Molecular and genetic analysis of cell polarity, rna localisation and axis formation in the drosophila oocyte

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Project objective

Research objectives and content Although mRNA localization is a general mechanism for protein targeting in polarised cells, little is known about the molecular events that underlie this process. The Drosophila oocyte provides an excellent system to study this question, because the localisation of three different mRNAs to distinct positions within this cell determines the two body axes of the embryo. Genetic screens for mutants that disrupt axis formation have identified a number of genes that are required for mRNA localisation. These screens could not recover lethal mutations, however, and therefore missed many important components. I propose to perform a genetic screen that overcomes this problem. Firstly, I will use the newly-developed FRT/FLP system to screen for mutants in germline clones, since this permits the recovery of mutations in lethal genes. Secondly, I shall screen for defects in mRNA localisation directly, by visualising the localisation of these RNAs in living oocytes using fluorescently-labelled Staufen protein. The subsequent molecular analysis of these new genes should give insights into the basic mechanisms of mRNA localisation in many cell-types and organisms, since Staufen is highly conserved during evolution and plays a role in mRNA localisation in neuroblasts as well as the oocyte. Training content (objective, benefit and expected impact) The proposed thesis project will give me a wide range of experience in both Drosophila genetics and molecular biology, and will enable me to learn a large number of different techniques. I have chosen to go to the Wellcome/CRC Institute because it is one of the leading Institutes in the field of Developmental Biology in Europe, and Cambridge is a major centre for research on Drosophila. I will be affiliated with the Department of Genetics, University of Cambridge, and will also participate in their graduate training program. Links with industry / industrial relevance (22)

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Participants

• University of Cambridge · CambridgeCoordinatorUnited Kingdom

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