mechanical coupling between the NP with both the SE and SM affects the mechanosensitive elements responsible for CE and AC. Overall the data produced by the proposed work will uncover the role of SE and SM morphogenesis on NTC expanding our understanding of human NTDs, while at the same time providing precious insights with respect to the coordination and coupling of mechanical force generators during embryonic development.

Campo scientifico (EuroSciVoc)

Parole chiave

Programma(i)

Argomento(i)

Meccanismo di finanziamento

MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)

Vedi tutti i progetti finanziati nell’ambito di questo schema di finanziamento

Invito a presentare proposte

(si apre in una nuova finestra) H2020-WF-2018-2020

Vedi tutti i progetti finanziati nell’ambito del bando

Coordinatore

UNIVERSITY OF CYPRUS
Contributo netto dell'UE
€ 157 941,12
Indirizzo
AVENUE PANEPISTIMIOU 2109 AGLANTZI
1678 Nicosia
Cipro
Regione
Κύπρος Κύπρος Κύπρος
Tipo di attività
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
Collegamenti
Costo totale
€ 157 941,12