Líffræðifélag Íslands
Líffræðiráðstefnan 2015
Erindi/veggspjald / Talk/poster V65
Kristín E. Alansdóttir, Arnar Þór Björgvinsson, Zophonías O. Jónsson, Sigríður Rut Franzdóttir
Institute of Life- and Environmental Sciences, University of Iceland.
Kynnir / Presenter: Kristín Elísabet Alansdóttir
Tengiliður / Corresponding author: Sigríður Rut Franzdóttir (sirrut@hi.is)
A pair of essential proteins, Pontin and Reptin has been shown to play a role in multiple cellular processes, including cell growth, mitotic spindle assembly, chromatin remodelling, snoRNA assembly and more. The genes encoding Pontin and Reptin (also known as RUVBL1/2 or Rvb1/Rvb2) are expressed in the nervous system of different species, both at developmental stages and in adults. No functional assessment of their roles in the developing or adult nervous system has been performed, although they have been shown to be required for proper neuroblast divisions in Drosophila larvae. We have initiated a project to uncover the developmental roles of Pontin and Reptin in the Drosophila melanogaster nervous system. We perform mutant analysis of embryos and conditional double-strandRNA (dsRNA) mediated knock-down, followed by phenotypic analysis of the nervous-system and individual neurons. A range of phenotypes has been observed and we are currently setting up methods for single-cell analysis and temporally controllable knockdown in order to separate cell division from other potential neuronal functions of the proteins. In particular, we are interested in studying the role of the proteins in setting up and maintaining axonal structures and synapses, as well as in axonal transport.